FTTH networks are being deployed in cities and communities across the U.S., bringing a transformation in work efficiency and leisure activities. A new playing field is being created for upgraded communities – make sure yours isn’t left out! Register now and join us September 2-4 in Minneapolis to discover best practices for successfully deploying an FTTH network efficiently and affordably.
Enhance Your Knowledge
Explore deployment strategies with experienced network operators, and learn about the positive impact of bringing FTTH to your community from civic leaders who moved forward and are now seeing the benefits. Discussion topics will include:
Why Technology Matters – The Operational Superiority of Fiber
How All-Fiber is Transforming Rural Life: The Killer Apps
Increasing Take-Rates and Retention: Marketing for Success
Preparing to File for the FCC’s Rural Broadband Experiments
And much more!
View the full conference program for session details and speakers.Build New Connections FTTH networks are popping up all over the map, and programs to provide funding for future deployments are becoming readily available. Isn’t it time your community upgrades to the next level of connectivity? Register now for the FTTH Council Regional Conference: Minneapolis or visit our website to learn more.
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Share your struggles and successes with other attendees, and learn from the experiences of others. Network with vendors that understand how to develop and maintain FTTH networks on a community level, as well as consultants who will highlight the value a successful FTTH deployment can bring to your community.
I happened to be in Grand Rapids on the right day this month. I was here for the Itasca Area Social Media Breakfast. Erika Kooda talked about the power of YouTube. There were about 20 people in attendance. The presenter had recently been to VidCon and was sharing the experience she had learned there as well as general information about working with video, especially on YouTube. It was great to hear from someone who is learning with the rest of crowd so it feel very accessible to get involved with her.
People had good and basic questions. And the Erika understood that people were generally at the very ground level of learning about different social media channels.
It was great to see the impact of the Social Media Breakfast – of getting local people to talk about local success. Erika used examples people knew – and included a few that people didn’t. People clearly knew and trusted her. And I’m going to say that in preparing for the presentation Erika learned a little and/or cemented some knowledge in a new way. A great way to increase local social media capacity.
Here are some loose notes from her presentation:
Camera options for taking YouTube-friendly video
IpHone
ENG
DSLR
Editing tools
Adobe Premiere – $50/month
Final Cut Pro X – $250 one time
Avid – free
Sony Vegas – free
iMovies/MovieMaker – free
Tips
Edit files in .mp4
Learn to edit online
Consider all platforms – YouTube, Video, Vine
Promotion/Packaging
Twitter – get people to follow you online by talking to them offline
Facebook – scheduled posts in advance
Tumblr – synch social media channels
YouTube Tips
Thumbnails
Presentation
Time – no more than 4 minutes
Project for Awesome – Blog Brothers
Yelp – get goof online reviews
Next big things?
Most big YouTubers are getting paid from Google – but they are starting organizations and more action.
On July 11, the FCC voted to approve a budget and application window for the Rural Broadband Experiments program allocating $100 million towards bringing broadband to rural areas without adequate service. Applications, due October 14, will mark the first opportunity for providers who are not the incumbent local telephone company in an area to receive Connect America Fund subsidies to build and operate fixed broadband networks.
Please join Carol Mattey, Deputy Bureau Chief of the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau and Tom Koutsky, Chief Policy Counsel for Connected Nation for a webinar outlining the specifics of the FCC’s official Order, the application window deadlines, and how to submit successful applications.
When he got out of prison an ex-offender sent an email from South Minneapolis to his daughter in Florida for the first time; in downtown St. Paul a Somali-American junior high student won a tablet in a digital scavenger hunt and gave it to her college-bound sister; an Episcopal Home resident with Multiple Sclerosis learned how to use her iPad to fundraise for the MS society; and teenagers on the North Side believe that their upcoming documentary will change lives for the better.
This was made possible through the efforts of 35 AmeriCorps members serving across Saint Paul and Minneapolis in the Community Technology Empowerment Project (CTEP). CTEP members teach technology literacy for social, civic and economic empowerment with low-income families and New Americans.
