Monthly Archives: May 2012

Broadband at School and Home in Benton County: the rule not the exception

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I have been collecting stories on how people in Minnesota use the Internet since 1995. Back in the day there were two great stories that folks always brought up when talking about Internet in the schools. First – students getting to watch live knee surgery from their desks. Second – some sick or injured high school senior getting to attend the prom/graduation/big football game remotely. Great stories – but they highlighted the fact that the Internet was something new and different. It was exceptional.

This week, the St Cloud Times paints a different picture of Internet in the schools. The Internet/broadband now permeates every aspect of education – from teaching to education administration. Now it’s the classroom, school and student without access that have become the exception – and not in such an exceptional way…

Broadband is being used in Minnesota schools for student testing, reports to the state, portals for parents to track their child’s work, and for students to take online classes, according to a December report from the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband. Professional development for teachers is another area where broadband access can reduce costs.

“I think people don’t always realize … how essential Internet access is to the business of doing education. It’s no longer nice to have,” said Mary Mehsikomer, technology integration development and outreach facilitator for TIES, which is an education technology collaborative.

“It’s just as important as having electricity and water. It’s really become a core component of the whole business of delivering instruction and also managing school districts.”

The good news is that as the article points out – most schools and the majority of students have access. The bad news is that they often don’t have sufficient access. There are programs that are out there supporting connectivity, especially for schools. The FCC’s E-Rate program subsidies offset about $20 million to $25 million in Minnesota every year, about half of what it costs schools. On a more local level, Foley Schools recently received funding (via Blandin Foundation’s MIRC program) to install more wireless units in the school for school and community use.

And the Internet isn’t just for K12…

“Internet access has gotten so vitally important for college students,” said Vi Bergquist, chief information officer of St. Cloud Technical and Community College. “It’s almost a must.”

“Some people wouldn’t be able to get an education if we didn’t offer online classes,” she said.

At the college, registration is done only online and some classes are offered online, she said.

The college accommodates students who don’t have access at home with open computer labs, which is good but I think insufficient for many students. The article mentions a college student who was trying to take an online class using only her mobile phone. (That’s some dedication to the effort!)

So while progress is being made on the school front, progress is still lagging for home access in some areas and with some demographics…

“Some (parents) don’t realize what the kids can’t do,” he [Marc Johnson, director of ECMECC] added. “They don’t know they have access that just isn’t robust enough.”

As a community we should be asking what our kids can’t do due to limited technology – and is the cost of that lost opportunity greater than the cost of providing ubiquitous opportunity. (Both in terms of broadband connections and computers – as a parent of three students I can attest that the cost of the equipment can easily trump cost of connectivity.) There are lower-cost options available from Comcast and CenturyLink ($9.95/month and reduced rate computers for qualifying families) but that only helps in Comcast/CenturyLink coverage areas.

Free webinar from Blandin: Online Tools from Working Family Resource Center

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Next Tuesday the Blandin Foundation is hosting a free webinar as part of the Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities (MIRC) project. The webinar is open to everyone and the topic seemed like it might be of interest to many readers…

We’ll be hearing from Beth Quist, Executive Director of the Working Family Resource Center. She will tell us about Working Family Resource Center, an organization dedicated to strengthening individuals, families and communities by providing resources to support individuals as they manage the often competing demands of work and family.

Here are the details:

Time: May 22, 2012 from 12pm to 1pm
Location: Online
Join: https://blandinfoundation.ilinc.com/join/rbvfcfs Primary Dial-In: 1-866-910-4857 Passcode: 361345

Minneapolis Digital Inclusion Report

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The City of Minneapolis recently released the results of their Digital Community Survey. The survey is interesting in that you can track some high level stats – but the focus is really on the community/neighborhood perspective.

One quick high level stat – how important is it to you to have computer and Internet access at home?

Take that question and drill down by neighborhood and you can see how the details shine a light on areas that could possibly benefit from digital inclusion programs and/or public awareness campaign:

Now consider if you were looking to relocate to Minneapolis – and this was the one piece of information you had. Which neighborhood would you choose? Or from a more positive perspective, if you were looking to close the digital divide in Minneapolis, where would you start? If you drill down into the survey, you should be able to dissect interest and experience with technology by neighborhood, which would be of even more help when planning a digital literacy program. You would know what folks were using for computers (smartphones, library computers, tablets, nothing?), you’d know what they were already doing (email, text, web) and could build a program to meet those needs and more. It’s a very thorough report. Here’s the summary of findings…

Survey questions captured Minneapolis residents’ opinions and preferences related to technology, as well as their access to computers and the Internet. Overall, residents thought somewhat favorably of technology in Minneapolis, saw computers and the Internet as important, had a computer and Internet access and accessed the Internet regularly (most commonly via a high‐speed connection). Residents generally found help for any computer or Internet issues through a variety of means and participated frequently and comfortably in many basic digital activities, including emailing and using social media. However, meaningful differences were seen across the 11 communities that comprise Minneapolis as well as among different sociodemographic characteristics.

