Monthly Archives: December 2016

Microsoft offers grants to organizations working to improve affordable internet access

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A great opportunity for the right business…

On Thursday, Microsoft Corp. renewed its Affordable Access Initiative grant fund for a second year. The fund assists companies working to bring internet access and new technologies, services and models to underserved markets. The application process is now open for a new set of partners.

“The social enterprises we support have inspired us with practical, high-impact and scalable approaches to help close the digital divide,” said Microsoft Affordable Access Initiatives Director Paul Garnett, writing in NextBillion. “It’s a privilege to see these solutions take shape, and to play a role in helping local entrepreneurs spur job creation and economic growth.”

In the fund’s first round of investments, Microsoft awarded grants to 12 businesses offering affordable internet access or cloud-based services in fields such as power generation, health, education, finance and agriculture.

AirJaldi, a 2016 grant recipient, provides high-quality Wi-Fi broadband connectivity at reasonable rates to more than 90,000 public- and private-sector clients in rural India. Vista Africa, another recipient from last year, is a cloud-based software platform that helps healthcare providers more easily screen, track and treat patients’ health in areas where connectivity is limited.

In addition to receiving funding and software to help power and develop their businesses, grant recipients will join a growing ecosystem of other grantees and funders to further increase their impact.

This initiative is also connected to the work of Microsoft Philanthropies, which is helping to bring technology’s benefits to those who need them most. Microsoft Philanthropies is making its digital literacy, online safety and computer science education programs available to grant recipients and the communities they serve.

“Too many people around the world lack internet connectivity and the educational, commercial and economic benefits of cloud-based services,” said Mary Snapp, corporate vice president and head of Microsoft Philanthropies. “Affordable Access Initiative grants, and the technology ecosystems they help support, empower entrepreneurs to provide connectivity, which then enables the creation of critical services for those who need it most.”

How to apply

Applicants must be commercial organizations with two or more full-time employees and have a prototype of a working solution and preferably paying customers. Such products and business models might combine new cloud services and applications, low-cost forms of internet connectivity, and new payment mechanisms designed for consumers and smaller businesses in underserved markets. A list of criteria, and the application, can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/affordable-access-initiative/home. Applications will be accepted until midnight PST on Jan. 31, 2017.

Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) is the leading platform and productivity company for the mobile-first, cloud-first world, and its mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.

Digital Inclusion Policies and Programs of Local Governments – articles and webinar Jan 11

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The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has taken over the Journal of Digital and Media Literacy this month. (My words, not theirs.) They are talking all about Digital Inclusion Policies and Programs of Local Governments.

It’s a topic I thought might interest a lot of readers – and would their upcoming interactive discussion on the topic:

Here’s an excerpt from the articles…

Local governments are also in the perfect position to pull together digital inclusion partners, create local plans, increase awareness and raise funding. Which local organizations should engage and which strategic solutions they should employ may vary down to the neighborhood level.

The field of digital inclusion is new enough that even practitioners are still uncertain of the definition. To help us all move forward, the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) has published the following definitions of digital inclusion and digital equity:

Digital Inclusion refers to the activities necessary to ensure that all individuals and communities, including the most disadvantaged, have access to and use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs).  This includes 5 elements: (1) affordable, robust broadband Internet service; (2) Internet-enabled devices that meet the needs of the user; (3) access to digital literacy training; (4) quality technical support; and (5) applications and online content designed to enable and encourage self-sufficiency, participation, and collaboration. Digital Inclusion must evolve as technology advances. Digital Inclusion requires intentional strategies and investments to reduce and eliminate historical, institutional, and structural barriers to access and use technology.

Digital Equity is a condition in which all individuals and communities have the information technology capacity needed for full participation in our society, democracy and economy. Digital Equity is necessary for civic and cultural participation, employment, lifelong learning, and access to essential services.1

The first four activities in the NDIA definition of digital inclusion overlap with the four activities identified by Colin Rhinesmith in Digital Inclusion and Meaningful Broadband Adoption Initiatives:2

  1. Providing low-cost broadband

  2. Connecting digital literacy training with relevant content and services

  3. Making low-cost computers available

  4. Operating public access computing centers

Read more.

