ftth – Page 17 – Steve Blum's Blog

LA isn't playing with a full broadband deck

11 November 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, community networks, ftth, LA, los angeles, public policy

Last week the LA city council endorsed a plan, written by the city’s IT chief, Steve Reneker, and sponsored by freshman councilman Bob Blumenfield to entice private investors into providing ubiquitous broadband coverage to 3.8 million people over nearly 500 square miles.

The city isn’t offering much, though. A ten year deal to handle some of the city’s internal IT and telecoms business is a possibility. So is access to relatively minor city assets – light poles and buildings were mentioned – and maybe a break on permit and approval fees.… More

CPUC faces a decision on broadband subsidy limits

7 November 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, casf, cpuc, ftth, ponderosa telephone, public policy, race telecommunications, willitsonline

Broadband construction subsidies are averaging $2,200 per household, as the California Public Utilities Commission works through the current round of proposals submitted for California Advanced Services Fund grants. Nine applications for last mile projects have been approved so far, with an estimated reach of 9,700 homes and totalling $21 million.

CASF approved projects, as of 31 October 2013.

The most money – $3,800 per household passed – is going to an FTTH project in the high desert town of Boron.… More

Muni broadband wins voters' hearts in Colorado but not Seattle

6 November 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, community networks, ftth, longmont, public policy, seattle

Filling up in Colorado, half empty and still deflating in Seattle.

Seattle voters yesterday turfed out mayor Mike McGinn, their broadband cheerleader-in-chief, giving the job to state senator Ed Murray by a preliminary margin of 56% to 43%. It was a different story in the Rocky Mountain town of Longmont, where residents overwhelmingly approved a fiber-to-the-home bond measure, 68% to 32%.

FTTH was a prominent McGinn campaign promise, both this year and in 2009, when he was elected mayor.… More

CPUC affirms relevance of broadband pricing and caps, approves subsidies for five Californian projects

31 October 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, casf, cpuc, ftth, pinnacles telephone, ponderosa telephone, public policy, race telecommunications, verizon

The California Public Utilities Commission said yes this morning to spending $4.8 million from the California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) on five rural broadband projects.
Commissioners approved the subsidies unanimously and without discussion. The resolutions included language rejecting unsupported mobile broadband coverage claims made by Verizon and indicating that the commission considers broadband pricing and data caps to be relevant issues, if not formal criteria, when it decides whether to subsidise competitive broadband projects…

In addition, while the Commission in [its decision setting out rules for the CASF program] did not include broadband performance measure other than speed, the wireless broadband service offerings include data caps and pricing that are more restrictive than the proposed project’s service offerings which has lower prices and no explicit data caps.

… More

CPUC rebukes Verizon, prepares to vote on five broadband projects

30 October 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, casf, cpuc, ftth, pinnacles telephone, ponderosa telephone, public policy, race telecommunications

No point in kicking if the game is long over.

A series of procedural temper tantrums earned Verizon politely worded advice to pay attention to the rules and nothing more. In revised draft resolutions (still) recommending approval of California Advanced Services Fund (CASF) subsidies for three broadband projects challenged by Verizon, California Public Utilities Commission staff laid out what should have been done. For example, regarding a project proposed for Boonville in Mendocino County…

CD staff reminds Verizon that for all CASF project proposals, a challenge window and deadline is set up for submitting challenges on pending applications.

… More

Quiet campaign for Longmont muni FTTH bonds

29 October 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, centurylink, comcast, ftth, longmont, provo, public policy

Cards not on the table yet.

Judging by the lack of ripples in cyberspace, the upcoming $45 million broadband bond election in Longmont, Colorado is not generating a boisterous debate. Granted, it’s difficult to gauge Rocky Mountain political temperatures from beachside in California, but signs of passion, pro or con, are few.

The city’s electric utility published a promotional piece that focuses on the upside of the proposed citywide fiber-to-the-home network and downplays the negatives. The brochure dissembles about the risk to electric ratepayers…

Are my electric rates expected to increase to repay this bond?

… More

Google says tear down local policy barriers to get faster broadband

28 October 2013 by Steve Blum
austin, broadband, cetf, comcast, ftth, google, kansas city, provo, public policy

No red tape to be seen.

“In Kansas City, my crews don’t wait for inspectors, the inspectors wait for them”, said Milo Medin, the head of Google Fiber. “We work with communities that make it easy for us. if you make it hard on us, enjoy your cable connection.”

Medin spoke last week to organisations funded by the California Emerging Technology Fund at a meeting hosted by Google in Mountain View. His message was that upgrading broadband infrastructure, improving service and lowering costs is an economic driver that should be proactively supported by policy makers and public agencies.… More

Two big projects awarded construction subsidies by CPUC

18 October 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, casf, cpuc, ftth, public policy, race telecommunications

Meeting in Redding yesterday, the California Public Utilities Commission approved requests for a total of $19 million in grants from the California Advanced Services Fund for two projects, one on the far northern coast and the other in the Tehachapi mountains of southern California.
Race Telecommunications received $12.6 million to build a fiber-to-the-home system in the Tehachapi pass area of Kern County. The Karuk and Yurok tribes received $6.6 million for a combination middle and last mile project in Humboldt County.… More

Gigabuzz without the bits in Austin and Vegas

13 October 2013 by Steve Blum
att, broadband, centurylink, ftth, geek stuff, google, moonflight, pan am

https://www.robertvenditti.com/2010/“we-ask-you-to-be-patient-while-these-essentials-are-worked-out-”/

Not the first time the marketing department has promised the moon.

AT&T and CenturyLink are pumping up the gigabit marketing machine, without much in the way of network infrastructure to back it up.

CenturyLink says it’ll deliver a gigabit to select locations in Las Vegas this fall, without specifics on price or location. The press release does say that its previously announced fiber-to-the-premise service in Omaha will be offering service by the end of the month, but only to “targeted homes and business” customers.… More

Sunk costs support sinking gigabit prices

6 October 2013 by Steve Blum
broadband, chattanooga, community networks, ftth, public policy, utopia

Nowhere to go but up.

Fiber-to-the-home system operators are falling in behind Google’s idea that market share counts more than marginal revenue gains (or cost controls). Both Chattanooga’s municipal FTTH network and the Utopia system serving several Utah communities are following Google’s lead in Kansas City and Provo, and offering residential gigabit service for monthly fees in the $65 to $70 range.

At $350 per month, Chattanooga was attracting only a few dozen gigabit-level subscribers. At $70 per month, it should shortly have tens of thousands.… More