But again I think much of the value (to folks in the city) is in the detail.

CLE Day on Broadband: Full Notes

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Today I attended a full day of Continuing Legal Education sessions on Broadband. It was very interesting. I tried to take full notes (below); I will also try to give some general impressions:

  • The focus is on consumer savings, jobs and economic development
  • The FCC is aware that changing funding mechanisms presents issues for incumbents and other businesses. That’s why they are trying a gradual approach. But there are winners and losers (although who they are depends on who you ask).
  • The last chapter of FCC has yet to be written and that’s making it difficult for businesses to plan
  • There is still a focus on the US and comparing Minnesota to other states. Folks weren’t asking a lot about international perspective.
  • Privacy was one issue where international perspective came up. The EU and other areas puts a premium on privacy; the US does not.
  • Minnesota is unique in that broadband has become a county-level issue.

Full Notes… Continue reading →

Report Highlights Smart Rural Communities – including Halstad & Spring Grove MN

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Last month, the NTCA (National Telecommunications Cooperative Association) published a collection of case studies highlighting some best-of class stories for use of broadband technology in rural communities. The goal is…

This paper will explain the economic and societal gains enabled by broadband, and describe how different rural service providers and the communities they serve have embraced the challenges and opportunities of new technology.

They take a look at Education, Health Care, Agriculture, Electronic Government, Public Safety, Utilities and the Consumer’s Home. Each chapter includes a statement of need (generally backed up with statistics and citations), some specifics on what communities and providers ought to be thinking about moving forward and a couple of case studies taken from real rural communities.

I think this report can be used to compel a community to take a closer look at broadband. It could offer some advice on goals. And, as it’s been developed by the NTCA and therefore uses examples from local telecommunications providers, I think this could be used to engage local provider through examples of success approaches by counterparts in similar areas.

I would like to pull out two Minnesota examples used in the report – both highlight best practices in Education…

Halstad MN – Discovery Education Drives Use

Based in Halstad, Minn., independent telecommunications cooperative Halstad Telephone Co. (HTC) maintains an Ethernet, fiber‐based network that provides broadband service to each of the four K–12 schools in its territory. HTC is part of the Northwest Minnesota Special Access, a consortium of 18 rural telephone companies that connects 126 schools and 43 libraries in the state. Students often use a remote video connection to take advanced placement, foreign language and other specialty courses from a teacher located in another facility. The network is linked to the University of Minnesota, Crookston, enabling high school students to enroll in college courses via a video conferencing application.

Although the network has been in place for many years, HTC recently observed an exponential increase in online activity. In 2010, HTC arranged provision of Discovery Education service to its four local K–12 schools at the company’s expense for one year. Under the terms of the arrangement, instructors and students have access to Discovery Education’s multimedia and interactive content within the school building. Content includes audio files, images and videos, as well as interactive elements such as online quizzes, educational games, and math and science lab simulations. The rural communications provider reports that the various school systems engaged in this endeavor each have a 6 Mbps to 30 Mbps symmetrical connection, and due to the popularity of multimedia content, the various capacities are maxed out at least once per day. HTC also stated that combined with the increasing use of tablets, it expects many schools to double their broadband speed requirements within the next two years.

Spring Grove MN – Devices Drive Use

Headquartered in Spring Grove, Minn., rural provider Spring Grove Communications (SGC) enables its citizens to learn on cutting‐edge technology devices. SGC partnered with its local school district to outfit students with the latest laptops and tablets. Apple iPads are used in all of the elementary classrooms, and every seventh through 12th grader has an Apple MacBook Air available to him during the school day. If a student wishes to take home a MacBook Air, he has the option of renting one for $15 a month. Many of the families renting laptops have never had a computer in their home. The program engages students on a dynamic, digital online platform, providing for learning anytime and anywhere. It also is educating students and teachers alike about how to use this technology and the importance of broadband in today’s economy.

In addition to the student aspect of education innovation, virtual learning is a driver of economic development for small, rural towns. Under the traditional education system, a teacher is limited to open positions within driving distance of her home. With virtual education, a teacher residing in a rural area is able to teach from home and reach students across the state, district lines or the globe.

