Monthly Archives: August 2021

Enbridge gives broadband grant to Waubun-Ogema-White Earth Community Schools (Mahomen County)

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KFGO reports…

Enbridge Energy, the Canadian company that owns the controversial Line 3 pipeline replacement project in northern Minnesota, has donated $366,000 to the Waubun-Ogema-White Earth Community Schools to subsidize internet access for low income families.

Enbridge spokesperson Julie Kellner says the grant will provide “a combination of broadband and fiber infrastructure, and fund other services that will help students connect to internet resources and thrive in remote learning environments.”

Kellner says the grant will also provide services for students in the Mahomen-Naytahwaush school district.  Enbridge plans to present a check Thursday morning.

What about the RDOF areas that are already served?

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Fierce Telecom reports on what’s happening with the RDOF grants. As you may recall, the FCC asked providers to look at the areas they wanted to serve to make sure that they weren’t already served. Providers are doing that but it’s raising questions – what will happen to the money the FCC slated to serve those areas…

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently urged operators to ensure money awarded to them in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) Phase I auction wouldn’t go toward unnecessary coverage, and they responded – with a wave of waiver requests. As a result, millions in broadband funding could be left on the table.

Top RDOF winners including LTD Broadband, Windstream, Frontier Communications and Starry, were among those seeking to relinquish winning bids without penalty, after receiving warning letters from the FCC last month. Collectively, the waiver requests cover thousands of census blocks across at least 26 states.

The FCC issued letters to a total of 197 RDOF winners, flagging potentially redundant funding in a total of 15,187 census blocks. Operators had until August 16 to request waivers for these areas.

LTD Broadband requested waivers for more than 3,000 census blocks spanning California, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin. The operator was notably the top bidder in the RDOF auction, winning $1.3 billion in funding to provide service to 528,000 locations across those 15 states.

… and what will happen to the providers in question…

It is unclear exactly how much funding is associated with the waiver requests mentioned above. Last month, the FCC revealed more than 60 bidding entities have already defaulted on winning bids totaling $78,533,385.30 and covering nearly 11,000 census blocks.

According to RDOF rules, operators in default of winning bids are subject to a penalty of $3,000 per violation. But the FCC said in its warning letter last month it would consider waiving the fees if operators could demonstrate why defaulting on their bids would serve the public interest.

EVENT: Aug 25 Lunch Bunch conversation: What is basic broadband and should we be aiming for it?

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Each month the Blandin Foundation hosts two conversation or lunch bunch sessions; on the second Wednesday of the month the focus is Infrastructure and on the fourth the focus is Digital Inclusion and Use.

On August 25, I propose a conversation with Micah Beck, Associate Professor at University of Tennessee, Knoxville on basic broadband. I think it will be an interesting discussion I hope you will join with all of your experience trying to get usable broadband for your community or in your house.

Micah recognizes that broadband is expensive – especially when we are talking about high speed symmetrical service to all corners of the state, country or world. He has said that, “the Internet was never designed for “universal service” reaching every mobile device in the world at a personally affordable cost. Instead he proposes a type of broadband where information and transactions don’t happen necessarily in real time but where there’s a modern distributed storage & processing techniques to overcome delays due to distance, interruption, disaster, oversubscription. This would be a service that could support all Internet services other than “synchronous telepresence”.

Micah has a few articles that might help make his case. First is a school girl in Northern India who was sent home during the pandemic. She didn’t have access to broadband. (This may sound familiar.) A delayed internet access might have better served her than nothing. The other article aligns – Inclusive Broadband Connectivity Is Within Our Reach with that ethos.

I’m going to be honest, I’m not sure I’m sold on the idea but my high schooler (in St Paul) was able to access broadband during the pandemic. And her sisters are coming home from Winnipeg to finish their degrees remotely this semester. We’d love to have some folks who were left in the cold or using paper packets or parking outside the McDonald’s to get their own work done chime in on the topic.

Register here.

OPPORTUNITY: Dakota County RFP Systems Plan Update and Business Analysis

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Dakota County has an RFP for Systems Plan Update and Business Analysis…

Overview and Purpose of the RFP

The Dakota Broadband Board (DBB) is interested in updating the existing Systems Plan for its broadband fiber network, and in conducting a business analysis of the current broadband environment in Dakota County. The outcome of the project is expected to inform future operational and policy decisions of the Dakota Broadband Board regarding the use of its broadband fiber network.

