Tag: broadband

SiFi Networks to build FTTH network for Pacific Grove, CA

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April 20, 2014
Lightwave Staff
English: Point Piños Light near Pacific Grove,...

English: Point Piños Light near Pacific Grove, California (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SiFi Networks says it has signed an agreement to build an open access fiber to the home (FTTH) network in Pacific Grove, CA. The proposed network will be capable of delivering 1-Gbps services.

The UK-based SiFi Networks builds FTTH networks based on its Fiber Optic Cable Ubiquitous Solution (FOCUS) to create a “FiberCity.” The approach leverages the company’s patented Wastewater Fiber Technology (WFT), in which fiber-optic cable is deployed in sanitary and storm wastewater conduit.

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Shawnee County selected to pilot broadband initiative

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Another job for consultants without any appreciable results all at taxpayer expense.  If the community feels a need for better broadband services, then they probably do need better broadband services.  The consultants will spend the money to produce a nice report without any increase in broadband penetration.  Data are readily available for a county staff person to draft a high-level report outlining the issues and challenges then they could draft and RFI and provide it to several communications suppliers so they can provide their input as to how to improve broadband services in the county.  A wise commission would proceed down this path and save the money.  $6 million could serve approximately 10,000 homes which could easily eliminate a percent of those homes not currently served by any broadband access.  Municipalities and counties need to be wise on how they spend their money.

By Aly Van Dyke

Surprising as it might seem, there are areas of Shawnee County that don’t have adequate access to the Internet.

“We have students, families and patrons of 372 who are currently underserved or unable to access quality and affordable broadband,” said Tim Hallacy, superintendent of Silver Lake Unified School District 372. This, he said, at a time when teaching and learning — not to mention business interests — rely heavily on quality Internet access.

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AT&T hopes to fight Google Fiber with gigabit internet in more cities

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Fiber optic endsAT&T isn’t letting Google Fiber’s expansion plans go unanswered. The telecom giant hasannounced that it’s looking at bringing its GigaPower internet service to as many as 21 additional big cities and their nearby municipalities. There’s some potential for direct competition with Google, as both companies are looking into gigabit access for key urban areas like Atlanta, San Antonio and San Jose. However, it’s clear that AT&T is taking some initiative here — it’s also exploring rollouts in Chicago, Los Angeles and other hubs that aren’t currently on its rival’s roadmap.

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5 States to Watch in the Community Broadband Fight

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BY  / APRIL 18, 2014

The State Capitol in Topeka, Kan.

The battle between local governments and telecommunications providers over the right to establish community broadband networks heated up over the last several months, as a number of bills were introduced that could have significant impact on municipalities in five states.

Kansas, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Utah and Tennessee were all in the spotlight earlier this year regarding everything from de-facto bans on community networks to funding and development issues. Some of the bills were pulled off the table, while others have continued through their respective states’ legislative processes.

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Raleigh approves AT&T’s fiber internet plan

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Lauren K. Ohnesorge
Staff Writer-Triangle Business Journal

The City of Raleigh officially put its stamp of approval on AT&T’s (NYSE: T) plan to bring its “GigaPower” fiber-based internet service here.

Gail Roper, Raleigh’s chief information officer, says the timing is still up in the air. “That would be dependent upon when we finish out all the legal negotiations,” she says, adding that the hope is that things get rolling before the end of the year.

And no, this will have no impact on the city’s ongoing plan to entice Google and its Google Fiber service.

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Telecom reps offer testimony at rural broadband hearing

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Editorial: There is no question that opening up spectrum for rural access will help create more broadband access competition.  The problem is that they are still working within the current duopoly business models and regulatory structures.  Rural access will benefit from economies of scale.  If towns and counties build a common fiber infrastructure and lease it to the communications providers, then the economics of building rural wireline networks greatly improves.

Testimony

Mark Meyerhofer, the director of government relations for Time Warner Cable’s Western New York office, delivers testimony during the rural broadband field hearing. Meyerhofer testified that geographic isolation and topographic issues make it economically infeasible for Internet service providers to reach many rural areas.

Posted: Friday, March 21, 2014 12:00 am
By Jim Krencik [email protected]

ALBION — Congress came to Orleans County Thursday, as a field hearing called by Rep. Chris Collins drew testimony on rural broadband from national, regional and community-level telecommunications firms.

The House Small Business Subcommittee hearing held in the Orleans County Legislative Chambers lacked the scale of a full Congressional panel, but not in importance.

Representatives of Time Warner Cable, Frontier Communications and Rural Broadband Association offered testimony on FCC regulations, service expansion challenges and the industry’s future opportunities.

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Broadband access gap in Iowa shrinking: Connect Iowa

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Internet Access Here Sign

Internet Access Here Sign (Photo credit: Steve Rhode)

I am personally delighted to see my home state of Iowa increasing broadband penetration.  Like any big data gathering project, the results are only as good as the data put into the database.  I believe that some providers are a little over optimistic on their service availability especially just outside of metropolitan areas.  I honestly think that there are more than 2.3% of the households that are not served by wired Internet.  Just look at the number of households in Warren county outside of Des Moines with no service.  The next step should be to improve the quality of data.  In any case the numbers are very high which for a state that has very long loop lengths area-wise.

New research unveiled today by Connect Iowa shows that the broadband availability gap in the state is shrinking, with 93.5% of Iowa residents now having access to fixed broadband of 3 Mbps download or higher, compared to 92.5% last year.

Nonprofit Connect Iowa has been working since 2009 to ensure that Iowans have access to the economic, educational, and quality of life benefits derived from increased broadband access, adoption, and use.

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