ARRA projects about to get scrutinized by Congressional Subcommittee – including Lake County

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The ARRA Broadband project is getting called to the principal’s office tomorrow. Yesterday the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology announced a Hearing on Broadband Loans and Grants.

Here’s the situation as stated in the Subcommittee memorandum…

More than three years after the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) allocated $7.2 billion for broadband grants and loans, the jury is still out whether taxpayers are getting their money’s worth. Despite claims of ARRA projects being “shovel ready,” recipients of 233 National Telecommunications and Information Administration awards worth $4 billion have spent just $1.6 billion of it so far. Less than a dozen of the projects have been completed. Six of the awards worth $124.5 million have been returned or revoked. Recipients of 320 Rural Utility Service Awards worth $2.4 billion have spent $968 million. Five projects have been completed. As of July 2011, $124 million in grants and $35 million in loans have been rescinded or revoked. Allegations also persist that NTIA and RUS funds are not bringing broadband to unserved areas but instead are subsidizing competitors to overbuild privately financed networks.

Here are the numbers:

NTIA
Budgeted $4 billion
Spent $1.6 billion
Revoked $124.5 million
11 projects completed

RUS
Had $2.4 billion
Spent $968 million
Revoked $159 million
5 projects completed

Congress is convening a panel of experts to talk about what’s happening, the panel includes:

  • The Honorable Larry Strickling, Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information and Administrator, NTIA
  • The Honorable Jonathan Adelstein, Administrator, RUS
  • The Honorable Todd Zinser , Inspector General, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • Mr. David Gray, Deputy Inspector General, U.S. Department of Agriculture

Causes of Current Problems

Telecompetitor notes that there are some extenuating circumstances that have made finishing projects more difficult…

The telecom industry has cited several factors (not mentioned in the memo) to explain the apparent spending slowness such as an often long approval process for environment impact studies or a shortage of fiber cabling that resulted when the April 2011 tsunami took a key vendor offline. No doubt Strickling and Adelstein will review some of these factors at the hearing.

I’ve heard from folks that both are real issues – but I’ve heard that from projects that are otherwise on track and seemingly making progress. I don’t know that the main concerns here are the projects that are running somewhat behind – but rather the projects that seem to still be hovering around the starting blocks.

Causes of Future Problems

The memo itself outlines another issue that I think may be even bigger moving forward; the FCC has made substantial changes to USF, thereby requiring changes in business plans of many ARRA grant/loan recipients…

More problems may lie ahead. The FCC has recognized the need to reform the USF’s high-cost program for a decade, with proposals in 2008 and a reiteration of that view in the 2010 National Broadband Plan. The RUS nonetheless apparently guaranteed loans under the BIP and its Telecommunications Infrastructure Loan Program on the assumption that applicants would continue to receive the same level of high-cost USF funding for the life of each loan. Now that the Commission is reforming the high-cost program, the RUS has asked loan recipients to revise and resubmit their financial projections to demonstrate sustainability.

It will be interesting to see how the Subcommittee and panel of experts addresses those issues. It’s a byproduct of the funding coming out before the National Broadband Plan – perhaps an unintended consequence but not unforeseeable.

Minnesota Projects Mentioned

Finally, two Minnesota projects were mentioned specifically in the memo. First the Leech Lake Reservation Business Committee in Minnesota declined its $1.7 million grant on the grounds that it would not be able to meet its grant requirements. And the Lake County project…

Nevertheless, industry observers have suggested that the BTOP’s and the BIP’s infrastructure loans and grants have been used to overbuild existing systems rather than extend service to unserved areas. The Government Accountability Office confirmed these suggestions at the Feb. 10, 2011, subcommittee hearing, noting that the NTIA and the RUS had performed “due diligence” with respect to overbuilding but “made a decision to go forward nonetheless” with projects that would overbuild existing facilities. Indeed, the Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations is already investigating recently publicized allegations by cable company Mediacom that the Lake County government in Minnesota is not only using $66 million in BIP funding to overbuild Mediacom, but committed fraud by misleading the RUS in its application.

The Lake County project has had its share of ups and downs. (Some might note that disruptions from incumbents may be one reason some projects are running behind.) Last we heard Lake County celebrating new location in Two Harbors. I did notice that their last couple of meetings had been cancelled.

The Subcommittee meeting will be held tomorrow, May 16, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. in room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building. I haven’t seen any notice of online broadcast.

Public-Private Partnership in Dakota County – Key is Collaboration

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I spoke last week with David Asp, Fiber Administrator and Network Engineer at Dakota County. David is a great networker in at least two ways. First, he knows how to design and build a broadband network that is efficient and effective. Second, he knows how to work with a network of people to increase efficiency and effectiveness of the broadband network. (I like to think that folks like David will keep us out of the predicament that West Virginia found themselves in – applying for federal funds to build broadband where it already existed.)