Every year, CTEP members choose community action projects where they make a contribution to bridging the digital divide. On August 1, from 9 to 11 a.m. at the Wilder Foundation, CTEP members will share their accomplishments and struggles in creating community change.
Yesterday I attended the regional meeting in Baxter, MN to discuss the Broadband Fund. Diane Wells from the Office of Broadband Development spoke to 20-25 people about the upcoming opportunity for funding.
The information shared was very similar to info from the webinar and other regional meeting – but I like to capture the questions and notes from each meeting
Timeline:
Late Sept 2014 – announce program details and open application process
Application process will be open for 30 days
Oct-Nov 2014 – 6 week application review process
Challenge window – first two weeks of review process
December – make awards
Attending the meeting in Baxter were economic developers, providers and elected officials. The economic developers said they need broadband and providers saying they want to learn more and/or they want to get their applications ready. The providers also had concerns about the need for solutions that were/are scalable to 100 Mpbs. People had very specific questions. Clearly this was not the first time folks had heard about the opportunity.
Cheryal Hills from Region Five Development Commission set the tone saying – We want to learning how to put together an application that gets funding and encourages the legislators to fund more in subsequent years.
Questions:
Is there a place to post comments?
Please call us or send us an email. If you question the data on your area – you can do that online.
What do eligible costs include?
We need to know that this is thought out and planned. We don’t need engineering plans in places.
How will scalable to 100 Mbp is measured and viewed?
Sign off by a professional engineer. And it’s building out. You need to indicate that the piece you are building can be used to provider 100 Mbps in the future.
Have you considered a letter of intent to prep for response?
No we’re trying to roll out the application
Are engineering drawings still required?
We need to be able to see that what you are planning to make sure that the cost is appropriate. We might not need to know where every dslam is – but we want to know how many.
We’re still working out scoring details but we plan to make that scoring information available.
Are there issues with prevailing wage?
DEED does have requirements – which vary my region. We’re still looking into it but our understanding is that it will be a requirement.
Have there been any discussions with balancing the state and federal funding?
We can’t make any commitments for an application due to FCC by Oct 14. They have a comment on rule making now – they are looking at their next iteration. We are tracking that and will likely file comments. But for this we just can’t get it to synch up.
Can federal funds be used to match?
Yes – but the problem is that you’ll need to bill it out. You need to demonstrate to them that your funding is in place by Oct 14.
Do you anticipate environmental review issues?
We are working to set up meetings with folks on that now. Right now
It’s the applicants responsibility to know if there are possible issues and we understand that means the project has be to some distance down the road.
Can you use debt as your match rather than cash or in-kind? (Can you borrow the money?) Maybe a reduced loan rather than a grant so that might help with prevailing wage issues.
Do you know the reporting requirements in regards to ownership?
Ownership should be stated in the application. We will only look at first 5 years (and commitment of service) for 5 years.
What is the process for drawing down funds?
At DEED the invoices are submitted and we pay 50% of costs for reimbursable costs.
Who will make the final decisions about the grants?
DEED makes recommendations to Commissioner Clark Sieben who signs the order. The understanding is that she generally defers to recommendations. There’s not a directive coming down saying where the money should go – in existing programs.
In the 50/50 match – do towers count at in-kind?
That would be difficult if it’s already paid for but maybe if there’s a lease paying for it. Match needs to be spent within time of grant program.
We asked Connect MN to prepare county maps by census blocks the areas that are serve and unserved – we have links on the website. Start by looking there and let us know ASAP if there are discrepancies.
October 1 the maps will be updated again. So the maps may change somewhat – so you’ll want to know what’s going on in your area.
Does shovel ready matter?
Only that we’re looking for timelines aspects – we need to know timeline and costs are realistic.
Will there be someone on the committee that will look to know make a judgment on scalability?
We may consult with someone on that. We are open to innovation.
The definition of terms will need to be fleshed out to include of scalability to 100 Mbps.