MN Broadband Industry Conference with MN Telecom Alliance & MN Cable Communications Association

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I think this is the third annual – the previous meetings have been very good.

Broadband Networks – Connections that matter!

Industry stakeholders, elected officials, and policy experts are invited to this educational event that will focus on Net Neutrality, Government’s Role in Broadband, Wireless Spectrum/FirstNet, Technology Advance and the Future of Telecom.

When: February 23 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Where: Intercontinental St Paul Riverfront Hotel
11 E Kellogg Blvd
St. Paul, Minnesota  55101
United States

Register Online

2016 MN Broadband Task Force final draft is approved

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Today the MN Broadband Task Force met for the final time in 2016. They combed through the latest iteration of their big report and approved the final version. They didn’t make a lot of changes from the earlier version. The big news remains the same – “$10 million for the OBD and $100 million ($50 million per year for the biennium) for grants.”

There was a lot of tension between the provider representatives and the community representatives – but there were a few points of agreement too.

One umbrella issue is the tension between what is currently available in some communities (with low population density) and compared to what is available (or may soon be available) in more densely populated areas. To illustrate –apartments in Uptown Minneapolis are part of a pilot test of mmWave fast wireless (I saw 700 Mbps speeds) – while people living between towns near St Cloud are having trouble getting the connections they need to run home-based businesses.

This tension emerged when discussing  the definition section of the report. Details like – how fast is DSL? – were not easy to answer, and there’s good reason for it. Searching for “how fast is DSL?” on Google, here’s a blurb from the first result (pretty similar to other results)…

Additionally, actual DSL speeds vary between households. Factors affecting DSL speed include:

  • Quality of the phone line at your residence. Neighborhoods with better copper wiring can achieve somewhat faster DSL speeds.

  • Length of the phone line between the residence and the phone company hub (often called “central office”). DSL technology is “distance sensitive” because its performance decreases significantly as you get further away from this hub.

  • Service glitches. While normally a constant, DSL speed can suddenly drop if the service provider has technical difficulty with their network. Speeds should return to normal after a few minutes or hours.

Note – no actual speeds given. People may know how fast their DSL is or isn’t – and the range of speeds is almost as extreme as difference in cost between eloping and marrying reigning monarch (or Kardashian). Averaging out the speed/cost doesn’t help. If you live next to the phone company and they have fiber to the node with DSL to your house, you will have a great connection. If you live on the outskirts or out of town, your speeds will not be good.

In my experience people in rural areas, especially those on the outskirts, understand this phenomenon better than we do in the city – because it doesn’t impact us.  They live it and you’ll hear stories of people who go home (or go to work) to download large files or upgrade software because they live/work on the wrong side of the DSL distance demarcation for quality service.

The same issue comes up with other technologies too. It’s really not that anyone is wrong – just that the answers are not simple and are not the same for each location. So what’s the right answer? The Task Force, feeling the pinch of the deadline, decided to use the same definitions they used last year and work to make it better for the next report.

Read on for full notes and video… Continue reading →

$3.49 million authorized for Lake County broadband

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More news from the Office of Broadband Development..

Congrats! On December 12, the FCC authorized payment for Lake County, MN’s (dba Lake Connections) winning bid for RBE funding. The $3.49 million in Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) federal funds will bring new broadband service to 845 census blocks representing 8,497 locations.

Rural Minnesota needs broadband to diversify: Heard on MPR

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Today I’m thankful for archived radio shows. Yesterday on MPR, Marianne Combs spoke about rural Minnesota and the economy. On the show she had Aaron Brown, author of “Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range,”  the website “Minnesota Brown: Modern Life in Northern Minnesota, ‘ and host of The Great Northern Radio Show on Northern Community Radio. Larry Cuffe Jr., mayor of Virginia and Ben Winchester, research fellow in the Extension Center for Community Vitality at the University of Minnesota.

It was great to hear from three experts with deep seeded roots in rural areas. The show is definitely worth a listen if you missed it too. I’m going to pare my notes down to what was explicitly said about broadband.