I know that many people were impressed with Dakota County’s presentation at the April Minnesota Broadband Task Force meeting, especially their one-stop-shop for right-of-way permission. It’s a glimpse at the kind of seemingly common sense approach they take to streamlining processes in Dakota County. I say seemingly because I know a ton of work must have gone into assessing the policy and procedure for each type of application and finding a way to make them work on a common online form.

It was interesting to talk with David about other projects happening in Dakota County and beyond – from the physical layer up through applications.

Here’s a sample of what’s happening:

Metro County Fiber Interconnect

Dakota County met with several other counties (Anoka, Carver, Hennepin, Olmsted, Ramsey, Scott and Washington) and Hiawatha Broadband (HBC) to discuss Metro County Fiber Interconnect. They are working on an MPLS network between all 8 counties, which will be completed by the end of June. MN.IT (formerly OET) is driving the work and will provide private network space that was allocated to each county.

The counties are working together with HBC to find ways to cost-effectively expand their fiber networks. The goal is to make the best use of existing conduit and connections, rather than building from scratch. The counties and local government agencies get to improve infrastructure. It makes the most sense to map out existing infrastructure, map out plans for future development and pool the pockets of funding to build only when necessary and pull extra strands of fiber (or post equipment on towers) whenever possible.

Homeland security, disaster recovery and transportation have been a few of the possible pockets for funding. While the infrastructure clearly supports those goals- the investment is helping in other areas as well.

This underlying layer of physical connectivity has allowed the counties to streamline processes and build new applications that save money for tax payers. Looking at the infrastructure alone, building up this mesh network among counties has allowed different entities to terminate T1 connections – those connections were costing up to $1500/month. Also each expansion is bringing increasing rural area closer to high speed broadband.

Reducing Government Operations Costs

One of the ways Dakota County has been able to use ubiquitous broadband is their SIP phone system. SIP phones use voice over IP. There are several advantages – first they are like super-sonic phones and work well for videoconferencing. David mentioned that staff in Dakota County is just as likely to meet video videoconference, even while in the same building, because of lack of conference room and convenience of videoconferencing.

Second, the phones work anywhere they can get online. So if you have relocated or have a meeting in another building, your phone still works. In case of a disaster, whole offices can be moved pretty seamlessly to new locations – the phones and computers will work. Dakota County recently moved  3,800 phones to the new SIP system.

The County is looking at virtual desktop options, where much of the interworking and content would live in the cloud, while the desktop is really just a portal to the information. There are some similar advantages to SIP phones, in that the content becomes decentralized and can be accessed remotely – but also virtual desktops should not require the same sort of upgrades as regular desktops (and laptops) require today.

Applications in the Field

Dakota County just doled out 3500 IP addresses to traffic signals across the county. They are used to track stoplights and pedestrian crossings. Good – but I must admit I didn’t really understand all of the implications until talking to David. The stoplights are tracked. The buses are tracked. So the stoplights can speed up or slow down a bus when necessary – ensuring that buses aren’t falling off schedule and grouping together. Also the lights can be tracked and through artificial intelligence will learn to direct traffic as necessary – reducing red lights for the bulk of travelers, saving both time and money. And of course smart appliances like this could be helpful in an emergency or disaster recovery situation.

Next Steps for Dakota County

The next step for Dakota County is sharing infrastructure and technology with area businesses. That is where working with folks such as HBC helps.

The County doesn’t necessarily want to get involved with providing broadband services to the end customer – but they are willing to invest and collaborate so that broadband is available. Again is feeds into supporting the tax bases and providing the services that area business and residents want and need.

Connecting with businesses and nonprofits is the next step for Dakota County. Some counties/communities may not be at the same stage – and for those folks David was also kind enough to share a series of documents that he has used coordinating various parties in public-private partnerships. The hope is that these might become templates or fodder for other counties looking at fiber options.

Agreements Between Partners – Templates

Board Documents

Working with Vendors

Rights of Way

Minnesota Public Safety Broadband Wireless Data Network Requirements Study

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A while ago I wrote about a webinar I watched on FirstNet. You may remember…

The FirstNet plan is to build a broadband network for police, firefighters, emergency medical service professionals, and other public safety officials. FirstNet is really just getting going – but there are some plans. First plan is for FirstNet to work with state, local and tribal governments. A goal is to create an interoperable, cohesive, countrywide network. That being said, states can opt-out of FirstNet. Apparently the plan (and I’m gleaning this from the webcast) is for FirstNet to come to the states with an assessment of what the state has and what they need. And RFP will be created from these assessments.