What does $5 million mean to a telecom company?
It’s a small project. We have 600 square miles. We have $46 million invested today. And the scalability means some people without access today – are not eligible for these funds. It would make sense to look at the recent rural experiments for some innovative ideas.
This is a strange post for a blog that promotes broadband and technology, but I ran into an article in the Huffington Post that did all of the research that I’d like to do on the impact of technology on our brains and skills and who we are – 8 Ways Technology Makes You Stupid. OK they did half the research I’d like to do because I know there are some positive impacts of technology as well.
Here’s their list in a nutshell:
Tech is screwing up your sleep
You’re easily distracted
You can’t remember much
So you’re relying on the Internet to remember things for you
And you’re much more forgetful than you used to be
You can’t concentrate on what you’re reading
You can’t find your way around without GPS
You have the brain of a drug addict
I hate to admit that I’ve seen these qualities in myself and/or in my kids in the last week. Just last night I took a phone away from a kid and I was a little afraid of a total withdrawal meltdown. To be fair my sense of direction while driving was never very good – but it’s not getting better with my reliance on GPS, although I do get places faster and more directly. I am heartened to hear that my poor memory is technology – not age – related!
The question for me becomes how can I curb impact of technology on myself and my kids. The article offers a suggestion…
Now that you’re properly terrified of the effects of technology on the old noggin, let us remind you that you do have the power to prevent brain drain and time-suck. Just log off every once in a while!
It seems simple enough – and there’s a reason I’m posting this on a Sunday. It’s a good day to practice logging off. But I think I’m also going to strive to be more diligent daily. I can start in simple ways – no phones, ipods, ipads, laptops after bedtime. No technology during meals. No texting to people in the house – and texting will not be replaced by shouting. We don’t live in a mansion – find the person (usually me) you need and talk to them (usually ask for money). No headphones on car trips less than 20 minutes. Long drives it’s all about distraction but short trips can be a great time to catch up with the people in front of you. And maybe instead of Tweeting all day – you could try to use those clever quips to engage the people in your presence.
I’m as guilty as the kids – really the first step is classic addiction management – recognizing there’s a problem and cultivating a desire to fix it. The added difficulty is that addiction to technology is more like an addiction to food than alcohol or drugs because for most of us going cold turkey isn’t a solution or even a goal – we just need to be healthier in our choices and use. I bet there’s an app for that!
Sadly I was not at the July Task Force meeting – but I have been able to learn the following:
The Task Force met in the Cities and it sounds as if the main topic on the table was the opportunity to provide input to DEED’s budget planning for the next biennium relevant to state funding for broadband-related investments. Danna MacKenzie from the Office of Broadband Development (OBD) updated the Task Force on the office’s activities since the Task Force last met. Danna and her team have been focused on the design and launch of theBorder to Border Infrastructure Fund created by the legislature during its most recent session. Danna shared details about the process in a recent Blandin Foundation-sponsored webinar. She is alsotouring Minnesota communities to talk more about the opportunity.
The Task Force agreed on two budget recommendations for Commissioner Sieben’s consideration:
$200 million over two years for Broadband Deployment Fund
$2.9 million over two years for the Office of Broadband Development; that includes $1.4 million for continued mapping (but with no reference to a specific vendor) and the remaining for operating funds (including staff) and program delivery
I suspect that the details of the broadband fund will be informed by the process distributing the $20 million this year. Also I assume the Task Force will be looking for some good stories from the 2014 fund recipients to help plea the case to legislators for more funding over the next two years. I think the matching component is also likely to be encouraged.
Finally the Task Force decided not to meet in August at Farm Fest as originally planned. Logistics were cited as the reason.
I would like this idea even more if youth from all over the state could participate. It sounds like a great opportunity for kids around Minneapolis and St Paul to learn more about technology by becoming tech tutors and supporters.
