From jzollars at fastmail.fm  Wed Mar  7 17:03:28 2007
From: jzollars at fastmail.fm (Jerry Zollars)
Date: Wed, 07 Mar 2007 18:03:28 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico
Message-ID: <20070308010338.DC09D1D764B@mail.lcwireless.net>

Does anyone know of any other 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico or in other 
states that I could contact for information about their relationship 
to the FCC?

Jerry Zollars
Treasurer
La Canada Wireless Association
7 Avenida Vista Grande # 220
Santa Fe, NM  87508



From jjmart1 at msn.com  Wed Mar  7 18:09:37 2007
From: jjmart1 at msn.com (JOHN J MARTINEZ)
Date: Wed, 07 Mar 2007 19:09:37 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico
Message-ID: <BAY107-F211AD41BB811AD576513A6FE790@phx.gbl>

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From bob at bobknight.net  Wed Mar  7 18:44:59 2007
From: bob at bobknight.net (Bob Knight)
Date: Wed, 07 Mar 2007 19:44:59 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico
In-Reply-To: <BAY107-F211AD41BB811AD576513A6FE790@phx.gbl>
References: <BAY107-F211AD41BB811AD576513A6FE790@phx.gbl>
Message-ID: <45EF78AB.6080302@bobknight.net>

It's a non-profit cooperative. Electric cooperatives, telephone, etc. are under that IRS 
classification. When I co-founded LCWA, I guessed that was the IRS category that we wanted 
to fall under, and I guess the IRS agreed, since we landed there.

Bob

JOHN J MARTINEZ wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> Jerry, I am unfamiliar with a 501 C 12. What is that?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> John
> 
> 
> 
> 
> John J. Martinez
> 
>     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>     From:  /Jerry Zollars <jzollars at fastmail.fm>/
>     To:  /1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org/
>     Subject:  /[1st-mile-nm] 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico/
>     Date:  /Wed, 07 Mar 2007 18:03:28 -0700/
>      >Does anyone know of any other 501(c)(12)s in New Mexico or in other
>      >states that I could contact for information about their relationship
>      >to the FCC?
>      >
>      >Jerry Zollars
>      >Treasurer
>      >La Canada Wireless Association
>      >7 Avenida Vista Grande # 220
>      >Santa Fe, NM  87508
>      >
>      >_______________________________________________
>      >1st-mile-nm mailing list
>      >1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
>      >http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
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From granoff at zianet.com  Thu Mar  8 17:28:33 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Thu, 08 Mar 2007 18:28:33 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 3.8.7
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070308182142.033e1710@zianet.com>

Edited for interest.  FYI.

Marianne

>Carterfone??, Cybertelecom, 3/8/2007
>Recently SKYPE filed a petition with the FCC in which
>SKYPE asked that the FCC's Carterfone rules be applied
>to wireless telecommunications services. Translating
>this into English, SKYPE is asking the FCC to rule
>that a subscriber can attach any..
>  http://cybertelecom.blogspot.com/2007/03/carterfone.html
>
>
>Retail 4Q, 2006 E-commerce Report, Census, 3/8/2007
>The Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce
>announced today that the estimate of U.S. retail
>e-commerce sales for the fourth quarter of 2006,
>adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and
>trading-day differences, but not for price changes,
>was $29.3 billion, an increase of 6.3 percent (?2.8%)
>from the third quarter of 2006.
>  http://www.census.gov/mrts/www/data/html/06Q4.html
>
>
>Seven ways to keep your search history private, CW,
>3/8/2007
>Worried that Google and other search sites know too
>much about you -- and that the federal government can
>subpoena that data? Fear not -- we've got seven steps
>you can follow to keep your search history to
>yourself.
>  http://feeds.computerworld.com/~r/Computerworld/News/~3/100155229/article.do
>
>
>ID Thieves: Smarter by The Day, Internet News,
>3/8/2007
>When it comes to the Internet, consumers' finances are
>cannon fodder for opportunistic thieves.
> 
>http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/InternetnewsRealtimeNewsForItManagers/~3/100266456/3664331
>More Info:
>
>
>Palo Alto Moves Forward With FTTH - Picks 180Connect
>for $41 million long-delayed build..., Broadband
>Reports, 3/8/2007
>The city of Palo Alto, California, was one of the very
>first cities to explore building their own broadband
>network. In fact, they laid dark fiber infrastructure
>as early as 1996 and used a limited portion of that
>network to conduct fiber trials.
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/82146
>



From cohill at designnine.com  Mon Mar 12 05:15:49 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 08:15:49 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 3.8.7
In-Reply-To: <6.1.2.0.2.20070308182142.033e1710@zianet.com>
References: <6.1.2.0.2.20070308182142.033e1710@zianet.com>
Message-ID: <FC38F42A-5CB2-4FBE-97EE-F643AC37FA7B@designnine.com>


On Mar 8, 2007, at 8:28 PM, Marianne Granoff wrote:

>>
>>
>> Palo Alto Moves Forward With FTTH - Picks 180Connect
>> for $41 million long-delayed build.., Broadband
>> Reports, 3/8/2007
>> The city of Palo Alto, California, was one of the very first  
>> cities to explore building their own broadband
>> network. In fact, they laid dark fiber infrastructure as early as  
>> 1996 and used a limited portion of that
>> network to conduct fiber trials.  http://www.dslreports.com/ 
>> shownews/82146
>>
>

180Connect is a large national design/build firm.  The more  
interesting part of the story is that the system will have an open  
services architecture:  multiple service providers in multiple  
categories.  In a word:  competition.  Users will be able to choose  
from many Internet access providers, multiple TV programming  
providers, multiple telephone (VoIP) providers, and a wide array of  
other kinds of services, including network backups, IP-based security  
services, telehealth services, video on demand, and specialized  
gaming services with low bandwidth/low latency, among others.

Telecom prices typically decline an average of 15% to 20% in an open  
services architecture.

Andrew


-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
Voice: 540.951.4400





From rl at radlab.com  Mon Mar 12 14:35:45 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 14:35:45 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Freedom To Connect Conference report
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0703121431490.29007-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Of relevance to the 1st-Mile Broadband approch:

>From the web site of the just past Freedom to Connect Conference, March
5-6, in Washington, DC.

http://freedom-to-connect.net/

This report on Sasha Meinrath's presentation.   (Links to additional
presentation reports on the F2C site.)

www.isp-planet.com/fixed_wireless/business/2007/meinrath_f2c.html

Meinrath Says Everything Else is Stupid

He's got a pretty good idea based on a simple question: why is bandwidth
priced differently across the U.S.? Isn't it fungible?

by Alex Goldman, ISP-Planet Managing Editor
[March 12, 2007]

At the Freedom to Connect conference, Sascha Meinrath pitched the next way
we're going to eliminate the telcos from the upstream. He was talking
about the CUWiN Foundation (specializing in "Community Wireless
Solutions"). (It was originally the website of the Champaign-Urbana
Community Wireless Net.)

He called the talk: Cooperative Networking (a.k.a everything else is
stupid).

He pointed out that a 1 Mbps upstream connection is $10 per month in San
Francisco, $80 to $90 per month in Chicago, $320 per month in Urbana, and
over $1,300 per month in a town you've never heard of, Greenup. And a
$1,500 wireless link can take bandwidth to almost anywhere.

"But if we had a free market, wouldn't someone bring bandwidth from where
it's cheap to where it's expensive?"

It turns out that there is a network connecting all of Illinois, called
the Illinois Century Network (ICN).

It could provide cheap bandwidth to schools. "So why isn't it being done?
Is it technology? Economics? No, it's layer 8 political BS!"

An attendee understood immediately. "Of course, this network can only be
used for 'research.' But if we're doing research on how the network gets
used (by all sorts of people), then all traffic has a research purpose.
Clever."

There are plenty of other solutions to network the nation. For example, if
community broadband becomes sufficiently ubiquitous, the local networks
could all peer with each other and create a nationwide mesh.

So will it work? It's all being done on a case by case basis, as
opportunities present themselves. But we're interested and hope to
interview Meinrath in the near future as this project progresses.

In his introduction, Meinrath said, "I'm not about home networking. That's
not what I do. I'm not talking about the mesh network. I'm talking about
what's next. The next bandwagon that will eliminate the telcos. The telcos
hated community networking, but now they're leading the charge. These
networks are all over the place, but they're not connected to each other,
and they're still relying on the telcos who hate them."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
rl at radlab.com  	  www.radlab.com

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From editorsteve at gmail.com  Mon Mar 12 14:59:37 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 17:59:37 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Freedom To Connect Conference report
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0703121431490.29007-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0703121431490.29007-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <45F5CD49.7060106@gmail.com>

The business is tough enough without nutty statements like 
"why isn't the bandwidth the same price everywhere?" It's 
not the same price [duh] because:

1. Some places have competition.
2. The places that HAVE competition tend to be places where 
it is easier/cheaper to build a network or where the 
customers are easier to sell to. Building and selling costs 
money. Really.
3. Some places with state networks (Illinois) had their 
state politicos bought by people in private enterprise who 
said, yes, you can put in a network... and we'll even 
sell/rent the intercity fiber to do it... but not if you 
compete with us."
4. Just because you can build a fiber line to a school 
doesn't mean you can hock up the same fiber to 500 nearby 
houses, free, or even set up a wireless mesh free.

And WiFi provides 1 Mbps, sometimes, for $10 a month (or 
even free in some places). It isn't secure. It isn't 
scalable. Nice amenity. Doesn't solve the core problem. Why 
do otherwise normal, breathing, thinking human beings 
promote WiFi and WiMAX as replacements for real broadband? 
Yes, in some rural areas, WiMAX point to point bridges 
network gaps... and with only a few people sharing one 
radio, they can get 10-20 Mbps with a directional antenna on 
a short jump. We just did a story of one example, Xittel in 
Quebec -- 66% provincial capital subsidy, which is great.

But that's not what they talk about. There are mayors (and 
I've tried to talk to them) who think everyone on a city 
street will get 70 Mbps if they install WiMAX!!!

Why promote such inane stupidity?

Steve Ross

Richard Lowenberg wrote:
> Of relevance to the 1st-Mile Broadband approch:
> 
>>From the web site of the just past Freedom to Connect Conference, March
> 5-6, in Washington, DC.
> 
> http://freedom-to-connect.net/
> 
> This report on Sasha Meinrath's presentation.   (Links to additional
> presentation reports on the F2C site.)
> 
> www.isp-planet.com/fixed_wireless/business/2007/meinrath_f2c.html
> 
> Meinrath Says Everything Else is Stupid
> 
> He's got a pretty good idea based on a simple question: why is bandwidth
> priced differently across the U.S.? Isn't it fungible?
> 
> by Alex Goldman, ISP-Planet Managing Editor
> [March 12, 2007]
> 
> At the Freedom to Connect conference, Sascha Meinrath pitched the next way
> we're going to eliminate the telcos from the upstream. He was talking
> about the CUWiN Foundation (specializing in "Community Wireless
> Solutions"). (It was originally the website of the Champaign-Urbana
> Community Wireless Net.)
> 
> He called the talk: Cooperative Networking (a.k.a everything else is
> stupid).
> 
> He pointed out that a 1 Mbps upstream connection is $10 per month in San
> Francisco, $80 to $90 per month in Chicago, $320 per month in Urbana, and
> over $1,300 per month in a town you've never heard of, Greenup. And a
> $1,500 wireless link can take bandwidth to almost anywhere.
> 
> "But if we had a free market, wouldn't someone bring bandwidth from where
> it's cheap to where it's expensive?"
> 
> It turns out that there is a network connecting all of Illinois, called
> the Illinois Century Network (ICN).
> 
> It could provide cheap bandwidth to schools. "So why isn't it being done?
> Is it technology? Economics? No, it's layer 8 political BS!"
> 
> An attendee understood immediately. "Of course, this network can only be
> used for 'research.' But if we're doing research on how the network gets
> used (by all sorts of people), then all traffic has a research purpose.
> Clever."
> 
> There are plenty of other solutions to network the nation. For example, if
> community broadband becomes sufficiently ubiquitous, the local networks
> could all peer with each other and create a nationwide mesh.
> 
> So will it work? It's all being done on a case by case basis, as
> opportunities present themselves. But we're interested and hope to
> interview Meinrath in the near future as this project progresses.
> 
> In his introduction, Meinrath said, "I'm not about home networking. That's
> not what I do. I'm not talking about the mesh network. I'm talking about
> what's next. The next bandwagon that will eliminate the telcos. The telcos
> hated community networking, but now they're leading the charge. These
> networks are all over the place, but they're not connected to each other,
> and they're still relying on the telcos who hate them."
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------
> Richard Lowenberg
> P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
> 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
> rl at radlab.com  	  www.radlab.com
> 
> New Mexico Broadband Initiative
> www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
> ------------------------------------------------
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
> 


From rl at radlab.com  Thu Apr  5 11:28:25 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (rl at radlab.com)
Date: Thu, 05 Apr 2007 11:28:25 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Gene Youngblood Presentation Announcement
Message-ID: <20070405112825.91i7ity268s0csck@www2.dcn.org>

Gene Youngblood (subscribed to this list) will be presenting:
"Secession from the Broadcast: The Rise of Democratic Media", on Sunday the
15th, in Albuquerque, and on Saturday the 21st, in Santa Fe.
This talk is a must for anyone that is interested in and concerned about the
state of public media and the 'information commons' in our society.
See the attached press release and flyer for more information on the talk and
about Gene.

