Monthly Archives: September 2012

Blandin eNews Monthly Recap September 2012

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News from the Blandin on Broadband Blog
2012 Minnesota Fall Broadband Conference
The theme of the Fall Broadband Conference is Building Our Connection Future: Minnesota’s Better with Broadband http://tinyurl.com/8q8hakw. It will be held in Duluth on November 13-14. The conference will immediately follow the Minnesota Broadband Task Force, also held in Duluth. It will feature Minnesota-grown best practices for broadband adoption, a national perspective on broadband expansion in rural areas from Craig Settles and a look at national policy from Connected Nation’s Tom Koutsky. A preliminary agenda is available http://tinyurl.com/ckwtrhg and registration is now open. http://tinyurl.com/cgr9hau
Cities Need to Improve Online Gateway
The Minneapolis Star Tribune highlights Twin Cities-based communities with websites that are not meeting the needs of current residents, nor attracting new residents to the area. The article echoes the importance of a lesson learned at the 2010 Fall Broadband Conference; people, especially young people, are making decisions on where to work, live and play based on community websites. Some rural communities, such as Windom and Winona, heard the message and have improved their digital welcome mats. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PK
Advice for Communities Looking at Broadband
Bill Coleman, coach for the Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities (MIRC) projects, offers advice to communities looking at broadband in terms of convening a leadership group. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Pk (Communities interested in applying to the Blandin Broadband Communities program are required to have a leadership team in place.) http://wp.me/p3if7-1OD

Broadband Expansion Still Needs Help
In August, the FCC declared that broadband is not yet being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion. In Minnesota, they found that 8 percent of the population does not have access to fixed broadband. In non-rural areas the percentage is .8 percent; in rural areas that percentage climbs to 27.7 percent. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PD The report echoes findings from the latest Akamai report, which indicates that while the average broadband speed may be increasing in the US, the US is still trailing other countries in terms of broadband speed and adoption. http://wp.me/p3if7-1OP

Minnesota Broadband News

Anoka
The Anoka fiber project is about 75 percent finished with completion expected in October 2012. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Ph

Baudette
LakeWood Health Center in Baudette uses telemedicine technology to provide additional e-Emergency services through a partnership with Sioux Falls-based Avera Health system. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Q4

Benton County
Benton County provides a recap of the Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities (MIRC) projects in their area, including increased public access to computers, an improved community website, telemedicine efforts that keep residents in their homes longer and increased wireless access in the schools and school campuses. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Ow

Cloquet Valley
Cloquet Valley Internet Initiative review the results of their recent broadband satisfaction survey and find dissatisfaction with the current level of service, as well as high interest in subscribing to better services. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Pd

U-reka Broadband, consultants working with Cloquet Valley, outline some of the broadband opportunities available to the community. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PY

Cook County
Cook County provides a recap of the Minnesota Intelligent Rural Communities (MIRC) projects in their area, including social media efforts to promote good health, computer distribution efforts, training and higher education programs and interactive community websites. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Ot

Deer River
Deer River School District and their telepresence classrooms are featured in national article on how technology is being used to improve education. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PO

Duluth
Involta Data Centers plans for grand opening on September 26. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PV

Kittson County
Kittson County is celebrating the ARRA-funded fiber network being installed in their community. http://wp.me/p3if7-1OI

Lake County
Lake County receives more attention for the efforts to expand broadband in their area. http://wp.me/p3if7-1OW Part of the problem may lie in the definition of served, underserved and unserved.

Minneapolis
The ARRA-funded Broadband Access Project (BAP) celebrates the first graduation of its Asian Media Technology Training, which taught students the five most common ways to use media in today’s world. http://wp.me/p3if7-1PS

Morris
Minnesota courtrooms are using technology to facilitate remote hearings, remote monitoring of courtrooms and centralized citation payment system. http://wp.me/p3if7-1OZ

Redwood County
Redwood County will be working with Compass Consulting on a broadband feasibility study for the community. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Pa

St Paul
St Paul is looking at working with Ramsey County on a fiber network. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Oz The network is getting attention from local incumbent providers http://wp.me/p3if7-1Pw and community network proponents. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Q7

The Minnesota State Fair publicizes free wi-fi for fair goers. http://wp.me/p3if7-1Ps

Upper Minnesota River Valley
Working with PCs for People and five areas schools, Upper Minnesota River Valley was able to distribute 100 computers to families that would not otherwise have access to a computer at home. http://wp.me/p3if7-1P2

Events

Looking for more events? Check out Tech.MN’s calendar http://tech.mn/events/. Many events are based in the Twin Cities but it is a comprehensive list. (If you have an upcoming event, consider submitting it.)

Stirring the Pot

I am often surprised at how few economic developers see the link between technology and economic development. Likewise, I am surprised at the lack of engagement by telecom providers with the economic development community.