The purpose of this Request for Proposals (RFP) is to identify qualified vendors who are interested in assisting the DBB in achieving the anticipated outcome. The DBB expects this process will include follow-up interviews with select vendors to answer any questions raised by DBB members, and obtain additional insight regarding their proposed approach.

 

OPPORTUNITY: Community Networks looking for Communities Looking for Low-Cost, Low-Hassle Broadband Financing: We Want to Hear From You

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From the Institute for Local Self Reliance…

If you’re a community considering building or partnering to build publicly owned broadband infrastructure in the near future, we want to hear from you.

Connect Humanity – an organization focused on making sure everyone has fast, affordable, and reliable Internet access – may be able to help speed the financing of community networks, including with some capacity to offer non-traditional borrowing or below-market rates. What is their approach?

Learn more about the opportunity!

EVENTS MN Broadband Pre-Conference Regional Events

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I’ve been posting about the Fall Broadband Conference (Building on Broadband: Inspiring Progress) for a while. It’ll be a virtual event Oct 12-14 and we’re hoping it will be very interactive. If you have a conversion you’d like to have us host, a story of success to share or a cool tool to demonstration – please let us know.

Leading up to the conference there will be a series of regional events, supported by the Blandin Foundation but hosted by local organizations. I’ve started to post some invitations and some invitations are upcoming but I figured I’d do one framing post – that’s I’ll try to keep updated as the local invitations role in. (I’ll also post those invitations separately.)

Each event will be unique, as each region is unique, but we’re looking for commonalities among the group and areas where we can learn, borrow or build from each other. One day of the Statewide Fall conference, we’ll try to pull those themes out together. So to get in on the conversation early, please consider attending both your regional and then state event.

Here are the specifics:

  • September 16, 10-noon, virtual with viewing at Owatonna Arts Center – Southeast & South Central Regions 9, 10 (More Information and Registration)
  • September 16, 11am-noon, virtual – West Central Region 4 (more info soon)
  • September 16, afternoon – specific time TBD, – Southwest, Southwest Central, & Upper MN Valley Regions 6E, 6W, 8 virtual (more info soon)
  • September 22, 9-11am, virtual – Arrowhead Region 3 (More Information and Registration – Email Karl Schuettler with questions)
  • September 23, 10:30-noon, virtual –  Central Region 7W (More Information and Registration – Email Don Hickman with questions)
  • September 30, 7-8:30pm, virtual – North Central Region 5 – (more info soon)
  • October 6, 3-4:30pm, virtual – East Central Region 7E + Aitkin County – (more info soon)
  • TBD – Northwest & Headwaters Regions 1, 2 – (more info soon)

Not sure which region is yours? Click here for a map and list of MN’s economic development regions.

EVENT Sep 22: Northeast Minnesota Regional Broadband Summit

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Another invitation to a regional broadband meeting, which is being held as a precursor to the MN Broadband Conference in October…

The Blandin Foundation, Dept. of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation, Arrowhead Regional Development Commission, Northland Foundation, and Northspan are set to co-host a virtual summit highlighting the challenges and opportunities related to broadband.

The summit, scheduled for Wednesday, September 22nd will be held on Zoom from 9:00-11:00 AM. It is free for all attendees, and participants will learn how other communities across the region are responding to this challenge and how an innovative, connected economy can create a dynamic future.

REGISTER HERE

The summit includes information about:

  • Community broadband and innovative economy projects
  • Successful regional infrastructure projects
  • Arrowhead Intelligent Region grant recipients and their plans

Agenda includes:

  • Welcome & Introductions
  • State of Minnesota Office of Broadband Development
  • Intelligent Communities Framework and Community Projects and Project Panel Speed Round
  • Providers and Communities on Successful and Planned Infrastructure Projects
  • Arrowhead Intelligent Region Grant Recipients

Attendees can register for the Northeast Regional Broadband Summit HERE.

The regional summit is a part of Blandin’s annual statewide broadband conference, Building on Broadband: Inspiring Progress. This year’s statewide conference is virtual and will take place October 12-14. Visit the conference webpage for more information.