A Minnesota Public Safety Broadband Wireless Data Network Requirements Study has recently been released…

This comprehensive study was conducted through 2010-2012 to assess the needs of public safety wireless broadband in Minnesota. It is available in five sections, which each focus on a different interest area in public safety broadband. This study will form the foundation of Minnesota public safety broadband planning efforts and our interaction with national entities such as Firstnet.

I thought it might be helpful to share the recommendations from the report…

  1. Establish a body under the Statewide Radio Board to officially sanction public safety broadband planning activities and to represent the State before the FCC, NTIA, Firstnet, and standards bodies including 3GPP.
  2. Develop a Minnesota Public Safety Wireless Broadband Plan based upon its existing planning activities and current research.
  3. Develop applications and data interoperability standards, including standardized SDKs, APIs, and network interfaces as well as media codecs, signaling formats, and container formats.
  4. Execute formal MOUs with potential partners for the public safety broadband network to clearly identify all feasible avenues for alternative financial models for both construction and maintenance of the network.
  5. Expand public safety broadband planning on a regional basis to ensure interoperability with adjacent states and the provinces of Manitoba and Ontario.
  6. Work actively in larger planning and standards-setting with organizations including the FCC Technical Advisory Board, PSCR, NPSTC, 3GPP, and Firstnet to support development of national standards and a national network model that fully support the needs of the state of Minnesota.
  7. Continue requirements research and planning efforts including expansion of its existing financial models, network design, network requirements, and user needs.
  8. In the near term, construct a small public safety wireless broadband pilot network to identify transition and implementation issues specific to Minnesota, collect live user data, and serve as test-bed for innovative end-user applications.
  9. In the long term, facilitate, through whichever means best meet the needs of our public safety community, integration into the national safety broadband network that introduces operational and technological efficiencies and enhances the performance of public safety services in the state of Minnesota to maximize the protection of human health, property, and safety.

Minnesota Schools Create Positive Outcomes from Technology

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Sometimes at the Blandin Foundation we feel like gardeners. We sow seeds, we nourish projects and we wait to see what grows. It’s been fun to watch the Itasca Area Schools Collaborative (IASC) flourish especially as they receive attention (Minnesota Public Radio and Cisco website) for their success.

As Cisco reports…

Dr Michael Johnson believes that one should “never waste a good crisis.” In recent years the provost of Itasca Community College (ICC) has faced more than his share: beginning in 2005, declining enrolments in northeastern Minnesota dealt a serious blow to institutions of higher learning, as well as local elementary and secondary schools. As a result, colleges and schools funded by the state based on student population found their budgets stretched beyond the breaking point.

But Johnson and his colleagues in administration have turned obstacles into triumph: as part of the Itasca Area Schools Collaborative (IASC), the college now works in close partnership with a consortium of seven rural Minnesota K-12 school districts to share resources and provide the highest quality education possible for their students. Supported by a robust networking infrastructure, standardized systems and innovative technology tools, IASC members are ensuring that geography and distance no longer limit academic opportunity.

Blandin is pleased to have played a supporting role in the transformation. We invested $50,000 in MIRC funds through the Lightspeed grant program and $750,000 in regular grant funding to build two “immersive telepresence classrooms” in the IASC districts and related training.  (Subsequent funding includes $1.76 million in federal dollars, $1.76 investment from vendor partners and district investments of approximately $1.5 million.)

While Cisco gets into some of the details of how it happened, Minnesota Public Radio details the fruits of IASC’s labor…

Teachers are using telepresence classrooms for Spanish and Ojibwe, but next year, the district will offer 17 courses in them, ranging from literature and writing, to business, mass marketing and calculus.

School officials say the uses go beyond academic courses. The technology also will allow students to talk to people anywhere in the world, and take virtual field trips to places like NASA and the Smithsonian Museums.

[School Superintendent Matt] Grose said modern distance learning technology levels the playing field for school districts that are remote and sparsely populated. It allows them to hire specialized teachers and share the costs.

“Our kids in Deer River are going to have opportunities to take higher level courses that we can’t offer here, or at least that we don’t have the enrollment to justify a teacher for,” he said. “All of the sudden you can justify running that course and you have kids that are getting access to things that are rigorous and relevant. And we think that’s important.”

It appears that only a very small handful of K-12 schools and college campuses in Minnesota are using the newest generation of interactive technology.