Here’s more info from the email I received…
Comcast Digital Connectors What: A program that connects young adults to technology, leadership, and media and financial literacy with the use of fun interactive sessions, field trips, guest speakers, community partners, and Cisco IT Essentials. Incentives: Build a strong team, leadership, CDC backpack, CDC lanyard and flash drive, CDC T-shirt, Free laptop, and Cisco IT Certificate in IT Essentials! Who: High schoolers and young adults ages 13-21 When: Starting September 12th until May 2015 Tuesdays and Wednesdays 4-6:30pm Where: Neighborhood House 179 East Robie street, Saint Paul, MN 55107 Contact: Shanna Woods 651-789-3623 Swoods@neighb.org
I’m going to reiterate – free laptop – since I know that would be the selling point with the youth in my house.
OK the press release didn’t include a direct connection to broadband – but it’s not a big stretch to add it in. The scoop is that there’s a big Rural Opportunity Investment Conference (ROI) happening this week to encourage public and private investment in rural economic development. For investors it’s an opportunity for new markets; for economic developers and businesses, it’s a new investment pool…
In conjunction with this event, the White House Rural Council is announcing a $10 billion dollar investment fund to promote rural economic development. This fund will continue to grow the rural economy by increasing access to capital for rural infrastructure projects and speeding up the process of rural infrastructure improvements. The fund is immediately open for business and more investors can now add to the initial $10 billion in available capital.
The White House Fact Sheet includes more info on this fund as well as details on others that may be of interest.
According to the Austin Daily Herald, Austin is getting serious about Gig broadband access. They recently released a vision for the community and the results of a broadband feasibility study…
Vision 2020 released the results of a feasibility study Friday which showed Austin could support a fiber Internet service. According to the study, the high-speed broadband Internet service could be built for about $35 million and could be run by all kinds of organizations, from public utilities to a private co-op.
Under the Gig Austin plan, all of the Austin Public Schools district could access fiber Internet. Laura Helle, director of vision creation at Vision 2020, said the committee believed rural properties near the city that were still part of the district would need access as some providers don’t cover those areas.
More communities are looking at fiber networks as essential features. More than 830 communities and 9.7 million people in the U.S. already have fiber networks, according to the Fiber to the Home (FTTH) Council, a trade association. That includes a number of communities in Minnesota, from Monticello to a group of communities in southwest Minnesota, to entire counties like Cook and Lake.
“Generally, any area that’s served with a telephone cooperative is now served with fiber to the home,” said Bill Coleman, a telecommunications consultant out of Mahtomedi. “We’ve seen a tremendous investment by those companies in those rural networks.”
The feasibility study included a few tidbits that could be valuable for any community…
Vision 2020 found a number of pitfalls involved in a fiber network project. If a community takes on more than 50 percent of the project’s capital costs in debt, the project will likely fail and few people will sign up for the service, according to Helle. If a large portion of the community doesn’t sign up to receive fiber Internet, the project will fail. Fiber advocates have to pitch a project as a community boon and an individual benefit, or the project will falter.
That means far higher Internet prices for residents and businesses than competing Internet providers, even with better Internet speeds.
The initiative has momentum and great community involvement…
The Community Wide Technology committee hopes to use the feasibility study’s results to educate area residents on Gig Austin. Volunteers and experts point out fiber offers speeds far higher than the average 5 megabits per second in the U.S. Fiber is also more reliable, as the glass cables won’t corrode or be damaged by lightning. In addition, a fiber network is built to withstand even faster Internet in the future
But it seems like it still needs a home base…
Gig Austin doesn’t have an owner yet, nor does it have firm costs to build the network. The study may have put a $35 million price tag to build a network in Austin, but costs could grow depending on how Gig Austin is funded. It’s too early to determine how expensive data plans will be to use Austin’s fiber, but Helle and other Vision 2020 volunteers say they want to keep data plans comparable to what residents and businesses currently pay.
Considering wireline and wireless technologies together, the slowest broadband speeds are nearly ubiquitously available, and access to very fast broadband (over 100 Mbps) has now reached two-thirds of Americans. The data, as of December 31, 2013, shows that 99 percent of Americans have access to wired and/or wireless broadband at advertised speeds of 6 Mbps downstream and 1.5 Mbps up, though this number drops to 89 percent when considering wireline broadband alone.