Richard

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From rl at radlab.com  Thu Apr 12 12:53:53 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2007 12:53:53 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Articles in Broadband Properties
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704121229020.8488-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Feb. issue of Broadband Properties contains many good articles on
FTTH (fiber to the home), and more.
The Policy article, on recommendations made by the FTTH Council, may be
of particular interest to some on this list.

	www.broadbandproperties.com

www.broadbandproperties.com/2007issues/feb07issues/100mbs_feb.pdf




------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
rl at 1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Wed Apr 25 20:17:30 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (rl at radlab.com)
Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 20:17:30 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC Broadband Deployment Evaluation
Message-ID: <20070425201730.5oegi6adc00os888@www2.dcn.org>

Last week the FCC announced that it would undertake an evaluation of broadband
deployment in the U.S., as a step towards setting broadband policy for the
future.
The FCC's Press Release follows, and is attached.
Richard
-------

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:			NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
April 16, 2007				Mark Wigfield, 202-418-0253
					Email: mark.wigfield at fcc.gov


FCC BEGINS INQUIRIES ON BROADBAND DATA AND DEPLOYMENT

Washington, D.C. ? The Federal Communications Commission today announces two
proceedings focused on evaluating broadband deployment.
The first is a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) under Section 706 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 into whether broadband services are being
deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.  The second is a
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) exploring ways to collect information the
Commission needs to set broadband policy in the future.

  Both actions recognize the critical importance of broadband services to the
nation?s present and future prosperity.
The NOI is the fifth such inquiry conducted by the Commission under Section 706
of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which requires the Commission to
determine whether broadband services are being deployed to all Americans in a
reasonable and timely fashion.  Among the questions the Commission asks in the
NOI is how to define broadband in light of the rapid technological changes
occurring in the marketplace, including the development of higher speed
services and new broadband platforms.  The Commission will also focus on the
availability of broadband, including in rural and other hard-to-serve areas; on
whether consumers are adopting new services; and on the level of competition in
the marketplace.  The Commission asks what can be done to accelerate the
rollout of broadband services, and seeks comment on current investment trends
in the industry.  The Commission also seeks comment on external data sources
that shed light on broadband prices and the extent to which consumers have a
choice of competing providers of broadband service in the United States,
ideally on a house-by-house and business-by-business basis, as well as
comparable data on speed, price, availability, and adoption in other countries.

The NPRM seeks comment on whether to modify collection of speed tier information
and how to improve the data collected about wireless broadband Internet access
service.  The NPRM also asks how the Commission can best collect information
about subscribership to interconnected voice over Internet Protocol service, or
VoIP.  Finally, the NPRM also seeks comment on how the Commission can develop a
more accurate picture of current broadband deployment (including by
extrapolating from more accurate estimates of representative urban,
metropolitan, exurban, low-income, tribal, and rural areas), as well as gather
information on price, other factors that affect consumer uptake of broadband
services, and international comparisons.

Action by the Commission, March 12, 2007, by Notice of Inquiry (FCC 07-21) and
February 26, 2007, by Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 07-17).

Dockets:  07-45 (NOI); 07-38 (NPRM).

Wireline Competition Bureau Staff Contact for NOI:  Jeremy Miller at
202-418-1507, jeremy.miller at fcc.gov; for NPRM: Ellen Burton at 202-418-0958,
ellen.burton at fcc.gov.


-FCC-
News about the Federal Communications Commission can also be found
on the Commission?s web site www.fcc.gov.





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From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Thu Apr 26 06:06:09 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Thu, 26 Apr 2007 07:06:09 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC Broadband Deployment Evaluation
In-Reply-To: <20070425201730.5oegi6adc00os888@www2.dcn.org>
References: <20070425201730.5oegi6adc00os888@www2.dcn.org>
Message-ID: <05e501c78803$a8fb7640$c00a010a@yourfsyly0jtwn>

Re. Richard's posting on the FCC decision to evaluate broadband deployment
in the U.S. there are a few other points along those same lines in recent
days (aside from the long-standing relevant issue that what the FCC calls
"broadband" is anachronistically narrow).

Carroll


	1.	1/3 of Japan's broadband subscribers now 
use fiber to the home


http://www.soumu.go.jp/joho_tsusin/eng/Sta
tistics/pdf/070313_2.pdf

	2.	This page is directly accessible at
www.oecd.org/sti/ict/broadband

Over the past year, the number of broadband subscribers in the OECD
increased 26% from 157 million in December 2005 to 197 million in December
2006. This growth increased broadband penetration rates in the OECD from
13.5 in December 2005 to 16.9 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants one year
later. The main highlights for 2006 are: 
.	European countries have continued their advance with high broadband
penetration rates. In December 2006, eight countries (Denmark, the
Netherlands, Iceland, Korea, Switzerland,  Finland, Norway and Sweden) led
the OECD in broadband penetration, each with at least 26 subscribers per 100
inhabitants.
.	Denmark and the Netherlands are the first two countries in the OECD
to surpass 30 subscribers per 100 inhabitants.
.	The strongest per-capita subscriber growth over the year comes from
Denmark, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Ireland. Each country added more
than 5.8 subscribers per 100 inhabitants during the past year.
.	Operators in several countries continue with their upgrades to
fibre. Fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) and Fibre-to-the-building (FTTB)
subscriptions now comprise nearly 7% of all broadband connections in the
OECD and the percentage is growing. Korea and Japan each have more than 6
fibre-based broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants.
.	Japan leads the OECD in fibre connections directly to the home with
7.9 million fibre-to-the-home subscribers in December 2006. Fibre
subscribers alone in Japan outnumber total broadband subscribers in 23 of
the 30 OECD countries.
.	The total number of ADSL subscriptions continues to fall in Korea
and Japan as more users upgrade to fibre-based connections. 
.	DSL continues to be the leading platform in 28 OECD countries. Cable
modem subscribers outnumber DSL in Canada and the United States.
.	The United States has the largest total number of broadband
subscribers in the OECD at 58.1 million. US broadband subscribers now
represent 29% of all broadband connections in the OECD.
.	Canada continues to lead the G7 group of industrialized countries in
broadband penetration
.	The breakdown of broadband technologies in December 2006 is as
follows:
- DSL : 62%
- Cable modem : 29%
- FTTH/FTTB : 7%
- Other (e.g. satellite, fixed wireless, powerline communication) : 2%


	3.	COMMISSIONER COPPS REITERATES CALL FOR A NATIONAL BROADBAND
STRATEGY TO ADDRESS AMERICA'S DROP IN BROADBAND RANKINGS

	In response to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and
Development's announcement today that the United States has fallen in its
country-by-country ranking of broadband penetration, Commissioner Michael J.
Copps issued the following statement:

"Every year brings more bad news as the United States slides farther down
the broadband rankings.  It's a national embarrassment and the only way to
change it is to develop a broadband strategy like every other industrialized
nation has already done.  These rankings aren't a beauty contest - they're
about our competitiveness as a country and creating economic opportunity for
all our people.  Bringing high-speed broadband to every corner of the
country is the central infrastructure challenge we face.  Always in the
past, our nation found ways to stay ahead of everyone else in building
infrastructure like turnpikes, railroads and highways.  Now, in broadband,
we're not even an also-ran."

- FCC -

-----Original Message-----
From: 1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org
[mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org] On Behalf Of rl at radlab.com
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2007 9:18 PM
To: 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC Broadband Deployment Evaluation

Last week the FCC announced that it would undertake an evaluation of
broadband
deployment in the U.S., as a step towards setting broadband policy for the
future.
The FCC's Press Release follows, and is attached.
Richard
-------

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:			NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
April 16, 2007				Mark Wigfield, 202-418-0253
					Email: mark.wigfield at fcc.gov


FCC BEGINS INQUIRIES ON BROADBAND DATA AND DEPLOYMENT

Washington, D.C. ? The Federal Communications Commission today announces two
proceedings focused on evaluating broadband deployment.
The first is a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) under Section 706 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 into whether broadband services are being
deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.  The second is
a
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) exploring ways to collect information
the
Commission needs to set broadband policy in the future.

  Both actions recognize the critical importance of broadband services to
the
nation?s present and future prosperity.
The NOI is the fifth such inquiry conducted by the Commission under Section
706
of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which requires the Commission to
determine whether broadband services are being deployed to all Americans in
a
reasonable and timely fashion.  Among the questions the Commission asks in
the
NOI is how to define broadband in light of the rapid technological changes
occurring in the marketplace, including the development of higher speed
services and new broadband platforms.  The Commission will also focus on the
availability of broadband, including in rural and other hard-to-serve areas;
on
whether consumers are adopting new services; and on the level of competition
in
the marketplace.  The Commission asks what can be done to accelerate the
rollout of broadband services, and seeks comment on current investment
trends
in the industry.  The Commission also seeks comment on external data sources
that shed light on broadband prices and the extent to which consumers have a
choice of competing providers of broadband service in the United States,
ideally on a house-by-house and business-by-business basis, as well as
comparable data on speed, price, availability, and adoption in other
countries.

The NPRM seeks comment on whether to modify collection of speed tier
information
and how to improve the data collected about wireless broadband Internet
access
service.  The NPRM also asks how the Commission can best collect information
about subscribership to interconnected voice over Internet Protocol service,
or
VoIP.  Finally, the NPRM also seeks comment on how the Commission can
develop a
more accurate picture of current broadband deployment (including by
extrapolating from more accurate estimates of representative urban,
metropolitan, exurban, low-income, tribal, and rural areas), as well as
gather
information on price, other factors that affect consumer uptake of broadband
services, and international comparisons.

Action by the Commission, March 12, 2007, by Notice of Inquiry (FCC 07-21)
and
February 26, 2007, by Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 07-17).

Dockets:  07-45 (NOI); 07-38 (NPRM).

Wireline Competition Bureau Staff Contact for NOI:  Jeremy Miller at
202-418-1507, jeremy.miller at fcc.gov; for NPRM: Ellen Burton at 202-418-0958,
ellen.burton at fcc.gov.


-FCC-
News about the Federal Communications Commission can also be found
on the Commission?s web site www.fcc.gov.





----------------------------------------------------------------
This message was sent using IMP, the Internet Messaging Program.




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Apr 27 19:27:32 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 19:27:32 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] USDA RUS Grants
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704271911290.13091-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development has
announced its Distance Learning and Telemedicine grant/loan program for
Fiscal Year 2007.

More information about the grant program is available on their web site:
	www.usda.gov/rus/telecom/dlt/dlt.htm


A number of rural NM communities and projects have previously been funded
through this program.   If you, your organization, community or others are
planning to apply, please let us know via this email list.

Richard


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
rl at 1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From dewayne at dandin.com  Sat Apr 28 09:27:02 2007
From: dewayne at dandin.com (Dewayne Hendricks)
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 09:27:02 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India to
	everyone
Message-ID: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>

[Note:  It looks like exciting things are in store for India as far  
as broadband is concerned.  So where is this kind of bold thinking  
here in the U.S.?  DLH]

Broadband to go free in 2 yrs
JOJI THOMAS PHILIP
TIMES NEWS NETWORK


[ THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 2007 02:00:26 AM]
<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Broadband_to_go_free_in_2_yrs/ 
articleshow/1955351.cms>

NEW DELHI: The government proposes to offer all citizens of India
free, high-speed broadband connectivity by 2009, through the state-
owned telecom service providers BSNL and MTNL. While consumers would
cheer, the move holds the potential to kill the telecom business as
we know it.
You have heard of free municipal broadband ? many cities in the US
have drenched themselves in wireless broadband connectivity which is
freely accessible to residents. The idea is to boost economic
activity in general. The government of India plans to achieve free
broadband connectivity at a speed of 2 MB per second across the
country, with a similar goal. Senior government officials expect to
be able to achieve this goal spending only a portion of the corpus of
the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF).

