Gigabit Nation

Communities may be leaving an awful lot of money on the table for funding broadband because they're not going to the most logical money source on the planet - the bank. Stearns Brothers & Co Senior VP Aaron Gadouas explains that approaching banks and other tradition financial institutions is a viable option that more communities should explore. Critiquing the nine business models presented in Craig Settles' Building the Gigabit City (Chapter 5), Gadouas lays out tactics for preparing your community to take it to the bank and get financing: *  securing credible memoranda of understanding *  pre-selling network service subscriptions *  leveraging support from local banks and credit unions *  avoiding obvious and not so obvious pitfalls Mr. Gadouas, with 15 years experience in corporate finance and new product development, is widely recognized for his track record of innovation that includes creating a public-private financing program for healthcare organizations. At a recent Kansas City conference, he

Blacksburg, VA raised $91,000 to build a 1 gig network downtown using crowdfunding (bit.ly/ZVsVIz). A Kansas City neighborhood crowdfunded a wireless network buildout. Have we found the key to unlocking a big increase in broadband networks? As interest in this tactic builds, two community broadband veterans are rolling out a Web tool to crowdfund, aggregate demand and coordinate stakeholders. The design of this service reflects a belief that funding is just one of the challenges communities must address. Crowdfiber co-founders Greg Richardson and Bailey White advocate an integrated approach to broadband deployment that builds a pre-launch subscriber base while simultaneously raising money to fund the network. In addition, communities must be adept at organizing and project management. Listeners come away from this interview with a better understanding of: * crowdfunding best practices; * using the Google “fiberhoods” tactic to map demand; and * organizing stakeholders (a.k.a. herding cats).  

This session helps state officials and project teams involved with broadband more effectively capture and manage broadband mapping data. Equally important, we explore how the apparatus for gathering coverage and availability data can be put to greater use for economic development and other useful policymaking. Angela Bailey, Director of NC Broadband, a division of the North Carolina Dept of Commerce, and Jennie Stapp, Montana State Librarian and Montana GIS Coordinator Stu Kirkpatrick discuss lessons learned from their respective states’ mapping projects. They also explain how they turned this, combined with other state data, into policies and action. As we come to grips with the fact that stimulus money for mapping runs out in 2014, and some begin taking appropriate action, it is important that other states quickly follow suite. Our

As part of the broadband stimulus program, a sizable amount of grant money enabled states to create broadband coverage maps. Gigabit Nation listeners get a progress briefing from the NTIA's point person on broadband mapping and availability, Anne Neville, Director, State Broadband Initiative. Some of the topics covered are:      * what have we learned from these mapping efforts * what progress is being made in U.S. broadband availability * are there challenges that remain * besides determining broadband coverage, can these maps serve other purposes   As the funding for mapping projects expire at the end of 2014, states and local communities need to begin preparing now for the transition. This interview explores how states can get ahead of the curve and take some steps to ensure they continue to gather the data necessary to make good broadband decisions.   

So, what do the average resident or business owner in Kansas City think about Google Fiber? A lot of pundits and politicians and media folks, of course, have weighed in with lots of excited commentary. Join us for an hour of thought provoking discussion with those who stand to be impacted the most by Google coming to town. Call in number is 323-679-0845. *  How do John and Jane Q. Public expect their daily lives to be improved by gigabit Internet service? *  Are business owners feeling left out and maybe left behind by Google’s focus (for now) on residential subscribers? *  What kind of improvements do parents feel gigabit service will bring the schools? *  Will a gigabit network increase digital inclusion, or just make the digital divide wider? *  Do small business owners believe their companies can capitalize on gigabit speed? If you’re serious about broadband, check out what constituents have to say as we check the pulse of the community in Kansas City.