We are pleased to see hard work and investment reap such benefits. We wanted to share an added perspective from IASC Technology Services Director Lora Mathison…

“This golden thread of connectivity allows classroom students to take trigonometry, dislocated workers to be retooled, agencies to offer state-of-the-art trainings for staff and business meetings to be scheduled without drive time.  The expansion to the community is only in infant stages… the expanded opportunities  for students, families, staff, community, businesses, medical institutions, non-profits and others will only be limited by creativity.  The future promises to bring new ways to utilize the telepresence classrooms that have not even been thought of yet.”

“As exciting and successful as this project has been for IASC and the region, it is just a glimpse of what may follow.  Fundamental changes in public education are on the horizon and innovative technology solutions such as telepresence will be able to offer transitional support.”

And while we’re celebrating Grand Rapids Area’s efforts around education, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention today’s Minneapolis Star Tribune on the Strive Partnership…

Known as the Strive Partnership, the program follows this strategy: Identify specific goals, come up with a common way to measure those goals, and do so by using a rigorous set of data that can be shared with everyone. Each community sets its own priorities for improving education for students “from cradle to career.”

The Deer River School District is using the approach for an effort called Itasca Area Student Success Initiative.

How to Engage Diverse Audiences Online

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E-Democracy has recently released a report on their approach (and success) in engaging diverse participants in their online (email and web-based) forums. E-Democracy hosts online discussions based on geographic location. Most of their communities are based on city or neighborhood.

I am a long-time E-Democracy volunteer. The traditional way to grow a list is through existing social networks. In other words, I ask two friends to join, they ask two friends and so on. It grows a list – but it also means you get folks who run in the same circles. In the last couple of years, E-Democracy has made concerted effort to encourage greater diversity in forum participation. This report explains what they have done successfully.

I think this work will be valuable for community leaders who are also struggling with how to make their programs more inclusive.

Here’s a quick description from the report itself…

Through this work, E-Democracy hopes to debunk assumptions that people in poverty, of color, new immigrants, and others historically disenfranchised are digitally disconnected or less interested in connecting with their neighbors online than those in homogeneous, wealthy neighborhoods – and instead demonstrate that they in fact bring assets, capacities, information, and agenda-setting value to online civic participation.

And here’s an abbreviated/paraphrased list of what has worked…

In Outreach:

  • Face-to-face connections, paper signup sheets, and a personal approach are by far the most successful recruiting methods.
  • Building trust is essential. Knowing that “someone like me” is on the forum makes a difference. Personal invitations and direct support help people get started.
  • Understanding people’s needs and then helping them find ways for those needs to be addressed through the forum smooths the path for their participation and continued involvement.
  • Partnering with respected neighbors and event organizers creates opportunities to participate in community activities and offer people the chance to sign up for our forums

Content Management

  • Seeding stories that are of interest to diverse populations
  • Maintaining cultural awareness and proficiency in posts and outreach

The report is full of stories and practical advice – and again suggested reading for leaders in any community effort that would benefit from increasing diversity. (I have to think that’s just about any effort.) You can also learn more about the project on a special online event with the authors and others involved with the project will speak.

PCs for People in Austin MN

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I’ve been following the news on different MIRC (Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities) partners – especially in the last year since many projects have been coming to fruition. PCs for People have captured the imagination of many community leaders – and have had great success going into a town, accepting donated computers, refurbishing them and leaving them for the community to donate to folks in need. They recently hit Austin with a successful push to get 75 computers to low-income families and seniors. The Austin Daily Herald reported on the story – offering a “prequel” to the story we’ve bene hearing all year…

PCs for People chose Austin as one of 10 greater-Minnesota communities to get 75 to 100 free computers since February 2012. But that isn’t the beginning. PCs for People has donated more than 14,000 computers since it started in 1998. With the help of local businesses such as Hormel, the Mayo Clinic and local electric co-op, PCs for People was able to convert used or damaged computers into, practical, usable gifts for those who need them.

“This is a win-win for businesses need to manage their end-of-lifecycle digital assets in a cost-effective way, and for the community,” said Casey Sorenson, executive director of PCs for People.”

Todd County Plans for Broadband

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Todd County has been investigating fiber options. Last fall they received support from the Blandin Foundation to do a broadband feasibility study. Last night there was a big meeting in Todd County to discuss findings and progress. Below are notes from that meeting.

Todd County FIBERBAND 40 people in attendance Nate Burkett, county coordinator goal of meeting –
Inform, gather information from users, find partners, not make decisions

Timeline on project:

  • April 2011 – County board approves resolution seeking broadband
  • May 2011 – Countywide meeting
  • August Blandin grant
  • January 2012 – feasibility study completed and presented to county board.
  • March 2012 – interest survey through tax statements – 400 responses.
  • April – meeting with Arvig to discuss partnership possibilities

What’s next?
Community decision making.