All telecom operators contribute 5% of their revenues every year to
USOF. It is estimated that the unutilised sum from the USOF has
touched Rs 9,194.12 crore by March, 2007-end.

The current technological trend is for voice calls also to shift to
the internet, using voice over internet protocol (VOIP). The quality
of VOIP calls, patchy to start off with, has been improving steadily
over the years and by 2009, is likely to be as good as current
analogue calls that establish a circuit between the calling and
called parties. When that happens, revenue streams from calls would
dry up and telecom companies would need to develop value-added
applications to make money from the connectivity they provide for
free or virtually free.

The department of telecom (DoT) will be taking a series of steps to
make its plans for free broadband a reality. These include, using the
USOF to set an extensive optic cable network across the country,
opening up the long-distance sectors to further competition, allowing
free and fair access to cable landing stations, permitting the resale
of bandwidth, setting up web hosting facilities within the country
and asking all internet service providers to connect to the National
Internet Exchange of India (NIXI).

With international bandwidth rates in India being between two-to-five
times higher than the global standards, the DoT will also go all out
to break the monopoly of existing national and international distance
players in a bid to induce cut throat competition in this sector.
?India has only a handful of NLD/ILD operators while small countries
such as Singapore and Taiwan have over 30 and 60 long distance
operators respectively.

------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
--

Broadband initiatives: Speed it up
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

[ FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 2007 12:00:01 AM]
<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Editorial/ 
Broadband_initiatives_Speed_it_up/articleshow/1962328.cms>

The government?s reported proposal to provide free broadband access
is a good idea, it would enhance economic activity and boost
productivity. It must, however, simultaneously speed-up 3G rollout
and facilitate convergence, enabling telecom companies to provide
value-added services to make up for the loss of conventional internet
and voice business, which is likely to shift in a big way to the
internet over the next few years.
At first reading the government?s proposal to provide free broadband
access by 2009 through BSNL and MTNL appears to be the usual arm
twisting of state-owned companies into populist unviable schemes. On
the contrary, the details show it to be a logical outcome of a series
of measures that would reduce the cost of providing broadband access
to almost zero in two years.

In that sense the free broadband scheme would be almost akin to
BSNL?s ?One India? scheme that forced private operators into offering
similar plans and thereby reduced telecom tariffs. The government has
already initiated bidding for the creation of universal service
obligation fund (USOF) supported independent mobile infrastructure in
rural areas, and provision of rural mobile services.

Since the initial results have shown the burden on the fund to be a
lot less than expected, it makes sense to use the near Rs 10,000 fund
to plug the telecom infrastructure holes. And this is exactly what
the government appears to have decided upon. It wants to use the fund
to create a pan-India fibre optic network and encourage web hosting.

In conjunction with other measures such as allowing more long
distance players and routing all internet traffic through the
National Internet Exchange of India would encourage competition and
keep internal internet traffic within India, precluding unnecessary
use of bandwidth. This infrastructure initiative and increased
competition would make free broadband viable.

However, much of this depends on the spectrum riddle. The government
must quickly decide on the modalities of 3G rollout and the spectrum
issues, as 3G is essentially high-speed wireless broadband and the
key to providing internet services in remote areas.

The policy should provide for an efficient utilisation of the scarce
resource. In that sense government?s thinking on permitting bandwidth
resale and allowing new players to bid for spectrum is welcome. It
would infuse competition and thereby help lower costs.


From rl at radlab.com  Sat Apr 28 21:37:31 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 21:37:31 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Roy Soto: position change
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704282132380.28822-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

I haven't seen any more official announcement, yet.    rl


As part of a consolidation initiative, Roy Soto, the state's chief
information officer, will become secretary of the cabinet-level Department
of Information Technology, which is responsible for computer hardware,
software and communications matters in government.   The Department of
Information Technology will take over operations previously performed by
the Office of the Chief Information Officer and some divisions of the
General Services Department.

Soto has served as chief information officer since 2004.







From rl at radlab.com  Sun Apr 29 11:11:49 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 29 Apr 2007 11:11:49 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] OEDC Report
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704291108300.23749-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Thanks to Carroll Cagle for posting a synopsis of recent OEDC Broadband
reporting.

Though the U.S. is woefully behind in 'real broadband' deployment and
services, it is worth looking at the entire global snapshot that the
report provides.    A networked society is by its nature, simultaneously
local and global.   Having a better sense of our globally developing
'information society', can help us learn how to realistically grow our
1st-mile networks and services.    There's lots of need and room for
opportunity in the U.S.    However, I believe that 'early adopter'
communities and states will have to take the lead and set examples, before
our expectations for appropriate federal initiatives are realized.    I'm
still hoping that the State of New Mexico may take overt steps in the
right direction.   If so, it will require the leadership of many of us on
this list.

The OEDC ( Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
Broadband Statistics to December 2006 Report is directly accessible at
www.oecd.org/sti/ict/broadband


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From cohill at designnine.com  Mon Apr 30 07:34:59 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 10:34:59 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] OEDC Report
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704291108300.23749-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0704291108300.23749-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <7C3BC534-63B0-40B9-8698-77744BE84CE4@designnine.com>


On Apr 29, 2007, at 2:11 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:
>
> Though the U.S. is woefully behind in 'real broadband' deployment and
> services, it is worth looking at the entire global snapshot that the
> report provides.    A networked society is by its nature,  
> simultaneously
> local and global.

the "local and global" phenomenon is interesting.  I was in a small  
rural town last week that has lost most of its manufacturing jobs.   
We were talking to them about a fiber project that would make the  
town more attractive to knowledge economy companies.  But as we  
walked around the small downtown, the city official pointed out two  
local businesses that were doing very well.

One was one of these "teddy bear" businesses that makes custom teddy  
bears and sells them online and by phone, and ships all over the  
country.  The second was even more interesting.  It was a businessman  
who has containers of very expensive antique furniture shipped by the  
container load from Germany (and only from Germany), and then sells  
the furniture online to mostly U.S. customers.

Both businesses provide employment for several people, and are in no  
way the kind of business that would be on the radar of traditional  
economic development strategies.  But those were the businesses  
providing employment--local employment and working globally.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400





From cohill at designnine.com  Mon Apr 30 07:50:56 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 10:50:56 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India to
	everyone
In-Reply-To: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>
References: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>
Message-ID: <A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>


On Apr 28, 2007, at 12:27 PM, Dewayne Hendricks wrote:

> [Note:  It looks like exciting things are in store for India as far
> as broadband is concerned.  So where is this kind of bold thinking
> here in the U.S.?  DLH]
>

It is not at all clear that "free broadband" is sustainable.  The  
longstanding problems with free services (in any market, not just  
broadband)  include market distortion and low quality service.

Market distortion occurs because "free" services suggest to users of  
the service that supply is inexhaustible, and so users use as much as  
possible.  Not everyone thinks this way, but a small number of users  
who hog bandwidth can consume all available supply.

This leads to low quality of service, in part because there is no  
pricing feedback to users (see above), and in part because the lack  
of revenue makes it difficult to expand capacity as demand increases.

In fact, fees alone do not guarantee a sustainable business model.   
In the U.S. and most other markets, the current broadband business  
model is upside down.  Service providers enjoy maximized profits when  
customers, paying a fixed fee for Internet access, don't use the  
service at all.  Service providers make the least profit if customers  
like the service and use it a lot.

 From an economic perspective, charging a fixed fee no matter how  
much bandwidth a customers uses is exactly the same as giving the  
service away for free.  Neither one provides the funds necessary to  
expand capacity, increase service areas, pay for proper maintenance  
and upkeep, and add new services.

A solution is to move to a service oriented architecture (a different  
network architecture AND a different business model) that conveys a  
clearer relationship between supply and demand to customers.   
Customers pay for services, rather than buying a bucket of  
bandwidth.  Service fees are based on the real cost of providing the  
service, thus providing information to customers about supply and  
demand.  This can be done easily with both wired and wireless networks.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400





From editorsteve at gmail.com  Mon Apr 30 08:23:18 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:23:18 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India to
	everyone
In-Reply-To: <A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>
References: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>
	<A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>
Message-ID: <203e4cf70704300823j894fca2o70c7ba2268980c58@mail.gmail.com>

Not sure the government can deliver what it promises. But it will be
fun to watch.

The number of rupees below is given in crore, a unit of 100,000. So
the amount of money available in the fund to do this is 9,194,000,000
rupees. A dollar buys 43 rupees, so this is about $220 million. There
are about 10 million households served by landline phone in India, but
there will be 400 million cellular customers (almost all GSM) by 2010.

Clearly not enough money to provide this much bandwidth even to the 10
million who are wired, if they need massive network upgrades. Wireline
quality varies around the country, BTW. Some is quite awful. Most
broadband customers get only 128 Kbps or 256 Kbps (DSL), but the
network is probably capable of more in some places -- the government
has limited connections because the overseas fiber from India to
Europe and the rest of Asia has been capacity-constrained.

Also, it looks like a subsidy to people rich enough to afford
landlines now -- they are NOT offering free wireline phone service,
just free internet over the phones that do get connected.

Use of VoIP over data lines has been legal in India for only about two
years. Cell growth has been amazing -- they will catch up to China in
2010 or 2011. So the only charge a household would have is for the
connection itself -- and probably a landline that would be used only
for local calls, in the transition period.

BTW, just to be clear, the government owns the communications
companies named (no public stock has been sold to "privatize" them).
But despite the ownership, they are no longer monopolies.

Steve Ross


On 4/30/07, Andrew Cohill <cohill at designnine.com> wrote:
>
> On Apr 28, 2007, at 12:27 PM, Dewayne Hendricks wrote:
>
> > [Note:  It looks like exciting things are in store for India as far
> > as broadband is concerned.  So where is this kind of bold thinking
> > here in the U.S.?  DLH]
> >
>
> It is not at all clear that "free broadband" is sustainable.  The
> longstanding problems with free services (in any market, not just
> broadband)  include market distortion and low quality service.
>
> Market distortion occurs because "free" services suggest to users of
> the service that supply is inexhaustible, and so users use as much as
> possible.  Not everyone thinks this way, but a small number of users
> who hog bandwidth can consume all available supply.
>
> This leads to low quality of service, in part because there is no
> pricing feedback to users (see above), and in part because the lack
> of revenue makes it difficult to expand capacity as demand increases.
>
> In fact, fees alone do not guarantee a sustainable business model.
> In the U.S. and most other markets, the current broadband business
> model is upside down.  Service providers enjoy maximized profits when
> customers, paying a fixed fee for Internet access, don't use the
> service at all.  Service providers make the least profit if customers
> like the service and use it a lot.
>
>  From an economic perspective, charging a fixed fee no matter how
> much bandwidth a customers uses is exactly the same as giving the
> service away for free.  Neither one provides the funds necessary to
> expand capacity, increase service areas, pay for proper maintenance
> and upkeep, and add new services.
>
> A solution is to move to a service oriented architecture (a different
> network architecture AND a different business model) that conveys a
> clearer relationship between supply and demand to customers.
> Customers pay for services, rather than buying a bucket of
> bandwidth.  Service fees are based on the real cost of providing the
> service, thus providing information to customers about supply and
> demand.  This can be done easily with both wired and wireless networks.
>
> Andrew
>
> -------------------------------------------------
> Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
> President
> Design Nine, Inc.
>
> Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering
> services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and
> broadband project management.
>
> Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and
> commentary on technology issues.
>   http://www.designnine.com/news/
>
> http://www.designnine.com/
> Blacksburg, Virginia
> 540.951.4400
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>


-- 
Steve Ross
201-456-5933
781-284-8810
editorsteve at gmail.com


From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Mon Apr 30 08:39:48 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 09:39:48 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India
	toeveryone
In-Reply-To: <A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>
References: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>
	<A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>
Message-ID: <01c101c78b3d$ca0e01d0$c00a010a@yourfsyly0jtwn>

I had been thinking about responding to Dewayne's post about the India
broadband experimentation, but am glad that Andrew went first.  I understand
Dewayne's interest, I believe, and think that many people in the U.S. are so
unhappy with the present model that almost anything seems better.

My observation covers less ground that Andrew Cohill's thoughtful analysis.
My thought, when I first read the India report, was that, "nothing is free."
If the government provides supposedly "free" bandwidth, someone ultimately
is paying -- i.e., taxpayers. 

