Thanks to JC Shepard for sending me the link to Rural Broadband’s Struggles in the Wall St Journal. Ironically I had been reading and watching stories on municipal networks so this is a perfect fit.

Along the theme from yesterday, the Wall St article shows a great video from the frontlines of the un-served and under-served areas – this time in Vermont.

The video features a woman who pays $60 for satellite because it is slightly better than dialup and all that’s available, as she says it’s difficult to run a small business without broadband. I love/hate the story of how she launches warm cups of water to melt the snow on the satellite dish after a blizzard to get the connection going again. I think in Minnesota we can feel her pain – I imagine some of us more acutely than others.

It also features a mom (and nonprofit director) going to the library– because dialup in her home is insufficient. I know this hit home for JC. I can’t even imagine having to drag my kids to the library to do homework. Heck, it’s tough enough to get them to do it from home. Now imagine fitting in a trip to the library – during library hours – with other afterschool activities – ouch!

It’s frustrating to watch these anecdotes. I can’t imagine living them. These people need broadband – but the commercial providers have deemed these areas to be unprofitable. I’m not saying they’re wrong – but as the WSJ article points out this makes these areas a prime spot for the stimulus funds. (And there are plenty of Minnesota-based communities that fit this description too!!)

I read another article this morning that demonstrates the need for universal broadband access on a macro level (Does American Need Universal Broadband?). In it the author talks about how many businesses assume a critical mass of customers have broadband and now provide services under that assumption. (Think software upgrade and patches from Microsoft – for example.)

If broadband was universal, the government could take advantage too – saving taxpayer dollars. (Some would say that they already provide services that are not accessible to dialup users.)

Increasing broadband is becoming a necessity – or at least a common good, which should open the door to municipalities providing the services. Which leads to the end of my morning – watching an archive of a web cast called Broadband Networks That Pay Off – Generating Cost Saving and Return on Investment (ROI) with Municipal Broadband Applications.

The video was for municipalities who were considering a muni network. They talked about the need to build a business case – to start by talking to as many people as possible who might have an interest or need in the network.

There was a lot of focus on the good the broadband can bring to the community and the potential savings for a municipality to provide their own services. The top reasons webinar attendees had for looking into a network was public safety, followed by public service.

I know municipal networks can be a sensitive issue – but I think in un-served and under-served areas municipalities can provide a service where the market will not otherwise bring adequate services.