The NTIA credit upgrades in cable infrastructure.
I myself moved to cable fairly recently. I finally cancelled my other/old broadband service last week. As any good provider (of any services) would do, the customer rep on the phone tried to talk me out of cancelling until I told her I really needed better upload capacity. She allowed that upload wasn’t their long suit.
As much as it’s heartening to hear that so many Americans have access to good speeds, it makes me nervous to see that juxtaposed so many having access to 100 Mbps that 89 (or 99) percent have access to “6 Mbps downstream and 1.5 Mbps up” or better because that is quite a digital divide. It’s exactly what the National Broadband Plan was going for (100 Mbps to 100 million homes; 4/1 Mbps service to everyone else) but again it’s quite a digital divide.
My fear is just as I forget about the days it used to take hours to upload some of the video I post on the blog regularly now that I have cable; I’m afraid the rest of the world will forget about the 4/1 people and communities once “we all” (or at least 100 million households) get 100 Mbps.
Fun to hear about the successful health-technology fair in Lake County. They got some nice local press on the event and it sounds like it was well attended. Thanks to the folks from Lake County for sharing it…
Lake County hosts Senior Health and Technology Conference
Jan O’Donnell, Vice Chair of the Community Partners Board of Directors, welcomed 70 participants to the 15th annual Community Partners conference focused on Senior Health and Technology on Tuesday May 13, 2014. “We know two things”, O’Donnell said, “First, technology is all around us whether we like it or not, and second, we are all getting older! We might as well become informed consumers in this changing world.”
Community Partners chose the topic of “senior health and technology” to help people learn about tools that will make life easier. Participants enjoyed a luncheon, workshops and an information fair.
During the luncheon, Jill Corbin from Home Instead Senior Care, presented Lu Cotton with the “Salute to Senior Service Award” for her many hours of service helping seniors through Community Partners and Socially Active Seniors (SAS). Kirsten Cruikshank, Director of Community Partners, introduced a video about how the organization and other partners are helping seniors learn about technology and using the internet. The video, produced by ProVideo of Duluth and funded by the Lloyd K Johnson Foundation, is available on the Community Partners website, www.communitypartnersth.org.
Patty Rowray of Lake Connections was the keynote speaker, sharing information about Lake Connections services. She also shared fun online ideas and opportunities to help people of all ages “get connected, stay connected and live connected”.
Workshops were presented by Cheryl Blue of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services; Randy Rusnak of Lighthouse Center for Vision Loss; Leah Davidson, Healthsense; Rachel Gischia and Katie Klessig, Lakeview Hospital; and Jan Ringer and Mary Aijala, Senior Surf Day Volunteers.
Twenty-four vendors shared information about senior services with participants. Ecumen, Lake View Hospital & Clinic, Lake Superior School District Community Education, and the Blandin Broadband Communities Program sponsored the event that was held at Superior Shores.
“We are just beginning this journey of exploring how technology can help us as we age in the community – there is so much to learn!”, said Cruikshank.
For more information about resources shared at conference, contact Community Partners at 218-834-8024.
Today I attended two meetings in Montevideo. My primary reason for being there was to attend the first regional meeting to discuss the Broadband Fund. Danna MacKenzie and Diane Wells from the Office of Broadband Development spoke to 20-25 people about the upcoming opportunity for funding.
The information shared was very similar to info from the webinar a couple weeks ago. I’ve included the PPT and questions below. The big take away – it’s not too early to get working on a proposal if you plan to apply.
Timeline:
Late Sept 2014 – announce program details and open application process
Application process will be open for 30 days
Oct-Nov 2014 – 6 week application review process
Challenge window – first two weeks of review process
December – make awards
Official RFP will be available once the application process is actually open. (Late
If you want funding – start the process now.
We know we can’t fund everything but this list will be used to make the case to legislature that more funding is needed.