Mark Birkholz – ACS

No current business model works for FTTP now PP partnership might work – evaluate… Breakeven – 25, 36 to 43 years Be ready if BB stimulus funds become available.
Be positioned for USF changes – proposed changes will not help project.
Fiber is the end all – be all for broadband deployment.

John Schultz U-reka Broadband Ventures

Cites the county for moving relatively quickly. John recognizes Blandin, Toni Merdan and Alex Weego.

Starting does lead to action.. Todd County has started!
Marketing study, Build options, Capital requirements, Business modeling, possible next steps.

Residential
96 % of people still have a land line telephone.
53% Internet penetration

  • Rural customers less satisfied
  • Customers want faster speeds, more bandwidth 74% cable and satellite penetration
  • Charter in town
  • Dish in rural areas
  • Where ACS has capacity, they also offer video

65% “likely” to change providers
same percentage in rural and urban

Expected bundle pricing
39% – $85-100 per month
20% – $101 – 110
18% – more than 110 dollars

Business survey

  • 86% of businesses use a broadband connection Only 37% have a web site those not using cannot get broadband 62% would like higher speeds at work
  • 100 % want faster service at home

A few Todd County customers have FTTH through ACS or Consolidated Telephone or WCTA.

Rural outside ACS
Town/city outside ACS
ACS Service Areas

Total build cost with 100% penetration – $65 million 65% penetration used. ACS competitive pricing model – Staples and Wadena
30 year model – $42 million capital cost and operational costs based on 65% penetration. Includes electronics refresh.

Cash flow positive in year 3.

Intangible benefits

  • Savings due to competitive environment – 30%?
  • Economic development surrounding the network development
  • Significant jobs impact
  • Improved governmental and educational services

Jobs – construction and operations and permanent new business and jobs and telework.

Now

  • further discussions with ACS
  • Sales/education and marketing program to demonstrate 65% penetration Discussions with funding sources – bonding, etc.
  • Meet with RUS
  • Follow USF discussion and exploit opportunities

Questions –

Recruiting market/education team.

Issues around multiple devices and the use of bandwidth.
Cannot take online classes due to poor broadband.
K12 districts need students with broadband; new online training enabling college courses. Schools need the bandwidth too!
Bundling would be a big saver for residential and business.
Rural people may be/would be willing to pay more.
Move forward as a county .
Wireless did not work when it rains, snows, etc.
Timelines on decision-making.
County goal 20/10 Mb by 2014 in towns, in rural areas by 2016.
Hoping for federal action.
3 year build out to spend $65 million.

Wireless as the solution. Many limitations to wireless; it is significantly cheaper. Fiber is future proof. Copper is definitely limited.

Need to work to get the discussion going across the county, with lots of people participating. Make it easy for the county board to say yes.

So many people want and need broadband. We need a local partner, one with local customer service. People in rural MN understand the needs and value of both rural and city livers.

Discussion about enhanced competition. and the effect on pricing and take rates. Schultz indicated that they need 65% take rate and around $100 ARPU.

Community questions about making things happen. How do we get the word out? How does this work get done?

geography differences – what are they?

New worker in Todd County – tech consultant. Able to get high speed in town. This is critical for business and education. Colleges and high schools are becoming increasingly intertwined. Bandwidth is the link to connect students and educational institutional . Lives in Clarissa. Ready to help get things going using social media and local contacts!

Net Neutrality 2.0

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Due to pure time constraints I sometimes leave federal broadband issues to other folks. But the practice (or refusal to practice) net neutrality is everywhere this week – starting with Minnesota’s Senator Franken.

The big issue is that Comcast is giving priority to its online video service Xfinity. The NY Times paints a picture of what’s happening in terms that are accessible to most folks…

“If I watch last night’s ‘S.N.L.’ episode on my Xbox through the Hulu app, it eats up about one gigabyte of my cap, but if I watch that same episode through the Xfinity Xbox app, it doesn’t use up my cap at all,” Mr. Hastings wrote on his Facebook page. “In what way is this neutral?”

Earlier this week, Senator Franken sent a letter to the FCC asking them to look at the situation…

The Minnesota Democrat today sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice asking the agencies to take a closer look at a new service Comcast announced in March that will stream Xfinity on-demand content to Microsoft Xbox consoles.