Having said that, it could be that a thoughtful case could be made that
infrastructure should be a public venue, paid for by taxpayers -- probably
not through sales or income taxes but via issuance of general obligation
bonds.  The UTOPIA model in Utah uses a variation on this theme, using
instead of G.O. bonds,  "revenue bonds" issued by the cities and backed by
them but with the bonds being retired over a period of time by a percentage
of the service fees.

A legitimate concern with any public broadband venture is that government
might not be a knowledgeable-enough, and service-oriented-enough, operator,
in which case a public-private partnership is another variation to consider
(public -- i.e., government -- ownership with operator being
technology-savvy private company,  under contract).

Carroll Cagle

-----Original Message-----
From: 1st-mile-nm-bounces+carroll=cagleandassociates.com at mailman.dcn.org
[mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces+carroll=cagleandassociates.com at mailman.dcn.org]
On Behalf Of Andrew Cohill
Sent: Monday, April 30, 2007 8:51 AM
To: 1st-mile-nm at crank.dcn.davis.ca.us
Subject: Re: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India
toeveryone


On Apr 28, 2007, at 12:27 PM, Dewayne Hendricks wrote:

> [Note:  It looks like exciting things are in store for India as far
> as broadband is concerned.  So where is this kind of bold thinking
> here in the U.S.?  DLH]
>

It is not at all clear that "free broadband" is sustainable.  The  
longstanding problems with free services (in any market, not just  
broadband)  include market distortion and low quality service.

Market distortion occurs because "free" services suggest to users of  
the service that supply is inexhaustible, and so users use as much as  
possible.  Not everyone thinks this way, but a small number of users  
who hog bandwidth can consume all available supply.

This leads to low quality of service, in part because there is no  
pricing feedback to users (see above), and in part because the lack  
of revenue makes it difficult to expand capacity as demand increases.

In fact, fees alone do not guarantee a sustainable business model.   
In the U.S. and most other markets, the current broadband business  
model is upside down.  Service providers enjoy maximized profits when  
customers, paying a fixed fee for Internet access, don't use the  
service at all.  Service providers make the least profit if customers  
like the service and use it a lot.

 From an economic perspective, charging a fixed fee no matter how  
much bandwidth a customers uses is exactly the same as giving the  
service away for free.  Neither one provides the funds necessary to  
expand capacity, increase service areas, pay for proper maintenance  
and upkeep, and add new services.

A solution is to move to a service oriented architecture (a different  
network architecture AND a different business model) that conveys a  
clearer relationship between supply and demand to customers.   
Customers pay for services, rather than buying a bucket of  
bandwidth.  Service fees are based on the real cost of providing the  
service, thus providing information to customers about supply and  
demand.  This can be done easily with both wired and wireless networks.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400



_______________________________________________
1st-mile-nm mailing list
1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm




From editorsteve at gmail.com  Mon Apr 30 08:51:08 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:51:08 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India
	toeveryone
In-Reply-To: <01c101c78b3d$ca0e01d0$c00a010a@yourfsyly0jtwn>
References: <A70195A6-8BDE-4D22-B420-D25BEFCAED41@dandin.com>
	<A7CB4FB4-DA04-4F4A-94C2-F51AFF8CE48C@designnine.com>
	<01c101c78b3d$ca0e01d0$c00a010a@yourfsyly0jtwn>
Message-ID: <203e4cf70704300851n77f0e5e3pb17e7b8a664ff5d3@mail.gmail.com>

India is an odd place. It actually is very capital-efficient -- much
more so  than China. But it has lagged on infrastructure.

This is just infrastructure, like highways and ports. But there's a catch.

VSNL has lagged in landline services, BTW, but has performed well for
a government company. That's because it is not a monopoly. Private
sector and SMALL public-sector utilities, close to their customers,
have done well in telecom. Big government outfits have not. The field
changes fast -- unlike water, sewers, highways, even electric power
transmission and generation -- and government finds it hard to adapt.
Most small networks for fiber in the US have done fine, thank you (my
magazine publishes long liusts of them). But India may have trouble
with this big an idea.

Still... it is exciting.

Steve



On 4/30/07, Carroll Cagle <carroll at cagleandassociates.com> wrote:
> I had been thinking about responding to Dewayne's post about the India
> broadband experimentation, but am glad that Andrew went first.  I understand
> Dewayne's interest, I believe, and think that many people in the U.S. are so
> unhappy with the present model that almost anything seems better.
>
> My observation covers less ground that Andrew Cohill's thoughtful analysis.
> My thought, when I first read the India report, was that, "nothing is free."
> If the government provides supposedly "free" bandwidth, someone ultimately
> is paying -- i.e., taxpayers.
>
> Having said that, it could be that a thoughtful case could be made that
> infrastructure should be a public venue, paid for by taxpayers -- probably
> not through sales or income taxes but via issuance of general obligation
> bonds.  The UTOPIA model in Utah uses a variation on this theme, using
> instead of G.O. bonds,  "revenue bonds" issued by the cities and backed by
> them but with the bonds being retired over a period of time by a percentage
> of the service fees.
>
> A legitimate concern with any public broadband venture is that government
> might not be a knowledgeable-enough, and service-oriented-enough, operator,
> in which case a public-private partnership is another variation to consider
> (public -- i.e., government -- ownership with operator being
> technology-savvy private company,  under contract).
>
> Carroll Cagle
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: 1st-mile-nm-bounces+carroll=cagleandassociates.com at mailman.dcn.org
> [mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces+carroll=cagleandassociates.com at mailman.dcn.org]
> On Behalf Of Andrew Cohill
> Sent: Monday, April 30, 2007 8:51 AM
> To: 1st-mile-nm at crank.dcn.davis.ca.us
> Subject: Re: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband to go free in 2 yrs in all of India
> toeveryone
>
>
> On Apr 28, 2007, at 12:27 PM, Dewayne Hendricks wrote:
>
> > [Note:  It looks like exciting things are in store for India as far
> > as broadband is concerned.  So where is this kind of bold thinking
> > here in the U.S.?  DLH]
> >
>
> It is not at all clear that "free broadband" is sustainable.  The
> longstanding problems with free services (in any market, not just
> broadband)  include market distortion and low quality service.
>
> Market distortion occurs because "free" services suggest to users of
> the service that supply is inexhaustible, and so users use as much as
> possible.  Not everyone thinks this way, but a small number of users
> who hog bandwidth can consume all available supply.
>
> This leads to low quality of service, in part because there is no
> pricing feedback to users (see above), and in part because the lack
> of revenue makes it difficult to expand capacity as demand increases.
>
> In fact, fees alone do not guarantee a sustainable business model.
> In the U.S. and most other markets, the current broadband business
> model is upside down.  Service providers enjoy maximized profits when
> customers, paying a fixed fee for Internet access, don't use the
> service at all.  Service providers make the least profit if customers
> like the service and use it a lot.
>
>  From an economic perspective, charging a fixed fee no matter how
> much bandwidth a customers uses is exactly the same as giving the
> service away for free.  Neither one provides the funds necessary to
> expand capacity, increase service areas, pay for proper maintenance
> and upkeep, and add new services.
>
> A solution is to move to a service oriented architecture (a different
> network architecture AND a different business model) that conveys a
> clearer relationship between supply and demand to customers.
> Customers pay for services, rather than buying a bucket of
> bandwidth.  Service fees are based on the real cost of providing the
> service, thus providing information to customers about supply and
> demand.  This can be done easily with both wired and wireless networks.
>
> Andrew
>
> -------------------------------------------------
> Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
> President
> Design Nine, Inc.
>
> Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering
> services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and
> broadband project management.
>
> Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and
> commentary on technology issues.
>   http://www.designnine.com/news/
>
> http://www.designnine.com/
> Blacksburg, Virginia
> 540.951.4400
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>


-- 
Steve Ross
201-456-5933
781-284-8810
editorsteve at gmail.com


From granoff at zianet.com  Thu May  3 08:25:25 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Thu, 03 May 2007 09:25:25 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: GigaLaw.com Daily News, May 3, 2007
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070503092513.048e15b0@zianet.com>

FYI. From another list.


>Lawmakers Debate Problems in Rural Broadband Program
>      Members of a House committee charged that a five-year, $1.2 billion 
> program to expand broadband Internet services to rural communities has 
> missed many unserved areas while channeling hundreds of millions of 
> dollars in subsidized loans to companies in places where service already 
> exists. "If you don't fix this, I guarantee you this committee will," 
> House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson (D-Minn.) told 
> James M. Andrew, administrator of the Rural Utilities Service at the U.S. 
> Department of Agriculture.
>      Read more: 
> http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/01/AR2007050101919.html



From rl at radlab.com  Thu May  3 20:25:57 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 3 May 2007 20:25:57 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC 700 MHz Auction: Open Wireless Spectrum
	Opportunity
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705032020020.12011-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


>From MuniWireless
www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/5956/1/2

Key word: Open

Posted by Harold Feld at 11:48 AM on May 2, 2007

The 700 MHz Auction, Open Access and Municipal Wireless Networks
It seems counterintuitive that the FCCs consideration of rules for the
upcoming 700 MHz auction will have much impact on the future of municipal
wireless. But two proposals under consideration could make significant new
spectrum available for both licensed and unlicensed wireless system
operators. These proposals would require winners of certain licenses to
offer their 700 MHz spectrum on an affordable wholesale basis. If the FCC
approves these proposals, municipal systems could lease beachfront
spectrum to expand the reach and power of their own wireless networks.

For those interested, I have previously published on my blog a lengthy
background piece on the 700 MHz auction. To summarize, Congress in 2005
mandated that television broadcasters switch from analog broadcasting to
digital by February 2009. This transition will free a large block of
spectrum occupied by channels 51-69 (located in various portions of the
700 MHz band). The physical characteristics of this band make it uniquely
valuable for wireless broadband and fourth generation (or 4G) advanced
wireless mobile services. Signals in this band travel significantly
further at lower power. They penetrate foliage and other solid material.
Where they do not penetrate, they shape themselves more easily around
terrain. As a consequence, availability of the 700 MHz spectrum will make
it possible to deploy more powerful wireless systems, able to serve hard
to reach end users cheaper than wireless systems using any of the
currently available unlicensed bands.

Congress directed the FCC to auction 60 MHz of this returned analog
broadcast spectrum and allocate 24 MHz to public safety. Of the 24 MHz
allocated to public safety, the FCC has allocated 12 MHz to new public
safety voice systems, and 12 MHz to new public safety data systems.
Recently, the FCC has proposed to make the 12 MHz public safety data
allocation a single national license operating a wireless broadband
systems for the benefit of all public safety entities and licensed to a
public safety trust (PST) representative of the public safety community.

Because Congress ordered the FCC to auction the licenses, few municipal
operators have thought much about what this proceeding could mean to
municipal wireless systems beyond the possible public safety applications
or the possibility that new WiMax vendors may become available. But two
proposals, one by a Silicon Valley start up called Frontline and another
by a coalition of public interest groups, would make this spectrum
available directly to municipal wireless operators for lease at affordable
prices.

Frontline Wireless, a Silicon Valley-backed start up organized for this
one purpose, has proposed that the FCC create a 10 MHz E Block license on
spectrum compatible with shared use by the proposed Public Safety Trust
licensee. The winner of the E Block would agree to build the proposed
national broadband network for the PST. In addition, the PST would have
access to the E Block spectrum on an as needed basis  taking priority over
any commercial traffic using the E Block spectrum. In exchange, Frontline
(assuming it won the E Block at auction) would have the right to negotiate
with the Public Safety Trust licensee for access to the PST spectrum when
not in use by public safety entities. This would give public safety access
to 22 MHz of spectrum when needed, while allowing Frontline to use idle
public safety spectrum when available.

What makes Frontline potentially valuable to municipal operators (beyond
the public safety applications), is that Frontline has urged the FCC to
prohibit the E Block licensee from selling retail wireless services.
Instead, Frontline would lease access to the E Block (and available PST)
spectrum on a non-discriminatory wholesale basis, a condition known as
open access. While the FCC already allows most licensees to lease spectrum
on a voluntary basis under its secondary market rules, few holders of
valuable licenses have elected to make spectrum available in this way
particularly not to rival operators. Under Frontlines proposed open access
rule, the E Block winner would have no choice. As a result, up to 22 MHz
of extremely valuable spectrum  already interoperable with public safety
systems  would become available for lease for wireless operators
everywhere.

Open access -- which had previously been the rule in the wireline world
before the FCC deregulated in 2005 -- would require the licensee to make
spectrum available on an affordable and non-discriminatory basis.
Frontline or any other E-Block winner could not cut exclusive deals with
large incumbents. Its business model depends on leasing supplementary
spectrum to as many customers as possible, such as municipal operators.
While not enough spectrum to construct a system, Frontline hopes that
operators will use the unique characteristics of the band to fill in holes
created by geography or urban topography, and facilitate mobile and
nomadic uses on point-to-point networks.

