driving business development and innovation
DESCRIPTION
Driving Business Development and Innovation a presentation by Bill Coleman to the Northern Regional Broadband Networks Forum in Duluth in October 2011. Presentation outlines Middle Mile broadband access in Northern MinnesotaTRANSCRIPT
Middle and Last Mile Networks: Connecting the Northland to Each Other and to the World
Bill ColemanCommunity Technology Advisors
MIDDLE MILE NETWORKSConnecting the Region to the World
Middle Mile Networks – • Connecting national backbone networks to retail
broadband providers• Wholesale function• Types of Middle Mile Services
– Bandwidth• Ethernet Connections• Internet Access
– Virtual Private Networks– Dark Fiber lease– Remote Servers, Data Storage, Disaster Recovery– Cloud Computing
ARRA Funded Middle Mile Projects• Funded through Department of Commerce NTIA via
grants and local match (either public, private or combination)
• Constructed to serve public sector community institutions• Built with the capacity to serve public and private sectors• Must be “open access”
– All users will have access to all lawful internet content– Providers must post all network management policies online– Providers must provide settlement-free peering arrangements– Providers must create interconnections at both a physical and
electronic layer
ARRA Funded Middle Mile Networks• Northeast Service Coop – NE MN Middle Mile Fiber
Project– Serves public and non-profit entities in eight counties of
St. Louis, Lake, Cook, Koochiching, Carlton, Pine, Itasca, and Aitkin. Open access for private sector ISP use.
– $43 Million dollar project, 50% grant, 50% loan• Enventis - Greater Minnesota Broadband
Collaborative Project– Construction of fiber from Duluth-Superior to the Twin
Cities and Brainerd to Moorhead serving 36 rural communities in 23 counties.
ARRA Funded Middle Mile Networks • Merit Network 3MC Project
– Connecting Duluth-Superior to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Detroit and Chicago
• University Corporation for Advanced Internet Development– Internet II
Existing Middle Mile Fiber Networks• Charter
– Duluth/Superior, Twin Cities, Brainerd, Michigan UP• Enventis
– Duluth, Twin Cities, Mankato, Rochester• Paul Bunyan Telephone
– Bemidji, Grand Rapids, Duluth, International Falls, connections to Zayo
• Mediacom (no map)– Range Cities, Carlton County
• Frontier Communications (no map)– East Range Cities, Carlton County, Twin Cities
• Qwest/CenturyLink (no map)– Duluth, Range Cities, Cloquet, Twin Cities
LAST MILE NETWORKSConnecting Us to Each Other, Gateway to the World
ARRA Last Mile Projects• Projects Funded through USDA Rural Utility Service
via various combinations of loans and grants• Predominantly Fiber to the Premise (FTTP) Projects
with some Fiber to the Node (FTTN) and Wireless Projects
• Must also be open access
Funded ARRA Last Mile Projects• Cook County via Arrowhead Electric Association
– Coverage – all of Cook County where electric service is provided
– Finance - $11.3 million loan, $4.8 million grant
• Lake County– Coverage – All of Lake County, eastern St. Louis County– Finance - $56 million loan, $10 million grant
Blue is mobile wirelessPale green has no service
Regional Broadband Coverage – Minnesota 3 Mb or better
Density of Unserved Areas
Unserved Areas – Douglas County(in brown)
Prospective Paths Forward on Last Mile• Incremental improvements from existing providers
– In NE MN, CenturyLink and Frontier– In NW WI, primarily CenturyLink
• CLEC investments from expanding providers• Community broadband planning efforts
– Cloquet River Valley – St. Louis County– Trout Lake Township – Itasca County– NESC/Blandin Foundation USDA RUS Planning Grant
• City of Cloquet• Fond du Lac Band of Ojibwe• City of Cook• Balkan Township
• Prospective state strategies• Prospective revisions in federal policy
– Universal Service Funds– Access Charges
• Wireless