EVENT Sep 16: South Central & Southeast Regional Broadband Conference

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An invitation to a regional broadband meeting, which is being held as a precursor to the MN Broadband Conference in October…

South Central & Southeast Regional Broadband Conference is being hosted by Region Nine Development Commission, Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, SE MN Together, Southeastern Minnesota League of Municipalitieswith support from Blandin Foundation and the MN Office of Broadband Development as part of the annual broadband conference, Building on Broadband: Inspiring Progress. This year’s statewide conference is virtual, and will take place October 12-14, with the 12th being dedicated to regional updates. You’re invited! Visit the conference webpage for more information.

Join us Thursday, September 16, for a regional broadband conference at the Owatonna Arts Center. This will be a hybrid conference allowing for in-person and virtual attendance. Hosts are actively monitoring the COVID-19 infectious rates and will notify attendees if a virtual only format is necessary. See the draft agenda .

As counties and statewide Regional Development Commissions (RDCs) consider how to use American Recovery Act funds for broadband investments, now is a good time to ask:

  • Who is being served?
  • Who is being left behind?
  • What are our opportunities to collaborate or stretch dollars?
  • How will we maximize these investments to spur equitable economic recovery?
  • What action steps are needed at the local level to support successful implementation?

Feedback gathered during the conference will be compiled with other RDC findings and rolled up to the Blandin Foundation’s statewide conference (virtual), and taking place October 12-14, with the 12th being dedicated to regional updates. You’re invited! Visit the conference webpage for more information.

In redefining the speed goals for funding, the US Senate may have effectively boosted broadband speeds to 100/20

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Doug Dawson looks at the Senate infrastructure bill and highlights an important action – the Senate just increased the definition of broadband for funding purposes and that the definition that matters…

The recently passed Senate infrastructure legislation included a new definition of an underserved household as being a location that lacks access to reliable broadband service offered with a speed of not less than 100 megabits per second for downloads; and 20 megabits per second for uploads, plus a latency sufficient to support real-time, interactive applications. It’s hard to see this as anything other than a new definition of broadband.

A brief history of broadband speed definitions…

In 2015, the FCC established the current definition of broadband as 25/3 Mbps (that’s 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload). Prior to 2015, the FCC definition of broadband was 4/1 Mbps, set a decade earlier. The FCC didn’t use empirical evidence like speed tests in setting the definition of broadband in 2015. They instead conducted what is best described as a thought experiment. They listed the sorts of functions that a “typical” family of four was likely to engage in and then determined that a 25/3 Mbps broadband connection was enough speed to satisfy the broadband needs of a typical family of four.

The FCC asked the question again in 2018 and 2020 if 25/3 Mbps was still an adequate definition of broadband. The Commission took no action and concluded that 25/3 Mbps was still a reasonable definition of broadband. There were comments filed by numerous parties that argued that the definition of broadband should be increased.

And the meat of the issue…

All of this is politics, of course, and homes and businesses know if broadband is adequate without the FCC setting some arbitrary speed as magically being broadband. Is the home that gets 27 Mbps all that different than one that’s getting 23 Mbps? Unfortunately, when it comes to being eligible for federal grant monies it matters.

I think there is a good argument to be made that the Senate just preempted the FCC in setting the definition of broadband. Declaring that every home or business with speeds less than 100/20 Mbps is underserved is clearly just another way to say that speeds under 100/20 Mbps are not good broadband.

Of course, the FCC could continue to use 25/3 Mbps as the definition of broadband for the purposes of the annual report to Congress. But Congress just changed the definition of broadband that matters – the one that comes with money.

This is a timely conversation worldwide as many households and communities felt the punch of COVID quarantines and broadband issues. In Minnesota, the MN Broadband Task Force have committed to look at the definition of speeds (or speed goals) this year.

Be Prepared for Opportunity!

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Blandin Foundation is seeking communities/counties to participate in their Community Broadband Resources: Accelerate! program beginning in September.  Blandin decided to launch a 2nd cohort of communities due to the enthusiastic response from our first cohort that completed the program in June.  We hope to have a group of 3 – 5 communities participating as a cohort and would like to start in late September as soon as we have our community cohort on board.

In essence, we ask that each community form a steering team with at least 8 people.  In our first cohort, teams ranged from 8 – 16 members that committed to participating in weekly meetings, each Friday morning from 9 – 11 am.  We do not keep attendance and ask only that people make a good faith commitment.

