Tag: municipal broadband

Muni ISP forced to shut off fiber-to-the-home Internet after court ruling

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The city council in Wilson, North Carolina, has reluctantly voted to turn off the fiber Internet service it provides to a nearby town because of a court ruling that prevents expansion of municipal broadband services.

The Federal Communications Commission in February 2015 voted to block laws in North Carolina and Tennessee that prevent municipal broadband providers from expanding outside their territories. After that vote, Wilson’s Greenlight fiber Internet service expanded to the nearby town of Pinetops. Continue reading

Gigabites: A Love Letter to Nashville

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MARI SILBEY

It’s Gigabites, the Labor Day Weekend edition. In this week’s report, Google Fiber and AT&T battle it out in Nashville; the FCC backs down from the municipal broadband fight; Comcast challenges Verizon in a ranking of broadband speeds; and more.

Who loves Nashville the most? Google Fiber Inc. says it has the city’s best interests at heart in requesting a new One Touch Make Ready (OTMR) ruling from the city government. The OTMR ordinance would make it easier for Google Fiber, and anyone else, to attach new broadband lines to local utility poles. In ablog post dedicated “To Nashville, with love,” the company appeals directly to the city’s residents asking them to support the ruling at a vote on September 6. Google Fiber says a positive vote would speed up the process of bringing Google Fiber to the Music City. So far, the company points out that only 33 utility poles have been made ready for Google Fiber attachments out of the more than 44,000 in the city that need work done in preparation for new fiber lines.

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Expand Broadband Internet, Not The Size Of Government

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I’d like to respond to two letters in your July 13 edition that praised Rep. Mike Carter’s efforts to expand statewide broadband access. Rep. Carter wants more government involvement in the broadband sector, including an expansion of taxpayer-funded, municipal broadband networks.

Rep. Carter’s supporters argued he’s standing up for consumers against huge telecommunications companies, but by supporting greater government ownership of broadband he’s really working against small businesses like mine. While it’s true many of my colleagues in the telecom sector oppose Rep. Carter’s efforts, the bills he supports wouldn’t hurt the giants of the industry. They’d hurt small, locally owned internet service providers like mine that are struggling to provide good service in our neighborhoods and good jobs in our communities. Continue reading

PC magazine ranks Longmont third nationally for internet speeds

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by Joshua Lindenstein on September 1, 2016

LONGMONT – The rollout of Longmont’s NextLight municipal broadband service continues to put the city on the map as it relates to the fastest available Internet speeds nationwide.

PC magazine this week ranked Longmont third in the country among cities with the fastest average Internet upload and download speeds based on tests conducted by the publication. Only Kansas City, Mo. — one of the seven cities where Google Fiber offers its gigabit service — and Deltona, Fla., topped Longmont on the list. Continue reading

Redzone Wireless, LLC Announces New $1M Municipal Broadband Funding Program to Improve Rural Maine Communities’ Internet Development Options

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ROCKLAND, Maine, July 26, 2016 /PRNewswire-iReach/ — Redzone Wireless, LLC, a Maine-based Broadband provider, announced an innovative new funding program for rural municipalities seeking to increase high speed internet performance and service availability within their community, and has committed $1M in initial project funding for 2017.

Photo – Redzone’s “Fast for 5” program will provide 100% funded community wireless broadband systems, completely designed, constructed, and managed by Redzone Wireless, in exchange for the local community guaranteeing a minimum level of broadband services for a 5-year term. Continue reading

Broadband could be $125M effort for Fort Collins

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Fort Collins, facing west (1875)

Fort Collins, facing west (1875) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Apparently no one properly explained how the wholesale model could be the best option for Fort Collins. Using a wholesale model, the city can attract multiple service providers from local to regional carriers that could boost their utilization well over 30%. Another benefit is that they do not have to keep up the technology arms race that Comcast and CenturyLink will be sure to start. Their consultant really should provide them better advice on the wholesale option.

, [email protected]

Fort Collins residents love their internet. And like technology consumers everywhere, they want their connection to be fast, cheap and reliable. Continue reading

After Legal Defeat, US Mayors Vow to Continue Municipal Broadband Fight

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WRITTEN BY SAM GUSTIN

Two weeks after a federal court dealt a major blow to municipal broadband advocates, dozens of US mayors and city leaders vowed on Wednesday to continue the fight for local control of next-generation communications networks.

These community leaders are speaking out after the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that the Federal Communications Commission lacks the authority to preempt state laws that pose barriers to municipal broadband development. Continue reading