Fact Sheet on Minnesota’s Rural Digital Divide

Date: 5 Dec 2016 | posted in: information, MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The fact sheet highlights the great work that Minnesota cooperatives and municipalities have done to bring fast, affordable, reliable Internet service to rural areas throughout the state. They’ve built many Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) networks, but there is still much work to do. One in 4 Minnesotans lives in a rural area, and of those rural households, 43 … Read More

The Secrets Behind Partnerships to Improve Internet Access

Date: 14 Jul 2016 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

A growing number of US cities have broken up monopoly control of the Internet marketplace locally. They’re promoting entrepreneurship, and giving residents and businesses real choice in how they connect and reach new audiences. They’ve brought a new wrinkle to an old model: the public-private partnership. “Communities desperately need better Internet access, but not all local governments … Read More

Fast, Affordable, Modern Broadband for North Carolina Fact Sheet

Date: 16 Feb 2016 | posted in: information, MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In North Carolina, state law effectively prohibits local communities from collaborating with neighbors or partnering to offer gigabit connectivity to residents, businesses, or anchor institutions. As a result, rural communities are unable to keep pace with the 21st century. The Coalition for Local Internet Choice North Carolina chapter (CLIC-NC) and the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) … Read More

New Handbook on Next Generation Connectivity From Gig.U

Date: 30 Jul 2015 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Gig.U, a collaboration of more than 30 universities across the country has just released The Next Generation Network Connectivity Handbook: A guide for Community Leaders Seeking Affordable, Abundant Bandwidth. The handbook, published in association with the Benton Foundation, is available as a PDF online. One of the authors, Blair Levin, has been a guest several times … Read More

Comcast’s Big Gig Rip-Off

Date: 22 Jul 2015 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

For some five years now, many have been talking about gigabit Internet access speeds. After arguing for years that no one needed higher capacity connections, Comcast has finally unveiled its new fiber optic option. And as Tech Dirt notes, it is marketed as being twice as fast but costs 4x as much (even more in the … Read More

Introducing… MuniNetworks Economic Development Page

Date: 16 Jul 2015 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Access to high-speed, broadband Internet facilitates economic development. Over the years, the Institute for Local Self-Reliance has documented economic successes brought about by community broadband networks. We chose some of the most compelling examples, organized them by topic, and put them in one place for easy reference. Check out our new economic development page. The benefits of … Read More

Listen: Unanswered Questions about the Public Rooftop Revolution – Local Energy Rules Podcast Extra

Date: 22 Jun 2015 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

At the beginning of June 2015, ILSR released its Public Rooftop Revolution report, which described how cities across the nation put the shine on municipal rooftops with more than 5,000 MW of solar. That 5,000 MW is as much as one-quarter of all solar installed in the U.S. to date — and many cities could install … Read More

Public Private Partnerships: A Reality Check

Date: 26 May 2015 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

When Westminster, a community of 18,000 in rural Maryland, found itself with poor Internet access that incumbents refused to improve, it decided to join the ranks of a growing trend: public-private-partnerships between local governments and private companies to invest in next-generation Internet access. They are now working with Ting – one of a growing number of private sector … Read More

Answering Questions About Title II and Munis – Community Broadband Bits Episode 138

Date: 18 Feb 2015 | posted in: MuniNetworks | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

As we near the FCC open meeting at the end of next week, when it will decide on both the Chattanooga and Wilson petitions regarding their wish to expand as well as a proposal to reclassify Internet access a Title II service in order to ensure it can maintain the same open Internet we have long … Read More

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