Several people noted that broadband is necessary for economic diversification. Not everyone wants to work for the Mining or to farm, broadband opens the door to other opportunities. Entrepreneurs need broadband to work with people around the world or across the street. And you can’t attract new businesses without broadband.

Upload speed matters. Ben pointed out that download is the speed of consumption; upload is the speed of production. He moved from Hancock to St Cloud only to find his broadband worsened in the move. He compared his experience uploading documents to the old dialup days when you’d click to send, to go bed, wake up and hope nothing broke. People cannot do business that way.

Broadband isn’t just for hipsters, Aaron noted. He has attended broadband meetings on the Iron Range and attendees include a broadband cross section of the community. People need broadband for work, family and education. Three things that matter a lot in rural areas.

I believe all three speakers spoke about the power of the cooperative to meet the broadband need in rural areas, especially where the market has failed. The cooperative is in a unique position to invest in the community because the shareholders are in or of the community.

New Broadband Availability Map by MN Townships

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heat-mapNew from the Office of Broadband Development…

A new “heat” map of broadband availability in Minnesota by township (with county borders shown) is on the OBD website at http://mn.gov/deed/assets/townships-availability-25m3m_tcm1045-263543.pdf

Red (lower speed) to blue (higher speed) is measured by Percentage of Households Served by Fixed, Non-Mobile Broadband Service, shown by City/Township, at least 25 Mbps download/3 Mbps upload speeds (the 2022 State Broadband Goal). Statewide availability at 25/3 is 90.15%. Rural availability within the state is 78.04%.

You can see the map on the right – red means less than 50 percent have access to 25/3; blue means 90-100 percent have access.

 

So close and yet so far away to broadband just outside St Cloud MN – could grants to the business in need help

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I recently heard from Eric, who lives just outside of St Cloud. He lives and works in no-man’s-land where the kids go to Kimball school, the mail address is South Haven but he actually lives outside Fair Haven. He’s just a little beyond reach of the kind of broadband he needs.

He lives on a farm, has a home-based business (Sproutary.com – online software for daycare proviers to help manage their business) and can get about 15 Mbps down and 1 Mbps up from Arvig. As he says,  it’s  just good enough that expansion is not going to come for many years. He’s talked to Arvig – the local provider – and they can run fiber to our house for $18k – which would mean 1 Gig down and 25 Mbps up.

I’m not here to disparage Arvig – it’s a tough call to make that kind of investment for one customer. But to use the story to start some discussions.

  • Eric gets 15/1 coverage and it’s not enough for him. CAF 2 funding requires 10/1 coverage. Areas getting a 10/1 upgrade may be in Eric’s position soon – too slow to conduct business, too fast to get attention.
  • Maybe a solution is not to disperse upgrade funds only to providers. The UK had a voucher fund that supported businesses in their effort to get better broadband. The fund has expired (they had £40 million) but here’s what they found…

Key Facts about Connection Vouchers

  • Around 55,000 vouchers for superfast broadband connections were issued to SMEs during the lifetime of the scheme – 37,000 since April 2015
  • More than 770 suppliers won voucher business out of 864 registered suppliers

Early Impacts & Data Analysis
SME Survey Results

  • Over 550 SMEs with connections live for between 3 and 9 months replied to BDUK surveys on the initial impacts of using a connection voucher
  • The results show that firms are using the internet more and using it for functions they were not using before. The biggest changes are to uploading/downloading large files, remote access/Virtual Private Networks and Cloud Computing
  • As a result, firms reported a wide range of impacts with many seeing improvements in efficiency and effectiveness of employees, as well as improvements in the speed and reliability of delivering goods/services
  • The results suggest that soon after the connection has been made businesses profits increased by £1,300 per year per SME and the equivalent of 0.27 extra full time employees per firm, or one new job for every four connections
  • This equates to a return on investment of over £5 for every £1 that the Government is investing through this scheme
  • Firms reported that faster broadband makes a huge difference to their business:
    • 86% of firms reported that their broadband upgrade had increased their employees’ effectiveness;
    • 83% reported improved efficiency of business administration;
    • almost 70% reported increased speed and reliability of delivering goods or services;
    • 45% reported that their upgrade had improved their ability to develop new goods or services; and
    • over 35% reported that their upgrade has generated new sales and provided access to new markets.

