New Report Details Local Government Efforts to Improve Minnesota Connectivity

Date: 30 Sep 2014 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In our latest report, All Hands On Deck: Minnesota Local Government Models for Expanding Fiber Internet Access, we analyze how local governments in 12 Minnesota communities are expanding 21st century Internet access to their citizens. In 2010, the Minnesota legislature set a goal for 2015 – universal access to high speed broadband throughout the state. Even … Read More

Illinois’ Monticello Local Partnership Leads to Big Savings – Community Broadband Bits Episode 102

Date: 10 Jun 2014 | posted in: MuniNetworks, Podcast | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Following up on Lisa’s in-depth story on Monticello, Illinois, we asked Vic Zimmerman to join us for episode 102 of the Community Broadband Bits. We talk about how rural Monticello started by reaching out to the existing service providers, only to be stalled for months and then years. Eventually they realized they would have to take … Read More

Minnesota Local Governments Advance Super Fast Internet Networks

Date: 19 Mar 2014 | posted in: information, MuniNetworks, Press Release | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

As in much of rural America, communities in Greater Minnesota struggle with connectivity. Some areas have no choice at all, forced to rely on dial-up or slow DSL. Others have an incumbent cable provider. A few local community leaders in Minnesota, conscious of the need for broadband to save public dollars, encourage economic development, and get … Read More

Crap Cable Threatens Cloud Services

Date: 24 Sep 2013 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For my money, the best headline of last week was “The U.S.’s crap infrastructure threatens the cloud.” The rant goes on to explain just how crummy our access to the Internet is. As a patriotic American, I find the current political atmosphere where telecom lobbyists set the agenda to be a nightmare. All over the world, … Read More

Monticello Fiber Price War Offers Key Lessons for Broadband Competition

Date: 19 Sep 2013 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Monticello Minnesota may be located 40 miles outside Minneapolis, but it is the center of the planet when it comes to FTTH competition. We have tried and cannot identify another community localed on planet earth with two separate FTTH networks going head to head across the entire community. We have long written about Monticello, most recently … Read More

Coin-Operated Hypocrisy In Action: A Case Study in Monticello

Date: 18 Jul 2013 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Rant Warning… Every state has at least one organization, often calling itself a think tank, that is funded by large corporations to advance their narrow interests, often at the expense of local businesses and the larger public. Many call these “coin operated” think tanks because they take whatever positions their funders want them to take. Or, … Read More

Monticello Moves Closer to Settlement with Bondholders

Date: 20 Jun 2013 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

It has been about a year since we checked in on FiberNet Monticello, a city-owned FTTH network about 40 miles northwest of Minneapolis. At that time, the network was generating insufficient revenue to meet debt payments, the private company operating the network (HBC) was stepping down, and Gigabit Squared was kicking the tires. Since then, Gigabit … Read More

What if FiberNet Monticello Had Been Canned in 2008?

Date: 29 Jun 2012 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Monticello faced a number of key decision moments throughout the history of its FiberNet. Given the recent changes in management and decision not to make up the different between debt service and revenues, some may be wondering if proceeding with FiberNet was the smart decision. It was 2008 and the economy hadn’t entered its death spiral. … Read More

Gigabit Squared, Monticello, and Next Generation Networks

Date: 12 Jun 2012 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For those waking up from a two week nap, the publicly owned FiberNet Monticello recently saw the private provider managing it step down, the City tell Bondholders that it would not make up the difference between revenues and debt payments, and us examining what the network has achieved. On Monday, the Monticello City Council joined forces … Read More

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