For municipal operators, this potentially creates huge opportunities to
cover large rural areas or difficult to reach inner city neighborhoods. It
potentially also allows operators to offer a new area of complimentary
mobile services such as high-bandwidth video  particularly for public
safety users who would also have access to the 12 MHz of PST spectrum.
This supplementary spectrum would be available to system operators that
have already contracted with third parties to build and operate their
networks, since it would not displace the existing system operator.

The Public Interest Spectrum Coalition (which includes my employer, Media
Access Project), supports the Frontline proposal as a means of bringing
spectrum to possible broadband competitors, such as municipal operators
and commercial WISPs. Because the Frontline proposal does not provide
enough spectrum for a possible competitor to offer a genuine third pipe to
the home that can compete with cable or DSL speeds, the PISC has asked the
FCC to go further. PISC proposed that the FCC make 30 MHz of the
commercial spectrum available on an open access basis, and auction the
remaining 30 MHz of spectrum under terms that allow licensees to exclude
others. Making 30 MHz of returned broadcast spectrum available in every
market in the United States would make it possible for new entrants, such
as municipal operators, to construct high quality wireless networks that
equal cable or DSL in terms of speed and performance for residential
subscribers.

In the face of fierce resistance from incumbent wireless operators, the
FCC has solicited comment on both the Frontline E Block proposal and the
PISC 30 MHz open access proposal as part of its pending rulemaking on the
700 MHz auction. You can find a copy of the full Order and Further Notice
of Proposed Rulemaking the FCC adopted at its April 25 meeting here (170
page PDF file). You can find the FCCs much shorter official press release
here. Because the statute requires the auction to begin by January 2008,
and because the FCC must give potential bidders sufficient time before the
auction begins to determine their level of interest and find financing,
the FCC has set a very narrow window for taking comments.

For those who wish to participate, the FCC will take comments until May
23, and reply comments until May 30. Although the FCC will take late
comments, the FCC must decide on the final rules soon after May 30 to meet
the timeline imposed by the statute. Those who plan to file should
therefore do so sooner rather than later. You can filed a comment with the
FCC through the FCCs electronic comment filing system. The docket number
for this proceeding is 06-150.

In addition to the open access proposals, the FCC solicits comment on PISC
proposals to prevent incumbents from again winning the vast majority of
licenses. Those interested in multiple potential providers of licensed
services may wish to comment on these issues as well. These proposals
include barring incumbents from the auction or providing bidding credits
for new entrants. PISC has also proposed changes in the auction rules,
notably a switch from the current open system to anonymous bidding, to
prevent incumbents from targeting and blocking new entrants.

The 700 MHz auction has tremendous potential to reshape our wireless
future. If the FCC adopts these proposals, it will foster a new era of
vibrant wireless competition by making prime spectrum widely available. If
it rejects these proposals and maintains the status quo, as urged by the
incumbents, we can expect our wireless future to look a pretty much the
same as it does today.

- - - - About the author - - - -

Harold Feld is Senior Vice President of the Media Access Project, a
non-profit public law firm representing the Public Interest Spectrum
Coalition at the FCC. Harold Feld also blogs about telecom issues
including the 700 MHz auction  on his own blog Tales of the Sausage
Factory.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From dewayne at dandin.com  Fri May  4 10:22:41 2007
From: dewayne at dandin.com (Dewayne Hendricks)
Date: Fri, 4 May 2007 10:22:41 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Facing economic realities of muni Wi-Fi
Message-ID: <E942C124-21C8-4595-A14A-6C61612A0BD8@dandin.com>

Facing economic realities of muni Wi-Fi
[SOURCE: C-Net|News.com, AUTHOR: Marguerite Reardon]

In the movement to blanket cities with Wi-Fi, economic realities are  
setting in as service providers look to tweak their business models  
to turn a profit. Since the municipal Wi-Fi movement started taking  
shape a couple of years ago, politicians, community organizers and  
the companies building the networks have touted Wi-Fi as a cheap  
solution to a myriad social and economic problems plaguing cities  
today. Some cities see it as a way to bridge the digital divide,  
while others see Wi-Fi as providing a third alternative to a  
broadband market dominated by the cable and phone companies. Up to  
this point, the financial risk has mostly fallen on the service  
providers that have put up the capital to build the wireless mesh  
networks. These companies are spending millions of dollars on their  
initiatives with mostly no guarantee that they will ever turn a  
profit. Now as operators move beyond proof-of-concept networks, they  
are re-evaluating their business models to ensure they can make  
money. This means carefully selecting the cities where they want to  
build networks and demanding more assurances from cities that they  
can get enough subscribers to make building the network worthwhile.

<http://news.com.com/Facing+economic+realities+of+muni+Wi-Fi/ 
2100-7351_3-6181058.html?tag=nefd.lede>


From tom at jtjohnson.com  Tue May  8 11:15:54 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Tue, 8 May 2007 12:15:54 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Pew Study: "A Typology of Information and
	Communication Technology Users"
Message-ID: <e04090490705081115u3e611eb5p64f452e4cd189d3b@mail.gmail.com>

A report  released yesterday by the Pew Foundation might be of interest to
list members.
See http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/213/report_display.asp

"A Typology of Information and Communication Technology Users"

   - 8% of Americans are deep users of the participatory Web and mobile
   applications
   - Another 23% are heavy, pragmatic tech adopters ? they use gadgets to
   keep up with social networks or be productive at work
   - 10% rely on mobile devices for voice, texting, or entertainment
   - 10% use information gadgets, but find it a hassle
   - 49% of Americans only occasionally use modern gadgetry and many
   others bristle at electronic connectivity


-- tj

==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From granoff at zianet.com  Thu May 10 10:24:21 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Thu, 10 May 2007 11:24:21 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Judges still needed for the International Science and
 Engineering Fair next week in Albuquerque
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070510111542.042e9a10@zianet.com>

 From another list:
FYI.

Please post and forward as you see fit.

>ISEF (the International Science and Engineering Fair) is next week in 
>Albuquerque, with an estimated 1,500 students competing from around the 
>world -- along with classmates, teachers and parents. I understand we're 
>expecting between 7,000 - 10,000 total attendees.
>
>They still need volunteers, and particularly judges and interpreters to 
>help make the event a success. Please visit 
><http://www.intelisef2007.org/>http://www.intelisef2007.org/ for links and 
>more information.
>
>
><http://www.sciserv.org/isef/judging/judapply.asp>http://www.sciserv.org/isef/judging/judapply.asp
>Dear Judges,
>I just recently spoke with the chair for recruiting
>judges at the International Fair being held here in
>Albuquerque. They are extremely short of judges in the
>following categories:
>Biochemistry (judges seem to be signing up for Molecular &
>Cellular Biology)
>Plant Sciences
>Behavioral & Social Sciences
>Animal Sciences
>Energy & Transportation (judges seem to be signing up for
>Engineering)
>
>You have all been so wonderful at supporting us at the
>Regional level and I want you to know that International
>is an experience you will not forget. If you haven't
>already signed up to be a judge we thank you for your
>support. If you have not signed up yet I just ask that
>you seriously consider judging this event. There are so
>many kids from all over the world that are coming to
>Albuquerque and we really want them to have a good time.
>We are very proud of the judges we have worked with and
>would hate for you to miss this opportunity. Thank you
>for your time and you do not need to respond to this
>e-mail. If you are interested in judging, please sign up
>at 
><http://www.sciserv.org/isef/judging/judapply.asp>http://www.sciserv.org/isef/judging/judapply.asp
>Thank you agin for all you do.
>Cheers and enjoy the event!!!
>Laura Werner
>Program Manager
>Central New Mexico Science & Engineering Fair
>--
>Additionally, (and perhaps not so coincidentally), next week is also 
>"Strive not to Drive" week, so whether your planning on 
>visiting/participating in ISEF or not, please consider the following:
>
>Which alternatives are being encouraged?
>Each day of "Strive Not to Drive Week" corresponds with a type of 
>alternative transportation.
>*
>                                Monday, May 14 is Carpool Day: Share a 
> ride with a friend or co-worker.
>*
>                                Tuesday, May 15 is Park & Ride Day: Drive 
> to one of ABQ RIDE's 17 <http://www.cabq.gov/transit/pnr.html>Park & 
> Rides and take the bus the rest of the way.
>*
>                                Wednesday, May 16 is Free Bus Day: ABQ 
> RIDE bus service will be free all day. (Check the routes 
> <http://www.cabq.gov/transit/tran.html>here.)
>*
>                                Thursday, May 17 is Rail Runner Day: The 
> <http://www.nmrailrunner.com/>New Mexico Rail Runner commuter train will 
> offer free rides to ABQ RIDE passengers.
>*
>                                Friday, May 18 - Bike to Work Day: Join 
> the fun of National Bike to Work Day. Visit the Alvarado Transportation 
> Center between 6:30-8:30 a.m. to get free bagels and juice and register 
> to win great prizes.
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From rl at radlab.com  Thu May 10 20:10:15 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 10 May 2007 20:10:15 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Arizona Telecom Policy Summit May 17
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705101959200.17277-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Our neighboring state of Arizona will be hosting a one day Telecom Policy
Summit, next Thursday.   It follows a series of briefing sessions that
have been held over the past month.   The program looks quite interesting,
and will address some of the issues that we ought to be considering in NM.

If any of you are interested in attending, please contact me directly.
I'm seriously considering driving over to attend.

www.tucsonlink.org/Summit07

-------------------------------------------------
Arizona Telecom Policy Summit 2007
Advanced Telecom and Broadband Deployment in Arizona
May 17, 2007 and Four Pre-Summit Online Briefing Sessions
Mesa Convention Center
www.tucsonlink.org/Summit07

*Policy Makers*

   - Federal, state, local, and tribal elected officials
   - Policy advisors and CIOs
   - Telecom service provider executives
   - Other key stakeholder organizations

Decision makers from around the state are encouraged to participate in
these deliberations to help formulate policies and strategies to insure that
all Rural, Tribal and underserved Arizona communities and regions have access
to Broadband Internet and Advanced Telecommunications services that will
support economic development, education, government and health services,
public safety, libraries, homeland security and more.

Events include:

   - Welcome- Jan Lesher, Director, Arizona Department of Commerce and
   Chris Cummiskey, Director,
   Government Information Technology Agency
   - Keynote Presentation featuring Joe Shirley, President of the Navajo
   Nation
   - Community Best Practices - Mayor Michael Hing, Town of Superior
   Arizona
   - Strategy and Policy Development Workshops
   - Telecom/Technology Expo
   - Arizona Technology Council After5 *FREE PUBLIC Reception*, Tech
   Showcase and Networking
   - Four Online Pre-Summit Briefing Sessions (May 10 - last in a series.
   If you missed these session they  are available online)

*Information and Registration*
*www.tucsonlink.org/Summit07* <http://www.tucsonlink.org/Summit07> or
520-321-1309, stevepeters at tucsonlink.org.

*Presented By*:

   - Arizona Telecommunications and Information Council (ATIC)
   - Communications Infrastructure Advisory Committee (CIAC) of the
   Governor's Council on Innovation and Technology (GCIT) in cooperation with
   other important business, government and state organizations

*Sponsors*

   - Strategic Technology Communications www.stc-az.com/
   -  AT&T www.att.com/,
   - WI-VOD www.wi-vod.com/;
   - Qwest www.qwest.com;
   - OnSat www.nnden.org/Arizona;
   - Salt River Project Telecom www.srpnet.com/telecom/,
   - State Libraries, Archives and Public Records; Telespectra; Conterra
   Ultra Broadband; Cox Communications; iLinc Communications; more to come.




From rl at radlab.com  Wed May 16 10:23:38 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Wed, 16 May 2007 10:23:38 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Albuquerque Wireless RFP
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705161001220.23297-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

>From MuniWireless:
www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/6000/1/23

(links to the RFP are on the site above)


Albuquerque, New Mexico issues RFP for citywide Wi-Fi network

Albuquerque, New Mexico has issued a request for proposals for the
deployment of a citywide Wi-Fi network. Proposals are due on 17 July 2007
at 4:00 pm local time. The city will not ask for compensation for use of
its assets, but it won't pay the provider anything for setting up the
network, or for services.