Each week has a theme.    From 9-10, all of the communities meet together to: 1) learn from experts; 2) hear from Blandin members; 3) learn from each other.  The second hour is devoted to each community’s steering team meeting where the teams plan their upcoming work.  We also ask that members watch an archived video webinar some time during the week on that week’s topic.

Through the process, each community will conduct a community survey using a standardized survey.  MN Extension will assist on data reporting.  In our last cohort, communities combined online and paper surveys.  Local communities are responsible for doing any data entry with the paper surveys and for any mailing or publicity costs.  In the first cohort, we used the statewide speed test web site to gather that data.  I am uncertain as to the availability of that site for our purposes.

Provider interviews are also a part of the process.  Several community-friendly providers participated on community teams in the first cohort.

We spend quite a bit of time on mapping, public private partnerships, public finance, etc.

The last two weeks of the program are devoted to the creation of a community broadband plan where Blandin staff works with each community to finalize their plan and a presentation that they can bring back to local elected officials, community groups and members, and broadband providers.

The application process is quite easy and informal.  The list of steering team members is the key element.

If you would like to know more, contact Bill Coleman at 651-491-2551 or bill@communitytechnologyadvisors.com.  He would be happy to do a quick webinar to ensure there is clear understanding of the process.

EVENT Sep 23: Enhancing Our Regional Broadband

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From the Greater St Cloud Development Corporation…

Enhancing Our Regional Broadband

Join the Initiative Foundation on Thursday, Sept. 23, for a Region 7W broadband conference at the St. Cloud State University Welcome Center. There is also an option to attend virtually.

As counties and statewide Regional Development Commissions (RDCs) consider how to use American Recovery Act funds for broadband investments, now is a good time to ask:

  • Who is being served?
  • Who is being left behind?
  • What are our opportunities to collaborate or stretch dollars?
  • How will we maximize these investments to spur equitable economic recovery?
  • What action steps are needed at the local level to support successful implementation?

Feedback gathered during the conference will be compiled with other RDC findings and rolled up to the Blandin Foundation for presentation at its Oct. 12-14 annual broadband conference.

“We don’t want to get together and simply admire the problem,” said Don Hickman, vice president for community and workforce development at the Initiative Foundation. “We want to identify the challenges, look for opportunities to work together and take action.”

Appleton, Benson, Madison and Redwood County get grants from MN DEED

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The West Central Tribune reports…

The Department of Employment and Economic Development recently announced that 15 Minnesota communities, including Appleton, Benson, Madison and Redwood County, will receive significant grants to improve broadband services and make other community improvements. The grants are part of the federal CARES Act.

Appleton, Benson, Madison and Redwood County will receive grants ranging from $678,000 to $3.7 million.

Details on the grants…

According to DEED, the city of Appleton received $3,699,000 for broadband improvement and commercial rehabilitation, the city of Benson received $678,000 for retrofitting buildings, the city of Madison received $2,560,000 for broadband improvements and Redwood County received $1,715,607 for broadband improvements.

OPPORTUNITY: Submit Your Video for Digital Inclusion Week 2021!

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I have a double ask here for folks in Minnesota. First – it would be amazing to see a lot of Minnesota folks submit items to NDIA for Digital Inclusion Week. If you do submit, please consider sharing it with Blandin Foundation too and we’ll work to find a way to fit it into the Fall Conference…

Digital Inclusion Week 2021 (Oct 4-8) is getting closer and we’re ready to feature YOU in our new video. See instructions below and submit by August 24.

  1. Prepare to shoot your video or take a selfie
  • Find a friend to help record
  • Hold your phone in landscape mode
  • Don’t stand too far from the camera because it will affect the sound quality (6 feet or closer)
  • Think about your background — Is there somewhere that represents your city, town, or organization? We’d love to see your setting!
  • Print and hold up a sign and take a selfie OR a video: Create a 10-15 second video
  1. Use the prompts to shoot your video – Introduce yourself and say one of the phrases below or make your own 10-15 second video

Digital empowerment means ______.

Digital empowerment means internet for all

Digital empowerment means access to tech training

Digital empowerments means access to devices

Digital empowerment is inclusive

We need digital equity NOW

I’m with ______ and we’re creating pathways to digital empowerment.

