A recap of news from July…

2017 Border to Border Broadband Conference
Mark your calendar for the fall broadband conference October 25-26 at Madden’s in Gull Lake. Get a sneak peek from a keynote speaker http://wp.me/p3if7-4c0

Determining Community ROI of Broadband Network
Blandin Foundation is working to try to determine the community ROI for better broadband. Have you saved or earned more money with your broadband connection? Please tell your story. http://wp.me/p3if7-4by

Minnesotans Getting Nods for Broadband Work
Danna MacKenzie receives the 2017 Community Broadband Hero of the Year Award from the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Administrators. http://wp.me/p3if7-4aY Paul Bunyan CEO Paul Johnson’s TEDx talk on rural broadband is getting watched. http://wp.me/p3if7-4aV And Minnesota is held up as an example of good broadband policy to other states. http://wp.me/p3if7-4c5

MN Task Force July meeting focuses on Telehealth
MN Broadband Task Force met at the new Essentia Hospital in Sandstone. They learned about the benefits of telehealth and impact of a hospital that is updated and has a good broadband connection. http://wp.me/p3if7-4b8 (SDN posted notes on their presentation to the July Task Force meeting. http://wp.me/p3if7-4aj)

Minnesota Broadband Provider News
TDS expands service in Minnesota using federal funds. Speeds for expansion range from 25Mbps down and 3 Mbps up (25/3) to 4/1. http://wp.me/p3if7-4aT Minnesota attorney general sues CenturyLink over billing issues. http://wp.me/p3if7-4aN MVTV Wireless is offering faster speeds with their fixed wireless connections. http://wp.me/p3if7-4al

Federal Broadband Action and National News

• August is Rural Broadband month at the FCC http://wp.me/p3if7-4aR
• A Presidential Executive Order establishes a Presidential Advisory Council on Infrastructure http://wp.me/p3if7-4bK
• FCC Connect2Health Task Force is hosting virtual listening sessions. http://wp.me/p3if7-4bM
• Sen Franken unveils Better Deal Economic Plan for Americans includes $20B broadband http://wp.me/p3if7-4bF
• Update on Net Neutrality: Sen. Franken Joins the Millions of Americans Who are Fighting Loudly to Preserve Net Neutrality http://wp.me/p3if7-4b2 Popular websites and others protested the repeal of Net Neutrality with a day of disrupted service http://wp.me/p3if7-4aD
• US House Agriculture Committee finds that rural Infrastructure includes transportation, water and broadband! http://wp.me/p3if7-4bA (See Rebuild Rural Coalition testimony http://wp.me/p3if7-4b4)
• Congressman Emmer Supports Focus on Tech Apprenticeships http://wp.me/p3if7-4bm
• Microsoft positioning to spread broadband to rural areas http://wp.me/p3if7-4aJ

Local Broadband News

Aitkin
Strut Your Stuff Tour visits in Aitkin County to learn about tech community centers, wifi hotspots, community portal and other projects supported with Blandin Foundation grants http://wp.me/p3if7-4bj

Bois Forte/Cook/Orr
Strut Your Stuff Tour visits the “Grizzlies” community in Orr to learn about digital inclusion training, tech equipment, wifi for checkout and other projects supported with Blandin Foundation grants http://wp.me/p3if7-4bq

Ely
Strut Your Stuff Broadband Tour visits Ely to learn about community portal, feasibility study, distributing computers to low income households and other projects supported with Blandin Foundation grants http://wp.me/p3if7-4c3

Chisholm
Strut Your Stuff Broadband Tour visits Chisholm MN to learn about community wifi hotspots, feasibility study, hotspots to check out and other projects supported with Blandin Foundation grants http://wp.me/p3if7-4bW

Fillmore County
Fillmore County creates a Broadband Development Fund http://wp.me/p3if7-4ah

Hibbing
Strut Your Stuff Broadband Tour visits Hibbing to learn about e-business training, wifi hotspots, feasibility study and other projects supported with Blandin Foundation grants http://wp.me/p3if7-4bZ

Kandiyohi County
Broadband project in Kandiyohi County in precarious position http://wp.me/p3if7-4c7

Kandiyohi County residents are putting their hands up for fiber http://wp.me/p3if7-4bS

Rep Dave Baker implores Kandiyohi County residents to sign up for broadband http://wp.me/p3if7-4bu

Friday (Jul 21) is the deadline for Kandiyohi County community network resident buy-in http://wp.me/p3if7-4b6

Lake County
Blandin recognizes Lake County’s courage to expand broadband http://wp.me/p3if7-4cb

How do we define success of a community network? Is Lake County a model or cautionary tale? http://wp.me/p3if7-4aH

Nobles County
Nobles County broadband project breaks ground http://wp.me/p3if7-4bo

Local reporters need broadband to get the story uploaded http://wp.me/p3if7-4bs

Pope County
Pope County gets results of broadband feasibility study including fiber wireless hybrid option http://wp.me/p3if7-4bC

Pope County wants to grow and broadband is part of the equation http://wp.me/p3if7-4aw

Winona
Kids are learning to code through a Project FINE program in Winona http://wp.me/p3if7-4bU

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

• Possible broadband grants – a list of MN and US opportunities http://wp.me/p3if7-4au

• July 11 Digital Inclusion Basics Blandin Webinar Archive http://wp.me/p3if7-4aA
• August 4 – CTEP AmeriCorps workers highlight their summer tech projects in St Paul http://wp.me/p3if7-4bO
• August 10 – Low Income Devices and Connectivity Blandin webinar http://wp.me/p3if7-49g 
• Aug 16 – MN Task Force Meeting http://tinyurl.com/zszfk7d
• September 14 – Assessment tools and training Blandin webinar http://wp.me/p3if7-49g
• Sep 28 – MN Task Force Meeting http://tinyurl.com/zszfk7d
• Sep 29-30 – 2nd Annual GigaZone Gaming Championship http://wp.me/p3if7-49A
• Oct 18 – MN Task Force Meeting http://tinyurl.com/zszfk7d
• Oct 25-26 – Blandin Fall Broadband Conference http://wp.me/p3if7-48o
• Nov 2 – MN Task Force Meeting http://tinyurl.com/zszfk7d
• Dec 7 – MN Task Force Meeting http://tinyurl.com/zszfk7d

Looking for more events? Check out TechDotMN’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

A short time ago, I heard Andrew Cohill of Design Nine (www.designnine.com) describe the “broadband crisis” faced by communities poorly served with broadband.  The intensity of the truth in that statement is illuminated as I listen to rural residents describe their daily broadband challenges caused by some variable combination of availability, price, reliability, data caps and other service limitations.  Rural people of all ages, incomes and education levels are increasingly stymied as they try to live complete lives.

Many communities have high hopes on their in-process applications to the Border-to-Border Grant Program.  We will soon know how many grant applicants will be chasing the available $20 million, most likely totaling many times more requests than dollars. While some communities with established provider partners have only to assemble the details of the application by September 30, other communities face the difficult task of securing a provider to be a real community partner.  An application without an identified provider partner will not go far; taking all of the legal steps to become a public sector provider is even more daunting legal and political process.

As difficult as it is to find a partner, a community should still be very careful!  I would want a provider partner that was committed to deploying technology that is affordably, not just technically, scalable to achieve the 2026 state broadband goal and beyond.  I would want a commitment to achieve ubiquity in the project area and not leave some residents permanently un- or underserved.  Finally, I would want a partner that I could trust to provide their best efforts without having to reach into the file to confirm and enforce legal agreements on a regular basis.

Good luck to all in the pursuit of better broadband!  The future of your community is at stake.