Here are a few details:

(1) Type of network

Section 3.1.1 The City preference is a privately owned 802.xx x and 4.9
GHz system that is designed, deployed, operated, maintained and upgraded
at no cost to the City. Offerors may propose the 4.9 GHz system ownership
be a joint venture between themselves and the City; design deployment,
operation, maintenance, and upgrades would remain the responsibility of
the Offeror. The final option is the Offeror may propose the 4.9 GHz
system be municipally owned and operated; design, deployment, maintenance,
and upgrades would remain the responsibility of the Offeror. In connection
with this specification, the Offeror shall identify any assumed cost of
ownership, branding, marketing and other roles of the City.

(2) No compensation to service provider

Section 3.1.6 The Network Operator will not compensate the City for the
use of City assets but will, at no cost, design, install, implement,
operate, and maintain 802.1x x Virtual Local Area Networks
(VLANs) for government and educational use and a 4.9 GHz (licensed by the
City) system for government purposes to include but not be limited to
Public Safety. The 4.9 GHz system will be designed, installed, implemented
and maintained by the Offeror; other requirements of paragraph 3.1.a. will
be considered. The City shall not incur any recurring costs/fees for these
services. The City shall grant to the successful Offeror non-exclusive
permission to use municipal assets and not expect revenue from fees paid
to the Offeror by service providers, residential or commercial users.

(3) They want free (basic) access and paid (premium) service, with 95%
coverage indoor.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------





From tom at jtjohnson.com  Mon May 21 16:14:49 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 17:14:49 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Articles related to fiber deployment
Message-ID: <e04090490705211614k21364e89xea8de204d39f635c@mail.gmail.com>

I wish to thank all of you who met with us at Cloudclift.

Here are a couple links to articles relevant to our discussion:

   - The Pipe Is There: Using Existing Infrastructure to Speed FTTH
   Deployment<http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2007issues/march07issues/jey_mar.pdf>

   http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2007issues/march07issues/jey_mar.pdf
   North American water, gas, sewer and electric utilities should be
   getting into the fiber network business, as they are in Europe. Here's why ?
   along with the technical details utilities need to start the ball rolling.
   Our author is one of the world's great experts on underground utilities; his
   ASTM committee has helped write the standards.

   - TelecomCity Karlskrona
   State-of-the-Art Fiber Meets 300-Year-Old
Buildings<http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2007issues/march07issues/karlskrona_mar.pdf>
   *By Staff Reporter*
   A Swedish-style open-access network opens the way for innovative
   services and economic development in the ancient city of Karlsdrona.  (A
   city similar to Santa Fe in terms of existing infrastructure.)

All the best,
Tom

-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Mon May 21 19:45:13 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 19:45:13 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Cities Struggle With Wireless Internet
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705211929490.11384-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Here's a fairly long article from today's Houston Chronicle and the AP.
It expands on an issue that I briefly mentioned at a small meeting held
today in Santa Fe, to discuss and generate interest in a city fiber net.

The economic model for muni-wireless deployments is increasingly being
questioned, as some early deployments do not fulfill their intentions and
promises.

Locally owned 'open' fiber systems, have greater up-front investment
requirements, but have a longer life and the ability to be income
generators, while providing much greater broadband capacity.   We need to
look at our options and potential solutions more stategically.
Richard

---------- Forwarded message ----------

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4822700.html

May 21, 2007, 1:43PM
Cities Struggle With Wireless Internet

By ANICK JESDANUN AP Internet Writer
? 2007 The Associated Press

A $3 million plan to blanket Lompoc, Calif., with a wireless Internet
system promised a quantum leap for economic development: The remote
community hit hard by cutbacks at nearby Vandenberg Air Force Base
would join the 21st century with cheap and plentiful high-speed
access. Instead, nearly a year after its launch, Lompoc Net is
limping along. The central California city of 42,000, surrounded by
rolling hills, wineries and flower fields more than 17 miles from the
nearest major highway, has only a few hundred subscribers.

That's far fewer than the 4,000 needed to start repaying loans from
the city's utility coffers, potentially leaving smaller reserves to
guard against electric rate increases.

And Lompoc isn't alone. Across the United States, many cities are
finding their Wi-Fi projects costing more and drawing less interest
than expected, leading to worries that a number will fail, resulting
in millions of dollars in wasted tax dollars or grants when there had
been roads to build and crime to fight.

More than $230 million was spent in the United States last year, and
the industry Web site MuniWireless projects $460 million will be
spent in 2007.

Without revenues they had counted on to offset that spending, elected
officials might have to break promises or find money in already-tight
budgets to subsidize the systems for the low-income families and city
workers who depend on the access. Cities might end up running the
systems if companies abandon networks they had built.

The worries come as big cities like Philadelphia and Portland, Ore.,
complete pilots and expand their much-hyped networks.

"They are the monorails of this decade: the wrong technology, totally
overpromised and completely undelivered," said Anthony Townsend,
research director at the Institute for the Future, a think tank.

Municipal Wi-Fi projects use the same technology behind wireless
access in coffee shops, airports and home networks. Hundreds or
thousands of antennas are installed atop street lamps and other
fixtures. Laptops and other devices have Wi-Fi cards that relay data
to the Internet through those antennas, using open, unregulated
broadcast frequencies. In theory, one could check e-mail and surf the
Web from anywhere.

About 175 U.S. cities or regions have citywide or partial systems,
and a similar number plan them, according to Esme Vos, founder of
MuniWireless.

Rhode Island has proposed a statewide network, while one in
California would span dozens of Silicon Valley municipalities. San
Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and Atlanta also want one.

Because systems are just coming online, it's premature to say how
many or which ones will fail under current operating plans, but the
early signs are troubling.

"I will be surprised if the majority of these are successful and they
do not prove to be drains on taxpayers' money," said Michael Balhoff,
former telecom equity analyst with Legg Mason Inc. "The government is
getting into hotly contested services."

Most communities, including Lompoc, paid for their projects.
Elsewhere, private companies agreed to absorb costs for the chance to
sell services or ads.

The vendors remain confident despite technical and other problems.
Chuck Haas, MetroFi Inc.'s chief executive, said Wi-Fi networks are
far cheaper to build than cable and DSL, which is broadband over
phone lines.

Demand could grow once more cell phones can make Wi-Fi calls and as
city workers improve productivity by reading electric meters
remotely, for instance.

Balhoff, however, believes the successful projects are most likely to
be in remote places that traditional service providers skip _ and
fewer and fewer of those areas exist. Cities, he said, should focus
on incentives to draw providers.

In Lompoc's case, officials say construction was delayed about a year
once they realized wireless antennas had to be packed more closely
together. Then the city learned that its stucco homes have a wire
mesh that blocks signals, making Internet service poor or nonexistent
indoors without extra equipment.

But more importantly, just as Lompoc committed to the network, cable
and telephone companies arrived with better equipment and service,
undercutting the city's offerings.

"It seemed like we announced we were going to do this and that and
the next day we got trucks from the providers doing this and that,
when we've been asking for years and nothing ever happened," Lompoc
Mayor Dick DeWees said.

D.A. Taylor, who runs a software business from her home, said
Lompoc's Wi-Fi service lacks key features she gets through DSL.

"It's a really great idea, but they didn't spend a lot of time
thinking who their target market was," Taylor said.

DeWees acknowledged that Lompoc might have to pull the plug if it
cannot boost subscriptions, but he said the city still has an
aggressive marketing push in store. Lompoc recently slashed prices by
$9, to $16 a month, for the main household plan.

Just a few years ago, these municipal wireless projects seemed
foolproof.

Politicians got to tout Internet access for city workers and poorer
households _ many programs include giveaways for lower-income
families. Some cities bear no upfront costs when a company pays for
construction in exchange for rights to use fixtures like lamp poles.

Vendors like EarthLink Inc. saw a chance to offset declines in dial-
up subscriptions. MetroFi, offering free service, got to join the
burgeoning market for online advertising. Google Inc. also is jumping
in for the ads, partnering with EarthLink in San Francisco, although
the city's Board of Supervisors is resisting their joint proposal.

As projects get deployed, both sides are seeing chinks in their plans.

Many cities and vendors underestimated the number of wireless
antennas needed. MobilePro Corp.'s Kite Networks wound up tripling
the access points in Tempe, Ariz., adding roughly $1 million, or more
than doubling the costs.

"The industry is really in its infancy, and what works on paper
doesn't work that same way once you get into the real world," said
Jerry Sullivan, Kite's chief executive.

Networks like St. Cloud, Fla., and Portland, meanwhile, shared
Lompoc's difficulties penetrating building walls, requiring indoor
users to buy signal boosters for as much as $150. And when it works,
service can be slower than cable and DSL.

"There's an antenna literally at the curb of my house, but when I've
tried to log on, it cuts in and out," said Landon Dirgo, who runs a
computer repair shop in Lompoc.

One recent sunny afternoon in Portland, few could be found surfing
the Internet from the city's downtown parks.

Mari Borden, a student at Portland State, said she couldn't connect
to MetroFi's free network from several locations, even though her
computer could detect a signal (MetroFi officials say users might
need stronger wireless cards to send back a signal).

The vendors insist they have been upfront with customers about
limitations. But MetroFi's Adrian van Haaften said managing
expectations can be challenging.

EarthLink said it has 2,000 customers in four markets _ New Orleans;
Milpitas and Anaheim, Calif.; and Philadelphia _ paying $22 or less a
month. MetroFi said it had 8,000 free users in Portland in April,
averaging 10 hours online; the city says about 1,000 use the network
on any given day.

Although both companies say their numbers are good given that their
networks aren't fully built yet, they also are realigning expectations.

MetroFi will insist that future contracts commit cities to spend a
specific amount for public safety and other municipal applications.
EarthLink, which recently suspended new bids while it focuses on
existing projects, said it would likely seek minimums, too.

Glenn Fleishman, editor of the Wi-Fi Networking News site, said
vendors could no longer afford to treat projects as testbeds and loss
leaders for winning publicity and new business.

Municipalities, meanwhile, are becoming more cautious. Applying
lessons from other municipalities, Boston plans to raise money
upfront from local groups and businesses and avoid tax dollars or a
corporate partner.

Competition and expectations will only increase as DSL and cable
modems get faster.

Users today are struggling with e-mail and the Web over some wireless
systems, yet video and online games will require even more capacity.

"Most people if they are going to do serious work aren't looking to
be sitting in a park," said Eric Rabe, a spokesman for DSL provider
Verizon Communications Inc. "They want to be at a desk where they
have their papers or business records."

Lompoc's backers, though, still claim success, "even if the whole
network were to be written off tomorrow," said Mark McKibben,
Lompoc's former wireless consultant.

"Prices dropped and quality of service went up," he said. "That's the
way a lot of cities look at it. They don't look at business profits
and losses. They see it as a driver for quality of life."

___

AP Business Writer Michael Liedtke in San Francisco and Associated
Press Writer Sarah Skidmore in Portland contributed to this report.






From rl at radlab.com  Mon May 21 19:51:45 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 21 May 2007 19:51:45 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Avg broadband download speed comparisons
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705211946370.11384-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following is forwarded from Dewayne Hendricks' email list.
Richard

--------

Avg. broadband download speed in the US is 1.9 Mbps.
It is 61 Mbps in Japan, 45 Mbps in South Korea, 18 Mbps in Sweden, 17 Mpbs
in France, and 7 Mbps in Canada.

<http://pressesc.com/01179677598_us_internet_slow>






From cohill at designnine.com  Wed May 23 06:46:00 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 09:46:00 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Cities Struggle With Wireless Internet
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705211929490.11384-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705211929490.11384-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <68B2F2A2-1E0A-4D43-9978-990A76F98EBD@designnine.com>


On May 21, 2007, at 10:45 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:

> Here's a fairly long article from today's Houston Chronicle and the  
> AP.
> It expands on an issue that I briefly mentioned at a small meeting  
> held
> today in Santa Fe, to discuss and generate interest in a city fiber  
> net.
>
> The economic model for muni-wireless deployments is increasingly being
> questioned, as some early deployments do not fulfill their  
> intentions and
> promises.
>

What I am finding is that in some cases, the initial cost of wireless  
(i.e. first year expenditures) are being compared to the thirty year  
cost of fiber to "prove" that wireless is cheaper.  A fairer  
comparison would look at the thirty year cost of wireless with the  
thirty year cost of fiber.  When you do so, fiber becomes very  
attractive price-wise.  Over thirty years, the wireless radios and  
equipment will have to be replaced several times.  Fiber electronics  
also have to be replaced, but in a fiber network, the electronics  
represent a much smaller portion of the total system cost.