BDUK Data Analysis

Based on the 50,700 vouchers that were reported by cities as having been issued up to the end of September 15

  • Up to 1 million people are estimated to work for businesses that have had broadband connection voucher grants approved
  • SMEs took broadband services that are on average 11 times faster than their previous service
  • Nearly 30% of firms took uncontended services (not shared with other customers) with guaranteed up and download speeds
  • Over a fifth opted for ultrafast broadband with download speeds of 100 Mbps or more

Commercial Suppliers

  • The 3 largest national suppliers registered on the scheme – BT, Virgin Media and TalkTalk – accounted for 14% of the value of vouchers issued to the end of September.

  • Other suppliers, including smaller regional and local suppliers, took 86% of the total value of the vouchers.

  • Some suppliers have extended their existing networks and built in new areas, for instance Metronet extended its Birmingham and Leeds networks, and built new networks in Newcastle and Bradford.

5G deployment possible by 2020 – not a rural panacea

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I’ve heard a lot of talk about 5G playing a role in broadband deployment. The implications are exciting but it won’t be a panacea and it is still being tested. It sounds like it will be a good last mile technology for densely populated areas. It will also be good for the Internet of Things. It will help keep driverless cars from crashing into each other.

It will help bring a George Jetson looking world to cities. It’s fast with low latency, but the reach is small and the cost (more infrastructure such as fiber required) so the ROI requires densely populated areas.

Finley Engineering put out a nice flier on 5G; here are some of the highlights:

What is the goal of 5G?

There are many 5G network goals, but the priorities include the ability to provide much higher bandwidth, much lower latency, congestion avoidance, and support for emerging IoT applications.

What does 5G mean?

To understand 5G today, you have to separate the marketing term 5G from the technology term 5G. While there has been significant discussion and announcements regarding 5G and its capabilities, the actual technology and the standards it will follow have yet to be determined. There is ongoing 5G technology and standards work from global organizations, including the ITU, GSMA, and 3GPP, among others, to formally define the technology and its capabilities. True 5G standards aren’t expected to emerge until at least 2020.

What are the limitations?

  • True 5G standards aren’t expected to emerge until at least 2020.
  • This initial 5G spectrum is concentrated in the so called millimeter wave (mmWave) band. The mmWave reach is two miles.
  • More infrastructure is required for 5G.

Is there a role for 5G in rural areas?

It sounds like 5G will increase the need for fiber, maybe provide another partner to share fiber costs. Also it can support call centers, data centers, manufacturers – applications where the need is condensed.

Here’s what Finley says…

Beyond the wireless broadband opportunity for wireless carriers, 5G presents many opportunities for wireline as well. The most obvious is leveraging fi ber networks for backhaul. This is an attractive business today, but will only get better with 5G. The network densifi cation required by 5G will mean many more sites will need fi ber backhaul, and it’s not just traditional wireless towers. Hundreds of sites, including the use of small cells and DAS sites, will be needed to cover a 5G area that may have only needed 20 to 30 towers in a 4G environment. These sites will more likely than not require optical wavelength services over traditional Ethernet, due to low latency requirements. These low latency requirements may drive additional rural carrier opportunities including increased demand for edge computing in the form of localized small scale data centers. One millisecond or less response times generally means servers for these applications need to be within 150 miles, traveling over fiber. That may drive demand for more edge computing infrastructure in rural markets.

2017 deadlines for Blandin Foundation Broadband Innovation and Robust Network Feasibility Fund grants

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Blandin Foundation has announced 2017 deadlines for Broadband Innovation and Robust Network Feasibility Fund grants

Blandin Foundation has a long history of supporting the active engagement of communities to ensure their telecommunications and technology vitality. To this end, the Blandin Community Broadband Program supports work that increases:

  • Awareness about the value of broadband
  • Business and residential use of broadband in rural communities
  • Public and private investment in rural broadband capacity.

