Each month e-News provides updates from the Blandin on Broadband blog, Minnesota broadband news and event alerts to keep you abreast of the progress being made to increase the use of broadband based technologies to help our communities, residents and institutions to be more productive, efficient and competitive.
Send your comments and suggestions to broadband@blandinfoundation.org.
News from the Blandin on Broadband Blog
State Money for Broadband
With a statewide surplus, the legislature is looking at funding for broadband. The Coalition for Greater Minnesota Cities suggests $100 million, at least. The Senate includes $100 million, and the House started at $50 million and has since upped broadband investments to $130 million. Dayton has $30 million in his budget proposal. http://wp.me/p3if7-352 The Minnesota Broadband Task Force has also been vocal about the importance of state investment. http://wp.me/p3if7-350
Managed Traffic Could save Minnesotans $1M in Fuel
Minnesotans spend 63 hours a year in traffic. Managed traffic would help. It would be costly to deploy but the investment could save Minnesotans $1 million in fuel expenses. http://wp.me/p3if7-34Y Broadband providers learn about other ways the Internet of Things could impact their services and market at the MTA Spring Conference. http://wp.me/p3if7-34f
MN Broadband Task Force Looks at Use of Broadband
The Internet of Things was also a big topic at the March Broadband Task Force meeting. They learned about the role of broadband in monitoring big things like bridges and cars. There will not be a Task Force meeting in April as the Governor is expected to announce new Task Force members soon. http://wp.me/p3if7-347
Minnesota Holding at Midrange Broadband Ranking
The latest Akamai reports are in (for Q4 2015). Minnesota does not rank in the top 10. Here is where we rank: http://wp.me/p3if7-34x
Average connection speed: #22
Average Peak connection speed: #23
High broadband (>10 Mbps): #27
Broadband (>4 Mbps): #27
4K Readiness (>15 Mbps): #28
Urban/Rural/Tribal Broadband Divide
The latest data finds that only 55 percent of those in rural communities, and 32 percent of tribal lands have access to broadband at 25 mbps compared with 94 percent of urban areas. http://wp.me/p3if7-34E (In Minnesota, we have access in 98 percent of urban areas; 53 percent of rural areas; and 42 percent of tribal areas. http://wp.me/p3if7-32M) While some look to wireless to fill the gaps, a recent report indicates that wireless is a complement, not replacement for wireline access. http://wp.me/p3if7-33T
Twin Cities Broadband Market is Booming
While rural towns are working on attracting providers or upgrades to their area, the Twin Cities is experiencing a surge of attention from providers. CenturyLink seems to be pulling fiber through residential St Paul http://wp.me/p3if7-34G and asking about offering cable in Minneapolis. http://wp.me/p3if7-33P Comcast may be handing off their share of the market to GreatLand. http://wp.me/p3if7-34n US Internet is looking to compete with big providers by expanding and upgrading broadband in the Twin Cities. http://wp.me/p3if7-356
Broadband News Around Minnesota
Big Stone County
Big Stone Country received funding from the Blandin Foundation to provide mobile functionality to their GIS application http://wp.me/p3if7-33o
Dakota County
Dakota County is bringing their Dakota County Broadband Initiative to various communities to talk about promoting better residential access to broadband via County built networks http://wp.me/p3if7-33l
Hubbard County
Paul Bunyan is bringing Gig access to parts of Hubbard County. http://wp.me/p3if7-33J
Iron Range
Iron Ranger Aaron Brown compares Iron Range to a town in Mississippi that has acquired a Gig for their forward-thinking residents http://wp.me/p3if7-33L
Kittson, Marshall & Roseau Counties
The Office of Broadband Development awarded $425,000 to Wikstrom Telephone to bring FTTH access to Kittson, Marshall & Roseau Counties. http://wp.me/p3if7-33j
Kittson County broadband coverage is 43 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-32U
Koochiching County
Koochiching County broadband coverage is 74 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-33F
Lac qui Parle County
LqP County broadband coverage is 99 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-33H
Lake County
Lake County broadband coverage is 77 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-33N
Lake of the Woods County
Lake of the Woods County broadband coverage is 47 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-33V
Le Sueur County
Le Sueur County wireline broadband coverage is 88 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-34a
Lincoln County
Lincoln County broadband coverage is 41 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-34v
Lyon County
