Here’s another speaker bio for the upcoming Minnesota Broadband conference… 

Jeff Lueders

Short Bio

Jeff Lueders, the Manager of Video Services for the City of Lakeville, MN and current President of the Minnesota Association for Community Telecommunications Administrators (MACTA) is involved in the on-going telecommunications legislative discussions at the local, state and federal levels. He brings a clear message of keeping communities safe by maintaining local regulatory authority, fostering competition, preventing a digital divide and he is an advocate for the many benefits of Community Television. He draws upon his experiences including: 12 years as District TV Coordinator for the Rochester Public Schools; 10 years as the Manager of Video Services for the City of Lakeville; and 28 years as a volunteer in Community Television.

In addition, as a Past member of the Minnesota Educational Media Organization (MEMO) and the Minnesota Two-way Interactive Television Directors, Jeff was instrumental in the advancement of educational access and two-way interactive television in Rochester, MN.

The City of Lakeville convened a Business Telecommunications Technology Task Force in 2007 and is in the final stages of the review and report process. In addition to the creation and playback of award winning cable programs on the Government Access channel, the City of Lakeville Video Services department offers all of their programs on the city web site and recently began pod casting City Council and Planning Commission meetings.

What aspects of broadband are on your mind these days? (Or what info do you hope to impart at the conference?)

We are in the midst of a broadband revolution whether we choose to recognize it or not. The question is: Will this country and the state of Minnesota in particular, advance into a position of competitive neutrality or advantage? Or, Will we fall further from the leading broadband countries and cause innovators and high bandwidth users to leave our state and country? I look forward to the discussion.

What are you hoping to learn at the conference?

Along with learning what others are doing to maintain or increase the telecommunications capacity within their communities, I am hoping to learn why so many people tie the speed of deployment of fiber with franchise agreements?