Broadband Innovation and Robust Network Feasibility Fund grant award amounts range from $1,000 to $25,000, and matching funds are required. Grant application deadlines for 2017 are January 6, April 7, June 23 and September 22.

Community Broadband Resources program applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.

Broadband as part of the Community Reinvestment Act

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The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) is intended to encourage banks and other depository institutions to help meet the credit needs of the communities in which they operate. Last summer the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas published a report (Closing the Digital Divide: A Framework for Meeting CRA Obligations) that helps financial instructions understand how broadband fit into the CRA.

craThe report’s goals are:

PART ONE: An understanding of how broadband is now an integral part of community development and meets the “primary purpose” definition of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA).

PART TWO: A road map of best practices for closing the digital divide.

PART THREE: A selection of references and examples to help identify opportunities to close the digital divide in their communities.

PART FOUR: A list of tips for preparing their case for digital opportunity investments and CRA reference guides to help ensure planned CRA activities meet regulatory requirements.

PART FIVE: A template to make their case, which highlights the types of lending, service and investments that are valuable to their institution and target communities.

PART SIX: Appendixes of broadband resources for understanding the needs and opportunities in their assessment areas.

Obviously it focused on the needs of the financial institution – offering advice on what a community needs and how to explain those needs and the role of the financial institution is meeting those needs but the information appeals to a wider audience. It includes an index of “experts in closing the digital divide”, an explanation of the “three legs of the digital divide stool” (access, computer and training) and the impact of broadband on the community.

Urban broadband is a cable game – rural broadband is DSL: how can that help us plan?

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The FCC recently released the Industry Analysis and Technology Division Wireline Competition Bureau. It’s the culmination of FCC Form 477 filled out by providers.

I think there’s an interesting look at speeds by technology and location (metro vs rural) of technology. First location – the following graph tracks ratio of subscribership by household density, or who serves urban areas and who serves rural areas. The answer is DSL is a big player in rural areas; cable is the biggest player in towns and cities. Fixed wireless and satellite are players in rural areas and almost non-existent in urban areas. This graph does not track speed – just technology.

477a

Now it’s helpful to look at what speeds. When we look at access by speeds or 10/1 we see representation of all technologies.

477b

When we look at speeds of 25/3, DSL is no longer represented.

477c

Here’s another way to look at it:

477d

DSL has a larger share of slower connections. DSL has a larger share of rural connections. The Minnesota legislature has defined speed goals or 25/3 by 2022 and 100/20 by 2026. They have dedicated funds to making it happen through the border to border grants. So there’s a recognized need for support, but the question is how to increase speeds in rural areas.

Do tools used in urban areas help rural connectivity? Do policy makers understand that there’s a significant difference in the two markets based on population density, distance to customers, limitations of transport technology and regulations and expectations of technologies based urban scenarios.

Right now Minnesota connectivity rates are well below the legislative goals (and the report only indicates download speeds):

  • 200 kbps – 99.5 percent connect
  • 3 Mbps – 93.0 percent connect
  • 10 Mbps – 75.2 percent connect
  • 25 Mbps – 54.2 percent connect
  • 100 Mbps – 13.4 percent connect

Nominations OPEN for the Dot.Org Awards!

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It would be great to see a lot of rural winners…

Who are the leaders in innovative uses of technology? Which organizations are pioneering new approaches in communications? The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits is proud to present the Dot.Org Awards, recognizing nonprofits who are using technology and communications in inspiring, effective and creative ways.

The Dot.Org Awards honor Minnesota nonprofits leading the sector in uses of new technologies and communications, including:

Creative Campaign
Program Delivery
Website Redesign

Nominations are now OPEN!

Apply for MHTA’s 2017 ACE Leadership Program

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A great opportunity from MHTA for the right person…

Now entering its 10th year, the purpose of the ACE Leadership Program is to develop and connect our region’s next generation technology leaders, and to assist them in preparing for the important roles that they will play in making and keeping our region globally competitive. Through teamwork, mentorship and action learning, the ACE Leadership Program provides invaluable experience and develops our next generation leaders as they move into their leadership roles of tomorrow.