Richard's point about the economics is also appropriate.  We're doing  
very detailed cost analyses of service-oriented networks extended out  
over many years, and it is very difficult to make wireless-only  
networks perform financially.  Video of all kinds, including business  
videoconferencing needs, add substantially and positively to a  
community broadband business model.  Even newer N and WiMax wireless  
systems can't handle ubiquitous video access and services, and the  
rapid transition to HD video is accelerating the bandwidth gap faster  
than the new wireless solutions can keep up.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400







From tom at jtjohnson.com  Wed May 23 11:35:26 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 12:35:26 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Extending the Vision: Large-Scale WiFi Securely
	Connecting the Entire Campus Community
In-Reply-To: <18180977.1179938130530.JavaMail.root@1105info.com>
References: <18180977.1179938130530.JavaMail.root@1105info.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490705231135o7691b9bbt99bbc5b6d07c581@mail.gmail.com>

Perhaps of interest to the group.

-TJ

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Campus Technology Webinar <CAM at 1105info.com>
Date: May 23, 2007 10:35 AM
Subject: Extending the Vision: Large-Scale WiFi Securely Connecting the
Entire Campus Community
To: "jjohnson at sfsu.edu" <jjohnson at sfsu.edu>

Campus Technology Webinar

Extending the Vision: Large-Scale WiFi Securely Connecting the Entire Campus
Community

Date: June 7, 2007
Time: 11:00am Pacific Time
Duration: One hour
Sponsored by: Aruba Networks
To register: http://www.1105info.com/rrnarza_teeezjl.html

Get a roadmap for building an efficient, secure, campuswide wireless
network. Tune in to this webinar to hear experts share real-world deployment
experiences and best practices for providing secure, ubiquitous connectivity
across your campus. Led by Campus Technology's Geoff Fletcher, this free,
one-hour discussion will give you a blueprint for scaling your wireless
network while protecting user privacy and reducing network management costs.

Discussion points will include:

-- Top critical issues and how to address them
-- How to organize the deployment for best results
-- Key lessons learned in WiFi deployments

Get straightforward answers for deploying a secure wireless LAN end-to-end.
Our experts will address your questions and challenges in a Q&A session
following the live presentation.

To register:
http://www.1105info.com/qlaplea_teeezjl.html

NEED MORE?
Learn more about the benefits of campuswide WiFi networks at the Aruba
Networks "Wireless Computing on Campus" micro site. Find a collection of
white papers, case studies and articles with valuable information on
wireless environments, security and privacy, campus-wide mobility converged
communications, and more.

To visit:
http://www.1105info.com/qlaplmr_teeezjl.html

******************************************************************************
This message has been sent to: jjohnson at sfsu.edu

As a subscriber of an 1105 Media, Inc. Education Technology Group
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-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Wed May 23 14:22:33 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 14:22:33 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Sandoval Broadband Update Articles
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705231417350.13297-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

This lengthy posting includes three recent reports from the Albuquerque
Journal, on the Sandoval County wireless/broadband project, which
unfortunately (for many reasons) is troubled by recent State Auditor
investigations, managerial changes and concerning speculation about the
project.    Stay tuned to the 1st-Mile email list for updates.

--------

[May 18, 2007]  (Albuquerque Journal (NM) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog
NewsEdge)

Auditor Demands Firm's Finances: Sandoval Broadband Is Subject of 2
Subpoenas

State Auditor Hector Balderas said Thursday that his office has issued two
subpoenas to contractors working on the Sandoval Broadband project.

Former Sandoval Broadband Chief Executive Officer Dewayne Hendricks and
the countyowned Sandoval Broadband company were issued subpoenas to turn
over financial documents relating to the project last week, Balderas said.

Although the state auditor's office has the power to issue subpoenas
through the 1st District Court in Santa Fe, the power is rarely -- if ever
-- used, he said.

Sandoval Broadband aims to provide cheap ultra-high-speed Internet access
to Internet providers across the entire county.

Speaking to the Sandoval County Commission, Balderas made it clear that,
although subpoenas have been issued, the investigation into project
finances was still in an early stage. "We merely are in the fact-gathering
stage at this point," Balderas said.  Balderas' office has been conducting
an audit of the project since February.

Balderas said two document requests, which were delivered by county
personnel in a "prompt and courteous fashion" since the audit began, did
not answer all the auditor's questions.
"I still found there were concerns," he said.

Hendricks resigned from his post as CEO last week, shortly after a private
investigation firm hired by the state auditor began looking into the
project.

Hendricks, who is also CEO of the Dandin Group that was contracted early
in the project to install network infrastructure, resigned as head of
Sandoval Broadband shortly after the investigation began.

Hendricks and his company are still contracted to deliver three working
pilot projects in Cuba, Bernalillo and Jemez before the end of June.

About $3 million in county and state funding has already been spent on the
project, but only one stable connection in the network -- between Downtown
Albuquerque and the county courthouse -- has been established.

The goal is to create a working and tested network, then sell it to
private business on the condition that county schools, health facilities
and emergency services get free access to the signal.

But the project has been beset by delays and vague accounting practices --
including invoices signed off by County Manager Debbie Hays that included
little or no detail on where project funds would be spent.

Missing invoices and an incomplete equipment inventory have also plagued
the project.

Balderas also addressed when the county's fiscal year 2006 audit would be
released back to the county, a major concern for commissioners.

He said a private audit firm would be finished reviewing specific
financial details regarding Sandoval Broadband, and the auditor's office
could release the audit as soon as the end of next week.

Commissioner David Bency said timeliness in receiving the audit was
extremely important, as the county is trying to get a $10 million bond for
a new administrative building.
"Sometimes, time is of the essence in bond markets," Bency said.

Other commissioners defended the county's broadband project policy but
encouraged the auditor to continue to dig into finances to resolve any
issues.
"This is a great project we are attempting to do, and we will move forward
with it," Commission Chair Don Leonard said.

Leonard said the county had run into problems because the United States is
behind in broadband technology and the county was forced to use a
trial-and error system. He referred to the system as a "living
laboratory."
"We might not have gotten 100 percent of the value on our dollar, but I
think we got a pretty good value," Leonard said.

Commissioner Jack Thomas said the county and its staff had done "nothing
wrong" by promoting and funding the project.

County officials have touted successes in projects that will benefit from
a working network, such as an Internet education program and a
post-traumatic stress initiative.

Through the network, the cost of bandwidth in even the most rural parts of
the county would be lowered from the current rate of $150 per megabit a
month to $50 per megabit a month. A megabit is a measurement of bandwidth.

However, the system must work and take on clients for the prices to affect
residents.

-------

[May 19, 2007]

Sandoval Broadband Defaults on Contract

Sandoval Broadband has defaulted on its contract with signal provider IXNM
Inc.

The company had until 5 p.m. Friday to pay $36,000 to IXNM to satisfy
contract requirements or face having the signal shut off, and it missed
the deadline, IXNM president John Brown said.

The signal is the only source of bandwidth for the Sandoval Broadband
project.

Brown said his company had not received the monthly $9,000 subscription
fee by the due date of May 1 and subsequent invoices have yielded no
contact from the company.
"We don't have a very high confidence there is anyone there to write the
check," Brown said.

Payments had been made by Sandoval Broadband for the preceding months of
the contract.

County Information Technology director Mike Hoag said Friday the county
was hustling to put together its own contract with IXNM and have service
continue through the network uninterrupted.

Hoag said three quotes must be obtained for similar service to satisfy
contract procurement rules, but the process would be complete by Monday.
"We are dedicated and committed to finishing this contract," Hoag said.

Sandoval Broadband was created with county funding in late 2004 to oversee
a wireless broadband project that would provide cheap ultra-high-speed
Internet access to providers across the county.

Dewayne Hendricks resigned as chief executive officer of Sandoval
Broadband two weeks ago as private investigators began reviewing project
finances at the state auditor's request.

State Auditor Hector Balderas confirmed Thursday that Hendricks and
Sandoval Broadband have been served subpoenas for project financial
records as part of the investigation.

The Sandoval Broadband project has the goal of creating a working and
tested wireless network that will, in time, be sold to a private company
on the condition that county schools, health facilities and emergency
services continue to get free Internet access.

Sandoval Broadband has already spent $3 million in state and county funds
in two years.

-----

Wednesday, May 23, 2007      By Sean Olson, Journal Staff Report


Pacts Move Broadband Project Ahead

Sandoval County has finalized two contracts designed to keep its Sandoval
Broadband project moving forward.

County officials hustled to put together a contract at the end of last
week that would prevent losing the only signal used to power the Sandoval
Broadband network. The one-year contract was signed and finalized Tuesday
after proper procurement guidelines had been followed by the county,
county Information Technology director Mike Hoag said.

Another contract, between the county and wireless Internet experts
Metlogix of San Diego, was finished last week. Metlogix will be doing a
project assessment of Sandoval Broadband for about $20,000, Hoag said.

The Sandoval Broadband project endeavors to bring cheap ultra-high-speed
wireless Internet access to service providers across the entire county.

Sandoval Broadband, a company formed at the beginning of the project to
oversee its deployment, failed to pay bandwidth provider IXNM for the
network's signal by Friday's due date.

The signal would have been cut off if the county had not set up a separate
contract with IXNM.
IXNM president John Brown said he left the signal on throughout the
weekend as part of a "handshake agreement" with the county, giving it time
to put a contract together.

Sandoval Broadband owes the remaining $36,000 left on a one-year contract
to IXNM. The contract was set to expire in August. Brown said he was
weighing the costs of collecting the debt before his company decided how
to try to retrieve it.

The new contract goes beyond the original agreement with Sandoval
Broadband by adding IXNM as a service provider for the county's Internet
service as well as the broadband project, Hoag said.

While exact pricing was kept confidential in the contract, Brown said the
county would be paying between $35 and $40 a megabit per month. That price
is down from about $65 a megabit a month that Sandoval Broadband was
paying, he said.

Sandoval Broadband's yearlong contract with IXNM had been worth $108,000.

Brown said other considerations were taken when negotiating the price with
the county.
"We need to have the ability to deliver a high-speed signal to people who
couldn't usually afford it," he said.

The county also gets Internet service provided by Qwest, which Sandoval
County still has a month-to-month agreement with, he said.

Metlogix, which has a wealth of national and international experience with
wireless networks- including working with Sprint's PCS system, will be
evaluating the progress of the broadband project from its genesis, Hoag
said.

The company will give recommendations on whether the proper equipment has
been used in the project's deployment and specifications on what equipment
to use in the future, he said.
"Now that the (broadband) equipment is not performing, that is the
information (Metlogix) will provide," Hoag said.

Started in late 2004, the broadband project has already spent $3 million
in its quest to get high-speed Internet access to even the most rural
parts of the county.

Beset by delays and vague accounting, including a series of invoices
billed to the county with little or no detail and signed off by County
Manager Debbie Hays, the project has drawn the attention of the state
auditor- who is conducting an audit of the project finances.

State Auditor Hector Balderas confirmed last week that subpoenas had been
issued for financial records of the project to former project head Dewayne
Hendricks, who resigned shortly after the investigation began, and to
Sandoval Broadband.

Jonathan Mann, former CEO and current majority shareholder of Sandoval
Broadband, has said that Hendricks' resignation rendered the company
unable to function and pay its bills.

Hendricks was CEO and the only board member of Sandoval Broadband when he
quit the project.

The project has also been plagued by $200,000 worth of missing invoices
and an incomplete inventory of equipment.

One plus from the project, lowering the cost of bandwidth in the county
through peer agreements with companies involved in the project and other
Internet ventures, has paid off, Brown said.

Hoag said the county would find out today when Metlogix would begin its
assessment.
It will take about two weeks for the company to complete a report on the
project, Hoag said.


Copyright (c) 2007, Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.





From granoff at zianet.com  Wed May 23 14:36:35 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 23 May 2007 15:36:35 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Daily Update from New Mexico Business Weekly
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070523153421.01d40920@zianet.com>

FYI.

Marianne

>2:46 PM MDT Wednesday
>PRC chairman seeks inquiry into Qwest-Pojoaque dispute
>
> 
>http://www.bizjournals.com/albuquerque/stories/2007/05/21/daily23.html?f=et201&hbx=e_du



From tom at jtjohnson.com  Tue May 29 13:23:45 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Tue, 29 May 2007 14:23:45 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Trends in Wireless: Informative Sessions with
	Industry Leaders
In-Reply-To: <20070529202029.E802D4A8BB17@smtp.eletters.eseminarslive.com>
References: <20070529202029.E802D4A8BB17@smtp.eletters.eseminarslive.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490705291323v60c5b580pf383a3e95f05acfd@mail.gmail.com>

fyi, y'all.