Lyon County broadband coverage is 4 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-34N
McLeod County
Mcleod County broadband coverage is 99 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-34P
Mahnomen County
Mahnomen County broadband coverage is 55 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-34R
Mille Lacs County
Mille Lacs County wireline broadband coverage is 44 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-32X
Morrison County
Morrison County broadband coverage is 38 percent http://wp.me/p3if7-33D
Ramsey County
St. Paul will pay Comcast more than $2 million to upgrade the data network connecting more than 100 public buildings to high-speed fiber optic cable. http://wp.me/p3if7-33y
Red Wing
Red Wing successfully hosted their second annual Rural Hackfest – the Red Hot Hack http://wp.me/p3if7-34c
Renville & Sibley Counties
The Office of Broadband Development awarded $1 million to R-S Fiber Cooperative to bring FTTH to 62 unserved and 536 underserved locations in Sibley and Renville Counties http://wp.me/p3if7-33d
Rock County
The Office of Broadband Development awarded $5 million to Rock County Broadband Alliance to deploy FTTH to approximately 1,085 underserved and 265 unserved locations in Rock County http://wp.me/p3if7-336
Roseau County
The Office of Broadband Development awarded $261,575 to Sjoberg Cable improve broadband to 107 unserved and 49 underserved locations in Roseau County http://wp.me/p3if7-33h
Sherburne County
The Office of Broadband Development awarded $151,934 to Palmer Wireless to deploy 3.4 miles of fiber passing 21 underserved businesses in the Becker Industrial Park (city of Becker) as well as to 12 vacant city-owned lots covering 70 acres in Sherburne County. http://wp.me/p3if7-32R
St Cloud
St Cloud and Annandale consider their options with municipal network barriers lowering http://wp.me/p3if7-32P
Villard
Pope County approved a payment of up to $3,000 to bring a fiber optic line to the Massman Automation building in Villard http://wp.me/p3if7-33R
Events & Opportunities:
April 9: Free Blandin Webinar: Organizing the Community Around Key Broadband Topics – Creating the Right Team (online) http://wp.me/p3if7-34J (Last month’s webinar “Wireless – It’s complicated!” is archived online http://wp.me/p3if7-33B)
May 7: MHTA Spring Conference http://wp.me/p3if7-34q
Looking for more events? Check out TechDotMN’s calendar http://tech.mn/events/. Many events are based in the Twin Cities but it is a comprehensive list. (If you have an upcoming event, consider submitting it.)
Stirring the Pot
I am faced with two contradictory observations about broadband right now. First, the intensity of desire for and the impatience for improvement of broadband has never been higher if our Blandin Broadband Communities are representative of rural Minnesota.
Infrastructure and service discussions are dominating our recently completed vision and project development meetings. Over the years, I have told countless communities that the lack of high-speed broadband was going to be a significant detriment to their community’s economic competitiveness and quality of life. That day is here.
Community leaders now tell me how the lack of quality broadband is having negative effects on business recruitment efforts and business retention programs. School superintendents talk of the haves and have-nots of connected students and that impact on homework and curriculum. Throughout the community, negative impacts are felt. Interest in Blandin Foundation’s Robust Network Feasibility Fund is stronger than ever with many communities gearing up to examine market, costs, business models and finance in preparation for an expected round two of DEED broadband grants.
That contrasts with my observation that broadband is not the hot topic at the Capitol that it was last session. Last year, it seemed that the Senator Schmit tour, the task force recommendation for $100 million combined with the excitement for the creation of the Office of Broadband that the broadband topic was near the top of everyone’s priority list. That enthusiasm now seems to be a bit on auto-pilot. Although I am not actively engaged in the nitty-gritty of the legislative session, I do know that the rewards go to those who show up and make their voices heard. With many new legislators, broadband backers must reach out and make sure that your own legislators know what a priority broadband is for your community.
My advice – Do not just expect that DEED’s broadband grant fund will be renewed or increased to higher levels of spending. Broadband is competing with more traditional uses of state dollars with very organized constituencies – roads and bridges, human services, bike paths, k12 and higher education – the list is long and the interest groups well practiced in the legislative arts. Turn your lone voice into a strong and clear community broadband voice.