Broadband networks and technology adoption are at the heart of almost every core component of economic development strategy. Economic developers need to ask themselves some questions about broadband availability and use in their communities. Some examples:

  • Data centers – Attracting a data center is a great economic development score, providing tax base with few needs for municipal services.
    • If your community is not well positioned to attract a data center, does it means that your broadband network has shortcomings?
  • Entrepreneurial development – Many entrepreneurs use broadband technology as a critical component of their business. Entrepreneurs are great for adding vitality to underutilized properties in downtown areas. Technology can substitute for labor or provide virtual connections to support services as start-ups seek to minimize expenses.
    • Can entrepreneurs find affordable space with adequate broadband services in your community?
    • Do you have an established network of business support services, including networks, web development and other tech services?
  • Business retention and expansion – Many factors keep businesses from growing and thriving, including the lack of understanding of how technology can increase productivity and improve marketing and sales.
    • What are the technology deficits in your community that are hampering company growth?
    • Broadband connectivity availability or cost? Lack of tech support? Lack of tech strategy?

Economic developers need to increase their understanding about how well their communities are positioned to compete for new businesses and support existing businesses in a world where connectivity and technological sophistication are growing in importance every day. Providers need to recognize how important their operations are to supporting the economic vitality of the communities that they serve. Let’s come together to make it happen!

Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Meeting: Sep 11 in Thief River Falls

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Just a heads up on the next Minnesota Broadband Task Force meeting. Here are the quick essential details…

September 11
Thief River Falls
Northland Community and Technical College
Thief River Falls Campus,  Room 735
1101 Highway One East, Thief River Falls, MN
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

And the Agenda…

  • 10:00-10:15 – Welcome/Public Comments/Approve Minutes
  • 10:15-10:30 – Host Welcome (Northland Community and Technical College)
  • 10:30-12:30 – Review final September report draft (working lunch if needed)
  • 12:30-1:00 – Michelle Landsverk from Impact 20/20
  • 1:00-1:45 – Jack Geller from the UofMN/Crookston
  • 1:45-2:00 – Public comments
  • 2:00-2:15 – Other business/Upcoming meetings
  • 2:15-2:30 – Drive to Digi-Key
  • 2:30-4:00 – Tour of Digi-Key

Arrangements for the visit to Digi-Key

Location address: Digi-Key Corporation – 701 Brooks Ave South, Thief River Falls, MN

Arrive: East Entrance of building

Conference Room: East Wing

Time(s):

  • 2:30pm – arrive at Digi-Key – East Wing conference room
  • 2:45pm – Tony Harris – PowerPoint presentation
  • 3:30pm – Tour (approx.: ½ hour)
  • 4:00 – 4:10pm – depart Digi-Key

I plan to go to take notes. Th meetings are open to the general public.

St Paul/Ramsey County Fiber Network: Finding perfect recipe

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Chris Mitchell wrote an article last week on the St Paul / Ramsey County fiber plan. It’s an interesting look at the options and barriers inherent in a broadband upgrade at any level. First you have the incumbent provider…

Saint Paul and Ramsey presently rely on Comcast’s network to transfer data files between locations and access the Internet. It is an old cable network, called the I-Net, that is failing to meet the present day needs for the City and County. Because Comcast provides the I-Net at no charge as part of the franchise, they put it up with its inadequacies. But government employees are less efficient than they could be due to this old, unreliable network. For instance, they have to wait for GIS files to crawl across the network.

If you’re lucky, you have champions. And as Chris points out while there are some broadband-focused residents in the area, we (I live in St Paul too) haven’t exactly stepped up to do much.

No one, including myself, stepped up. I have lived in St Paul for 15 years and now own a home here. This has been a failure of leadership from elected officials, staff, and concerned citizens (in that order).

There was a deadline for action…

Nonetheless, St Paul had to take action for a new I-Net before 2013, when the Comcast franchise was set to expire.

There is a new provider stepping in to offer service. In this case it’s Minnesota Fiber Exchange (MFE)…

This is the present plan, as far as we can tell. Rather than paying Comcast its inflated rates to lease services, the County is paying MFE to build a network that will connect public facilities and be owned by the County. St Paul will lease capacity from that network. In building the County’s network, MFE will build its own network right next to the County at the same time. The County will serve community anchors (schools, police, fire, etc.) and MFE will offer dark fiber to everyone else.

In this scenario, the solution is too public for incumbent providers, too private for public proponents – but as a resident I have to say – at least broadband is on the radar. One commonality between this plan and Lake County and Monticello when it was getting started is that the squeaky wheel seems to get the grease. Chris alludes to this in his last paragraph…

Oh, and one for the road – Comcast is readying some upgrades to its network. Let’s see who gets it first — markets with real competition, or those where Comcast only has to worry about slow DSL from CenturyLink.

It will be interesting to see what happens here – but for folks in other communities, I think it’s helpful just to look at some of the ingredients on the table – the current providers, local champions, prospective providers and a deadline.