Could Google’s heavy initial focus on residential subscribers, while putting the business community on the backburner, shortchange KCK’s and KCMO’s economic development hopes? Cultivating startups is a plus. But mid-size and large cities boost local economies by making existing companies of all sizes stronger, as well as attracting larger companies to town. Learn how a Kansas City, MO ISP is filling in the gaps with a combination of gigabit wireless (yes, wireless), back-end infrastructure and a business market focus. Computers & Tele-comm CTO Graeme Gibson lays out a game plan for delivering gigabit services that go to the heart of economic development, and in a way that increases odds for financial sustainability. Gibson breaks it down for listeners: *  The right service offerings increase business adoption rates; *  Segmenting your business market and communicating effectively matters; *  Why it makes sense marketing wireless services to businesses; *  Decisions about infrastructure such as Netw

One of broadband's promised benefits is to dramatically change the process of educating children and adults. This broadcast explores how Kansas City can expect the new Google Fiber network to impact learning and knowledge retention while preparing students to live and work in the digital economy.     Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Cynthia Lane joins us to discuss: *  what  KC should expect when local schools tap into a gigabit network; *  how broadband-based education apps alter or enhance teacher-student-parent interaction; *  outcomes when KC schools collaborate via broadband networks with schools nationwide or worldwide; and *  tactics communities can use to prevent a widening digital divide as gigabit networks advance education. As KC and the Fiber to the Home Council begins its conference, "From Gigabit Envy to Gigabit Deployed," education is sure to be a hot topic. This interview with Dr. Lane is broadcasting live from the conference.  

63% of participants in a national survey have seen communities use broadband to harness home-based businesses into a economic engine, or believe strongly that communities can do this. Gigabit Nation goes to Kansas City to spotlight this dynamic at work.  Kansas City Startup Village (KCSV) participants give listeners first-hand details on how a booming entrepreneurial movement has taken root and is expanding thanks to Google Fiber. They offer valuable lessons to other communities that want to do likewise. Today's guests are: *  Adam Arredondo and Matthew Marcus, co-founders of Local Ruckus and KCSV Co-Leaders; *  Mike Demarais, Co-Founder, Handprint *  Ben Barreth, founder of the Homes for Hackers program *  Brittain Kovac, staff member of startup Leap2 and Event Manager for KCSV; and *  Jonny Kot, community leader and founder of Tech-Pointer. Our guests have complementary and contrasting viewpoints on: *  the role of Google Fiber in driving entrepreneurship in Kansas City *  how communities can encou

In March this year, in partnership with Broadband Communities Magazine, host Craig Settles conducted a survey of local government administrators and staff, service providers, consultants and others involved with broadband projects. What they have to say in Craig Settles' report, The Gigabit city & Economic Development, could directly influence your community’s efforts. Magazine Editor Masha Zager joins us to analyze what survey results mean to your community. 60% of respondents say fiber networks attract business, 54% say it increases home-based businesses. Nearly half feel 20 – 120 Mbps is minimum needed to impact certain economic outcomes. Only 7% see “searching for a job” as the greatest benefit broadband offers individuals. The survey explored broadband’s impact on six local economic outcomes in particular: attracting new businesses to town reviving depressed communitiesm making local companies more successful improving individuals’ income-earning potential increasing home-based businesses impr

Google Fiber is mighty nice, but they aren’t the only fish in the digital sea. Communities actually have many options for getting better, faster broadband, they just need to understand where and how to look. Building the Gigabit City, Craig Settles latest book, helps rural and urban communities: 1) navigate past the hype surrounding gigabit networks; 2) understand what super-fast access can and cannot do to improve communities; 3) conduct effective needs assessment; and 4) plan effective broadband strategy to leverage their options. CEO Mark Ansboury of Gigabit Squared, Settles’ partner in this e-book project, joins the show to discuss several key issues the book addresses such as broadband’s impact on economic development. Ansboury and Settles also offer tips for consensus building to form partnerships between various stakeholders that move network projects forward. Building the Gigabit City is Settles’ ninth book about developing strategies and tactics for using Internet, wireless and broadband technol