Comcast maintains that their service agreements are in compliance with net neutrality because it relates only to its own network – tranport does not involved the Internet at large…

Comcast’s On Demand service, a service used hundreds of millions of times by our customers every month for the past several years, is indisputably part of our Title VI cable service which is not subject to the FCC’s Open Internet Rules – and we are not aware of anyone who has taken a contrary view. When Comcast streams its own services over the open Internet (including XfinityTV.com or nbc.com), such streaming is subject to Comcast’s broadband Internet data usage standards. But the Xfinity app for the X-Box does not stream content over the open Internet and is also part of our Title VI cable service. As such, it is not subject to the FCC’s open internet rules.

Franken counters…

Still, Franken said in his letter that even if Comcast is not technically in violation of the rules, its intent is to favor its own services over services offered by potential competitors.

The NY Times article explains why this should matter to the average consumer…

Today, 96 percent of Americans have a choice of at most two broadband providers — a cable company and a phone provider. For consumers who desire very high speeds, cable is often the only choice — along with Verizon’s FiOS and AT&T’s U-verse in small pockets of the country. If given free rein, these gatekeepers could determine which services get to drive through the pipes that make up the Internet at what speeds and prices.

The NY Times even offers a solution of sorts – or at least points out in hindsight what they feel was a crucial policy error in the US…

There is little mystery here. About a decade ago, the government forced France Telecom to lease capacity on its wires to rivals for a regulated price, allowing competitors like Iliad to storm in. The United States took a different path: the Telecommunications Act of 1996 had opened the possibility of similar unbundling, but the F.C.C. decided against such action out of concern it would discourage investment in physical infrastructure.

The F.C.C. appears to have made the wrong call. Iliad started piggybacking on France Telecom’s wires, but soon began laying wires of its own. In 2002, the United States had the sixth-highest broadband penetration among all O.E.C.D. countries. Last year it was in 15th place. Of 34 industrialized countries, the United States ranks 17th in terms of average download speeds. Among the 31 countries that have very-high-speed broadband access, the United States is more expensive, trailing only Turkey, Israel and Chile.

So a new chapter on net neutrality begins. Increased access to fiber as a competitive solution may solve some of the problems. But it’s the OECD ranking that has me a little nervous. Are current providers fighting over deck chairs on the Titanic? Are we focusing too much on maintaining the local market status quo and forgetting that we’re not in competition with ourselves anymore – but that the Internet has opened up a world of global competition and we’re no longer leading that pack?

May Governor’s Task Force on Broadband: Full Notes

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Sorry for the delay in getting these notes up. The irony is that it takes me a while to upload large videos – so when I record part of the session, I’m always slower in getting the notes up.

Yesterday I attended the Task Force meeting in Winona. It was held at Winona Health. It was fun to hear how Winona Health is using technology and moving towards implementing telemedicine. In short, the effort started 10 years ago with digitizing health records (EHR), centralizing them and allowing different facilities to share records. That was the building block making is possible to now deploy remote consults.

It sounds as if broadband and reimbursement have been two big issues in getting all of this done. Without broadband none of it would be possible. Without reimbursement, it will be difficult for it to be sustainable. (And reimbursement needs to include reimbursing healthcare providers for remote visits as well as reimbursement for equipment and technology maintenance.)

Two of the Task Force small groups met during the session: Broadband Adoption and Monitor/Understand Impact of FCC/PUC Decisions. Both seem to be moving forward with action items to help the state get closer to the broadband goals.

The next meeting will be June 12 in Deer River/Cass Lake. Continue reading →

2012 Regional Communications Law Forum – May 16

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I’m not a lawyer but I thought this looked interesting. I will attend and will try to take notes – but I thought others might be interested as well..

Here are the logistics:

Wednesday, May 16, 2012
8:55 AM – 4:30 PM (Central Time)
Minnesota CLE Conference Center
600 Nicollet Mall # 370
3rd Floor City Center
Minneapolis, MN 55402-1641

And the invitation from the website:

Attorneys, consultants and lobbyists practicing in the development of broadband laws and policies will want to attend the 2012 Communications Law Annual Forum. The Forum will feature key state broadband and telecommunications attorneys and policy makers and national experts to share their expertise at the FCC and NENA.

Featured speakers include:

  • Margaret Anderson Kelliher
    President and CEO of the Minnesota High Tech Association
  • Commissioner Mike Rothman
    Department of Commerce
  • Commissioner Carolyn Parnell
    Office Enterprise Technology
  • Joseph Cavender
    Wireline Competition Bureau
    Federal Communications Commission
  • Trey Forgety
    National Emergency Numbering Association (NENA)
  • Industry Attorneys from Comcast and Century Link
  • Leading Telecommunications Attorneys