If you are looking at forming a new entity to receive funds? Start that now.
We don’t’ need detailed engineering designs. We need high level and enough to make judgments.
The Broadband Rural Experiments are due October 14. They are looking for efficient applications. The timing doesn’t fit with the MN funding very well but it’s another route. It will be difficult to marry the programs but we’re trying to work to support
The FCC requires voice service. The state funding does not.
Questions:
Is this ongoing funding?
This is one time funding. BUT the idea is to continue the conversation.
Is in-kind funding allowed?
Yes. But you will get more points if it’s a cash match.
What if you use your own staff for construction? (Do we invoice ourselves?)
We can take that into consideration.
How will geographic dispersion be handled?
It will depend on the applications we receive. We need to consider geography.
Does it have to be a Minnesota entity to be eligible?
We are looking into it; there may be a SD option for this area.
What if the challenge (served vs unserved) lasts longer than 6 weeks?
The challenge process is totally separate; we will judge applications and do review process. If no resolution in 6 weeks we’ll get everyone in a room and figure it out.
** If you have questions about maps start working with Connect MN on it now!
We are expecting flood disaster relief would that help get disadvantaged points?
It’s not one of the specified areas, but please do include that information. It might help.
The anchor tenants are covered in many areas. How can we address that?
We are looking at the imprint of the anchor institute so maybe you increase the speeds or maybe providing wireless to anchor tenants clients.
Will applications be made available?
Name of applicant and boundaries served will be made available immediately for challenge purposed. .The grant application will be eventually made public. Maps and some financial info will not become public data. DEED already a process for that.
Are there state laws for wages for people hired?
There are state requirements for wages akin to David Bacon.
MVTV has ARRA funding (as did Farmers). We did 6 wireless networks across 10,000 square miles. Does the state funding cover over build networks?
The state follow the legislature. The law defines an un-served vs under-served area.
I also attended a meeting hosted by DEED, a conversation on economic development in Southwest Minnesota. The folks from DEED came to talk about talent, innovation and trade. The issue in Southwest Minnesota is having enough people (sometimes the right people) to fill the local jobs. The community needs housing, childcare and training programs that meet the needs of local employers. (Geothermal training would be welcome.)
It’s interesting juxtapose these very hands-on issues with a broadband solution. I remember when all discussions led to jobs; maybe broadband has helped shift the discussion.
Google Educator Groups are special interest groups focused on education and sponsored/hosted by Google. I think Google has done a good job supporting educators. They have a wide range of technology and training available to teachers. The groups are a hybrid of online and real world entities.
Google seems to offer their platforms and convening powers for Google Educator Groups (GEGs) but they don’t run the groups. So groups are welcome to use various Google tools – from Google+ to Google Hangouts to facilitate communication. Supporting educators doesn’t come without benefits. Getting teachers to use Google tools is a great way to get students to use Google tools, which is a great way to push Google into tomorrow’s workplace.
More importantly (I think) Google maintains a map of groups and events across the world. Currently there are no groups or events listed in or near Minnesota. It might be an opportunity for Minnesota educators to get something going. Or if there are similar groups formed outside of Google’s infrastructure, it might make sense to use the GEG infrastructure to at least promote those existing groups. It would be nice to see Minnesota on the GEG map – or make it easier for like-minded educators to find each other and so others could see the strong connection between technology and education in Minnesota
Fond du Lac is a Blandin Broadband Community. They have been working to expand broadband access on the reservation. They recently completed a big wireless upgrade creating 13 wireless hot spots for community use. The wireless service has 30 megabit bandwidth for those who are in range of the antennas. (The speed was verified on an iPhone with a speed test website. )
People with access have been very happy. And the overall range was actually larger than predicted. At the beginning of the project it was estimated that each antenna would have a range of a quarter- mile radius of the antenna. After the installation several of the antenna’s had a range of a half-mile radius. Unfortunately there are folks who live just outside that range and of course they now want access too. But overall the reaction has been very positive for a fairly small project.