The Schools, Health and Libraries Broadband Coalition (SHLB) Annual Conference has become a yearly confab that draws many of the key players in broadband stimulus-funded projects. Our listeners hear from four of those who give us highlights of how far we've come since these projects launched: 2:00  Maria Alvarez Stroud - Director, Center for Community Technology Services, University of Wisconsin - Extension 2:15  Kevin Hughes - VP Sales & Marketing, Virgin Islands Next Generation Network 2:30  Tara Thue - Manager, Utah Broadband Project 2:45  Jane Patterson - President, Rural Telecom Congress America We get some of the inside details on several high-profile broadband deployment and adoption initiatives made possible by NTIA and RUS grant awards. Our guests discuss what they have found to be effective making better broadband and adoption a reality. They also talk about what's next for their projects.  

Is this the other shoe dropping that incumbents fear and advocates cheer? Austin is the second major city selected to receive Google fiber. Are we about to see a trickle turn into a cascade of inspired cities and towns answering the FCC’s Gigabit City Challenge? Learn the secret to Austin's success. Two key leaders of Austin’s drive to snag the brass ring offer valuable insights. Austin Council Member Laura Morrison and Rondella Hawkins, Telcommunications and Regulatory Affairs Officer for the City of Austin, discuss how they planned and executed their campaign to bring Google to town. Both officials have extensive experience implementing broadband projects in Austin beyond the Google effort, so they have a running start on the myriad of programs constituents can expect from the network. We discuss the potential education, economic development, digital inclusion and telemedicine goals that have stakeholders excited.   

Want to see local economies grow nationwide? Get the giant telecom and cable companies out of the way! David Cay Johnston, nationally acclaimed investigative journalist and author of THE FINE PRINT, lays out in stark detail how communities’ economic development is crippled by incumbents’ obstruction and anti-competitive practices. He also discusses how communities, small telephone companies, local providers and WISPs can fight back. Mr. Johnston is well known for shining a bright light on monopoly conditions in broadband and other industries that constantly rip off consumers. He explains for listeners the latest state legislative (and FCC) efforts that AT&T and other big incumbents are waging to get released from their responsibility to serve rural areas. He offers steps to counter this new twist on shortchanging those communities.

Though it requires dedicated effort to track and report on the economic impact of community broadband networks, there are plenty of ways in which these networks directly and indirectly produce economic benefits for constituents. Cedar Falls Utilities (CFU) in Iowa has been providing broadband services since 1996, and shares with listeners some great insights to using the technology as an economic engine.    CFU’s Internet services impacts their local economy in several ways, including being a key contributor to CFU’s transfer of more than $1.6 million annually to the City's general fund, which reduces local property taxes. Betty Zeman, Marketing Manager for CFU, and Network Manager Rob Houlihan describe some of their many successes, and offer some tactics for measuring these successes. This year CFU completes the rebuild of its fiber network infrastructure, as well as extends their service to about 90 square miles of rural land outside the Cedar Falls city limits where the utility provides electric service.

Delaware, the second smallest state in the union, is rated #1 in the U.S. in Internet connection speed by the Akamai’s State of the Internet Report. The state is ranked third by the TechNet State Broadband Index based on broadband adoption, network quality and economic support. And the hits keep coming. James Sills, Secretary of Delaware’s Department of Technology and Information, gives listeners a peek at the secret of Delaware’s broadband success, and also some of the state’s challenges. Serving in the office since 2009, Sills has been on a mission to put Delaware on the leading edge of technology. The state received broadband stimulus money from NTIA for mapping and planning activities. The Secretary addresses issues that face most statewide initiatives: driving adoption in urban areas where disinterest can be a bigger challenge than accessibility convincing providers to deliver service in sparsely populated areas keeping broadband maps current and relevant using broadband to impact economic outcome