  1. Share the video (or selfie) with me by Aug. 24 – drop it in our Google Drive folder here and we’ll include it in our official Digital Inclusion Week 2021 video and share and tag you/your org on social media

Please name the file with your org name so we can tag you!

Will supply chain issues hinder fiber deployment? AT&T say yes. Frontier, Lumen, Windstream say no.

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Fierce Telecom reports…

AT&T CFO Pascal Desroches warned investors supply chain issues would likely prevent the operator from reaching its goal of delivering fiber to 3 million new locations in 2021.

Speaking during an Oppenheimer conference, Desroches said that up through the second quarter AT&T “hadn’t really experienced any impact” from global supply chain disruptions, thanks in part to its status as a “preferred” customer. But he noted “since the start of the third quarter we are seeing dislocation across the board, including in fiber supply.”

Desroches estimated that as a result “we’re probably going to come in a little bit light” of the 3 million target set earlier this year, “probably around 2.5 [million].” He added AT&T doesn’t expect the shortages to impact it over the long term, but said highlighting its struggle was “really important for context because if we’re feeling the pain of this, I can only imagine what others in the industry are experiencing.”

From Frontier (new article)…

Last week, Frontier increased its deployment targets, stating it plans to rollout fiber to 600,000 new locations in 2021, up from an original goal of 495,000. Speaking at a Cowen investor conference on Thursday, Frontier’s chief network officer Veronica Bloodworth stated it is “not experiencing supply chain issues” and has taken several steps to protect itself from labor and materials shortages as its build progresses.

“Materials and supply is one area you could run into a constraint, we don’t have that currently,” she said. “We have diversified our supplier base, we’ve put commitment contracts in place…and we’ve changed our inventory on hand appropriately to make sure that we are insulated against supply chain issues.”

From Lumen (CenturyLink), Windstream and Consolidated…

Lumen’s Head of Mass Markets Maxine Moreaux made similar comments in an earlier Cowen session. “We have not seen any issues,” she said, adding “we have diversification not only in equipment and fiber but also in labor.” Like Frontier, Lumen recently said it plans to accelerate its fiber investments.

Likewise, a Windstream representative told Fierce it has “secured all of the supplies necessary to meet our current build plans.”

Jennifer Spaude, SVP of investor relations and corporate communications at Consolidated, told Fierce it remains on track to achieve a target of upgrading 300,000 passings to fiber in 2021, adding “our partners are confident they can supply us with sufficient equipment to maintain our operational pace.” However, she acknowledged “inventory is limited on next-generation chips that deliver multi-gigabit speeds” and it is “evaluating alternative CPE” which can be used if necessary.

A third party gives some perspective on the differences…

Asked to weigh in on AT&T’s predicament, Dell’Oro VP and optical transport market analyst Jimmy Yu noted some players locked in supply agreements long ago. “Verizon (luckily) had a supply agreement in place a few years ago that assured supply with Corning. I don’t think AT&T did. Hence, AT&T doesn’t have a secured supply like Verizon,” he told Fierce.

Yu added neither Lumen nor Frontier “are investing in access (fixed and mobile) at the same pace as AT&T and Verizon. So, those two operators will not have the same demand level as AT&T.”

MLEC is expanding FTTH in Aitkin County (MN)

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Aitkin Age reports…

Mille Lacs Energy Cooperative (MLEC) has announced that MLEC Fiber Internet will become available for more customers in 2022.

More detail…

The Phase 5 project will pass approximately 300 homes and businesses and will provide up to 1 gigabyte per second symmetrical Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) Internet service. FTTH is the fastest and most reliable Internet available.

MLEC will partner with Consolidated Telecommunications Company (CTC) on the construction of this project and expand its MLEC Fiber Internet network. The project area includes the west side of Farm Island Lake, runs east to Sunset Lake, then along Tame Fish Lake Road all the way to Highway 6.

The Phase 5 project will create a redundant link to CTC’s existing infrastructure. This will make the company’s fiber network stronger and prevent internet outages.

“In addition to Phase 5, MLEC Fiber has continued construction on our Phase 3, Phase 4, and East Lake projects,” said the release. “If you live in one of the project areas, there is still time to sign up. Crews are working hard to get as many customers connected as possible before winter comes.”