Beginning in January, the program consists of seven day-long sessions over the course of the year. Senior executives from technology, government and education sectors will share lessons learned in their areas of expertise. Participants will discuss ideas and apply them in their own organizations and collaborate with other next generation leaders. MHTA has a strong ACE Alumni group whose graduates meet regularly and continue to work on leadership development as well as community outreach focused on technology.

Investment: The program is $2,850 for MHTA members, $3,850 for non-MHTA members. This includes all meals and one night hotel accommodation for the kickoff session. It includes breakfast, lunch and parking at all sessions and one ticket to MHTA’s Spring Conference.

Applications for the 2017 ACE Leadership Program are now open. Apply here. Applications will close on January 27, 2017.

If you have any question about the program, please contact Claire Ayling at 952-230-4553 or cayling@mhta.org.

Paul Bunyan Communications CEO Gary Johnson Named Twin Cities Business 100 People to Know

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Glad to see representation from the rural broadband world. Gary was the keynote speaker at the 2016 Minnesota Broadband conference; it’s a small look at what cinched him the recognition…

Paul Bunyan Communications CEO Gary Johnson Named  Twin Cities Business 100 People to Know

 

(Bemidji, MN) (December 8, 2016) –Paul Bunyan Communications CEO Gary Johnson has been named as one of the Twin Cities Business Magazine’s (TCB) 100 People to Know.

 

Twin Cities Business Magazine annually highlights 100 Minnesotans, leaders with insight, experience, and savvy that people in business need to observe, seek out, and learn from in the year ahead.  The goal is to identify the key individuals that are expected to make an impact on local business, regional economy, and quality of life in 2017.

 

Johnson was included in the Pioneers category in recognition of Paul Bunyan Communications’ innovation, growth, and continued deployment of the latest in communication technologies including construction of one of the largest rural all-fiber optic networks in the United States.

 

“On behalf of our entire amazing team at Paul Bunyan Communications, I am honored to be named one of TCB’s 100 People to Know.  It is their hard work, talent, and dedication that has empowered our cooperative to be a pioneer in the telecommunications industry.  We’re proof that when you combine a commitment to rural service, a laser-like focus on communications technologies, and the courage to imagine and pursue what’s next, there is very little that is not possible. As a cooperative we feel very strongly about investing in our communities so they have access to the most robust, advanced communication services available. It is critical for education, economic development, and quality of life.  This is a great honor and reinforces just how cutting edge and important our efforts are” said Johnson.

 

“As we learned more about Paul Bunyan Communications in the People to Know selection process, it was amazing to see the incredible amount of forward thinking the cooperative has shown over the past 20 years, time and again leading the way in providing the very latest in technology to its members.  To talk with Gary and see one of the largest rural all-fiber optic Gigabit networks being rolled out so rapidly in northern Minnesota is inspiring.  By highlighting his leadership and the GigaZone initiative hopefully it will lead to similar projects throughout rural Minnesota.” said Dale Kurschner, Twin Cities Business Magazine Editor in Chief.

 

“I congratulate Gary and the entire PBC team!” said Dave Hengel, Executive Director of Greater Bemidji, “Gary’s leadership and Paul Bunyan Communication’s commitment to our region in many ways has encouraged the greater Bemidji region to think big, be bold and ask the question, ‘why not in Bemidji?  As I watch our community grow and develop into a vibrant regional center, I can see the fingerprints of Gary’s vision and leadership all over our community. It is only fitting for Gary to be named on of TCB’s 100 People to Know because of his leadership and what Paul Bunyan is doing for our region.”

 

Paul Bunyan Communications has the region’s largest and fastest all fiber optic network with over 5,000 square miles throughout most of Beltrami County and portions of Hubbard, Itasca, Koochiching, and St. Louis Counties.  The Cooperative provides Broadband High Speed Internet Services, digital and high definition television services, Smart Home services, digital voice services, and more.

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