MDUs - Multi Dwelling Units. Apartments, office buildings, incubators and the like. They don’t attract much attention in mainstream media coverage of broadband, but advocates for these networks are taking a greater interest in MDUs. In Kansas City, geeks and budding software developers are flocking to apartments with gigabit access. Red Wing, MN has made a commercial MDU the centerpiece of its broadband adoption strategy. In a stroke economic development genius, Santa Monica, CA convinced commercial building owners to extend the city’s fiber network inside their buildings, and eliminated tenant vacancies. Bryan Rader, CEO of Bandwidth Consulting, explains to listeners how and why broadband planners need to factor MDUs into their strategy. Issues discussed are: MDUs’ role as anchor tenants on the network     the economic development impact of broadband integration with MDUs one-size adoption strategies don’t fit all MDUs partnering commercial building owners with other broadband stakeholders

A Georgia town used its city-run broadband net to help eliminate property taxes. Yet some state legislators are tying to eliminate communities' ability to create similar successes. Luckily, community net supporters refuse to cede the battle to forces outside or from within their state. Thomasville, GA Mayor Max Beverly joins us to provide a front-line report on their state legislature’s most recent attempt to keep local governments from running broadband networks. State House Bill 282 is one of several ALEC-influenced anti-muni network laws proposed or in place throughout the U.S. that are barriers to states meeting the Gigabit City Challenge.     Besides the "side-effect" of reducing taxes, Mayor Beverly describes other economic benefits Thomasville's public network has produced. 500,000 patients received treatment and 350,000 students received educations via technology the network made possible. 6000 jobs were created. Mayor Beverly explains the economics and the politics behind Georgia communities’ figh

Practically everyone involved with broadband projects is aware of those constituents who, for various reasons, don’t or won’t use broadband technology. Though it may be tempting to write them off, the public good is best served by closing the digital divide. But can we get there from here? Research holds the answer. MoBroadbandNow is Missouri’s statewide initiative to expand and enhance broadband accessibility and adoption. The organization has conducted extensive research to understand how to drive digital inclusion, and they recently released an indepth report, “Understanding Internet Non-Adoption.” MoBroadbandNow’s Managing Director Damon Porter and Project Director Anna Read help Gigabit listeners understand how to structure and execute effective research initiatives that get to the heart of non-adoption cause and effect in their respective communities. Porter and Read also present some of the main findings that can help others overcome their adoption challenges.

Casting around for effective strategies to help meet (or exceed) the FCC’s Gigabit City Challenge, we wonder: how do we focus the myriad of broadband projects and stakeholders into one unified charge for better networks that produce great results? Libraries may be the answer. Springing from Kansas City’s Google Fiber project, the K-20 Librarians Initiative hopes to make libraries the hub of broadband buildout and adoption efforts. The Initiative bridges K-12 school, college, and university libraries with public libraries to extend the reach of network infrastructure, applications and resources. Don Means, co-founder and principal of Digital Village Associates explains the game plan. He’s a major force in the Initiative. As hundreds of middle-mile broadband networks come online that have wired libraries and other institutions, how do we leverage these buildouts to cover surrounding communities? Can libraries become mini test beds for applications people try before they buy? Will fiber to the library mean sup

Economic fundraising is a proven practice that could net a community several million dollars for its broadband buildout if executed properly. Tom DiFiore, who has helped communities nationwide raise over $1.7 billion for economic development projects, shares tips on how to recruit enthusiastic investors from within your city and neighboring areas. The concept is simple, but be prepared for a lot of hard work. DiFiore explains how to recruit people who’ll invest an amount greater than the cost of broadband services in return for a piece of the action – when that action includes improvements in the local economy. Hospitals, your largest businesses, well-to-do individuals and others with a vested interest in seeing your community’s economy improve are ideal candidates. As President of National Community Development Services (NCDS), DiFiore finds there are more people and organizations than communities realize that are able and willing to financially support improvements in the local economy. The key is knowing