-tj

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: eSeminars <eSeminars at eletters.eseminarslive.com>
Date: Tue, 29 May 2007 20:20:29 UT
Subject: Trends in Wireless: Informative Sessions with Industry Leaders
To: tom at jtjohnson.com

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-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From tom at jtjohnson.com  Tue May 29 15:01:55 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Tue, 29 May 2007 16:01:55 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: The New Internet Revolution: How We Can Win
In-Reply-To: <20070529160055.22338.12829.qmail@omail5.getactive.com>
References: <20070529160055.22338.12829.qmail@omail5.getactive.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490705291501ye9c8283t327fe3efe75891c8@mail.gmail.com>

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Tim Karr, FreePress.net <list at freepress.net>
Date: May 29, 2007 10:00 AM
Subject: The New Internet Revolution: How We Can Win
To: tom at jtjohnson.com

 [image: SavetheInternet.com banner] <http://www.savetheinternet.com/>

Dear Media Reformer,
 [image: Save the Internet: Click
here]<http://action.freepress.net/ct/lpMOYv91Na7S/>

*Tell the FCC:
Save Our Public Airwaves* <http://action.freepress.net/ct/ldMOYv91Na7a/>

The FCC is on the verge of turning over a large chunk of the public airwaves
to the same giant phone and cable companies that control high-speed Internet
access for more than 96 percent of connected American homes.

This public "spectrum" could revolutionize the Internet in America. Its
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*

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This would be a disaster. After years of phone and cable company control
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These phone and cable giants refuse to open their networks to competitive
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*Tell the FCC: Keep the New Internet Open to
All<http://action.freepress.net/ct/ldMOYv91Na7a/>
*

With open networks, the rest of the world has rapidly adopted high-speed,
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It's time we caught up.

Act now and help clear the path for a technology that will deliver faster,
more open and affordable Internet for everyone.

Thank you,

Timothy Karr
Campaign Director
Free Press
www.freepress.net <http://action.freepress.net/ct/o1MOYv91MQmV/>

1. Most people haven't heard about this issue yet. It's really important
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friends<http://action.freepress.net/ct/l7MOYv91Na7z/>to take action.

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Magazine<http://action.freepress.net/ct/0dMOYv91Na7_/>
*, the *Los Angeles Times*
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3. To learn more about the public interest and the public airwaves, visit
the "Save Our Spectrum" site,
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------------------------------

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-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From pete at ideapete.com  Tue May 29 21:32:30 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 29 May 2007 22:32:30 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] The Economic Card
Message-ID: <465CFE5E.9050504@ideapete.com>

One of the general points that I think is missed in the great technology 
push for connectivity period is " why are we doing this ' and generally 
the whole why is lost in the excitement of the whiz bang technology, we 
gotta have one of these .

Take for example the RFP coming out of Albuquerque, absolutely nowhere 
is the statement made about how broadband could improve city services 
and no due diligence has been done to cost effectively measure 
improvement alternative to cost at any speed let alone high speed 
digital. This could be of huge cost benefit to the city but its 
financial factors are ignored. Its also well known that efficient and 
government at any level constitute an oxymoron and that applies to a 
much larger sense overseas even in lesser developed ( ie: India ) were 
the telcom's are the flag carriers and as such totally protected.  
Locally this is the reason for the soon to be demise of Azulstar in one 
of the fastest growing areas of the state and its sister project in 
Sandoval.

I liked Andrew and Richards comments that the economics must drive the 
high speed connection and not vice versa but how many people in the 
political arena really believe that..

Its becoming apparent that the majority of users of many of the muni 
systems in the US are in fact government employees and this brings us 
right round in a circle as to "How well do you provide the current 
services " and if badly whats the point of doing something wrong faster. 
Just look at how well State and County and City governments use basic 
web sites and email and you will get the picture. The huge investigation 
in Santa Fe up at the legislative level at the moment is simply because 
SHARE bluntly does not, to anyone. Our schools are being connected with 
fiber but the programs to take advantage of the pipe are not on the 
horizon and thats without getting involved in advanced projects like 
SCADA which could save millions.

Recently i read an article about communicating with  US government  back 
in George Washington's  days when it took a whole year round trip to get 
messages to and from the system but they responded the same day, now we 
communicate instantly but the system still takes a year to get back with 
a response, so whats changed.

One of the best texts that I have ever read that examines this, is " The 
politics of Information Management " by Paul Strassmann

 http://www.amazon.com/Politics-Information-Management-Policy-Guidelines/dp/0962041343/ref=sr_1_4/102-4609236-7482553?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1180499205&sr=8-4

Carrol - you remember this lecture many moons ago based on what 
potential a German Telco saw in New Mexico.

http://www.ideapete.com/leapfrog.html

Its all about economics, REAL economics Milton Friedman type

( : ( : peter




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From rl at radlab.com  Thu May 31 13:10:29 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 13:10:29 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Google at it again
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705311308090.11759-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Google is continuing to debut new applications, but this one looks to be
very promising and useful.
rl


New 'Google Gears' Allows Offline Web Apps
05.31.07 - PC Magazine Online

Google Inc. said on Wednesday it had created Web software that runs both online, and offline,
marking a sea change for the Internet industry by letting users work on planes, trains,
spotty connections and even in the most remote locations.

The technology, called Google Gears, would allow users of computers, phones and other devices
to manipulate Web services like e-mail, online calendars or news readers whether online,
intermittently connected to the Web or completely offline.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,2139334,00.asp







From rl at radlab.com  Thu May 31 13:17:26 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 31 May 2007 13:17:26 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Additional Sandoval BB update
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0705311312250.11759-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Some additional news on the difficulties at the Sandoval County Broadband
Project.   Updates as they are received.  (forwarded to me by new list
subscriber, P. Baston)
rl
-----

Friday, May 25, 2007
Former Broadband CEO Subpoenaed
By Sean Olson, Alb. Journal Staff Writer

The state auditor has handed down another subpoena for his investigation
into the Sandoval Broadband project, auditor's office spokeswoman Caroline
Buerkle confirmed Thursday. The subpoena was issued Wednesday to former
Sandoval Broadband CEO and current majority shareholder Jonathan Mann.

It is the third subpoena issued by State Auditor Hector Balderas since his
office's investigation into project finances began in early February.
Balderas has said the auditor's power to issue subpoenas has not been used
in recent New Mexico history.

The Sandoval Broadband project endeavors to bring cheap ultra-high-speed
Internet access to service providers across the entire county.

Balderas confirmed last week two other subpoenas had been issued to the
Sandoval Broadband company and its- until recently- CEO Dewayne Hendricks.

Mann said Thursday he was presented with the subpoena during a meeting on
Wednesday with private investigators hired by the state auditor. He said
he had already provided all the documents the investigators had previously
asked for- such as financial records, equipment invoices and contract
agreements- and the subpoena only required a few extra records that had
not been requested.

"I had committed to all that information ... well before the subpoena was
delivered," Mann said. "It wasn't something that required force."

Mann had written the original request for proposals for a feasibility
study on the broadband project at its beginning in late 2004. His company,
AQV Inc. of Salt Lake City, was then awarded the bid for the same RFP.
Mann was recruited by the county to set up Sandoval Broadband- the company
overseeing the project's deployment- after he finished the feasibility
study.

Mann quit the project in August and Hendricks took his place. The Dandin
Group, Hendricks' company, was hired in 2005 to install the broadband
network infrastructure. Hendricks resigned May 9 as CEO of Sandoval
Broadband- which has been entirely funded by county and state money-
shortly after private investigators began a review of project finances.

Sandoval Broadband's board of directors had only Hendricks as a member and
his departure has left the company unable to function or pay bills-
including $36,000 due to the network's signal provider IXNM.

Mann said shareholders are uncertain whether to appoint new members to its
board until it is certain Sandoval County wants to continue contracting
with Sandoval Broadband to deploy the project. Mann said he and other
shareholders purchased stock in the company when it was founded.

About $3 million of state and county funding has already been spent on the
project and only one working signal- between the signal's source in
downtown Albuquerque and the County Courthouse in Bernalillo- exists in
what will be the permanent network.

The project has been beset by delays and vague accounting- including
invoices with little to no detail signed off by County Manager Debbie
Hays. It has also been plagued by $200,000 worth of missing invoices and
an incomplete equipment inventory.

County officials have hired Netlogix, a San Diego, Calif., company with
extensive wireless Internet experience, to assess the project and give
recommendations for moving forward.

The Dandin Group is still contracted to deliver three working pilot areas
in Bernalillo, Jemez and Cuba before the end of June. Hays has said the
county will consider all of its options, including litigation, if the
pilots are not delivered.



------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Jun  1 11:41:40 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 1 Jun 2007 11:41:40 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband Fact Book
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706011138250.6298-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Broadband Fact Book, referenced below, is an excellent general
information resource on the nature of broadband and its current status in
the U.S.
rl


BROADBAND FACT BOOK
[SOURCE: Internet Innovation Alliance]

Working on the premise that informed policy makers make the right
decisions when they have the most accurate and current information at
their fingertips, the Internet Innovation Alliance has attempted to
gather the relevant data on high speed Internet access in one single
location. The report cover Internet basics and access speeds,
demographics of Internet users, broadband deployment in the US and
abroad, the consumer and economic benefits of broadband, and the
growth in Internet traffic. All in less than 30 pages -- what a bargain.

<http://www.internetinnovation.org/iia/downloads/IIA_Fact_Book.pdf>



From rl at radlab.com  Tue Jun  5 09:33:49 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 5 Jun 2007 09:33:49 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] TeraGrid Applications in NM
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706050928180.4935-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following is a description of one of the presentations being given
this week at the National TeraGrid Conference in Madison, Wisconsin.   Of
interest to this list, such initiatives will require greater 'true'
broadband access for New Mexico education, research, economic and
culturally developing communities.   The conference web site provides
links to a description of the TeraGrid Project, presentations and other
related resources.
	www.union.wisc.edu/teragrid07/

---------

The Internet to the Hogan and Dine' Grid Project
M. Trebian, T. Davis, J. Ribble, J. Arviso

The Internet To The Hogan and Dine' Grid is a project designed to
fundamentally change the socio-economic realities for the Navajo Nation
through the building of a cutting-edge cyberinfrastructure connecting
Navajo communities to the global scientific community.

The ultimate outcome is to end the digital divide, starting with
communities surrounding Navajo Technical College, by building a high-speed
wireless backbone with OC3 bandwidth that joins with communities such as
the TeraGrid through the Lambda Rail and Internet2 from Alburquerque, NM
and the ABQ GigaPop.   The OC3 backhaul will connect through communities
in the Navajo Nation and the Pueblo Nation over a 120 mile path using
Harris radio technologies.   Collaborations and agreements between
sovereign nations were negotiated and the resources of the global
scientific community were brought to bear to make the backbone a reality.

After making the connection to Navajo Technical College the build out will
continue to 52 chapterhouses and community centers surrounding the
college.   Motorola Canopy technologies will be installed that will
provide broadband wireless coverage at each chapterhouse and community
center out to a radius of 30 miles.   Another aspect of the
cyberinfrastructure implementation is the establishment of supercluster
technologies on campus and distributed cluster technologies at the
chapterhouses and community centers through the LittleFe project.

The Dine' Grid will be more than just a distributed computing network
where communities will have the opportunity for direct access to computing
resources they would normally never have available.   Teaching and
learning will occur to provide communities the opportunity to be
contributors to the maintenance and expansion of the grid resources being
made available to them in this project and to science occurring in and
outside their communities.   E-learning and telephony services will be
made available through the application of open source products.
Collaborations and on-going relationships will be fostered through
interactions with member communities of the TeraGrid to create research
opportunities that have a direct impact on the communities touched by the
project.   Finally, a technology transfer model will be designed to create
enterprises and entrepreneurships that can successfully compete in niche
and national markets as intellectual human resources are built in the
Navajo Nation that can construct a new economic structure through well
prepared human capital for the high value, high intellect jobs and tasks
of the Twenty-first Century.


"TeraGrid is an open scientific discovery infrastructure funded by the
National Science Foundation.   TeraGrid combines leadership class
resources at eight partner sites to create an integrated, persistent
computational resource.   TeraGrid provides more than 150 teraflops of
computing power and nearly 2 petabytes of rotating storage, numerous
scientific data collections, specialized data analysis tools, scientific
gateways and user portals to simplify access to valuable resources, and
visualization resources all interconnected via a high-speed
gigabits/second dedicated national network."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jun 18 10:27:24 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 10:27:24 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] The Case for National Broadband Policy
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706181019270.21803-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation has published two
recent reports, to be found on their web site:  www.itif.org

Their Case for a National Broadband Policy makes a good case for such.
They have also just published The Case for Tax-Free Internet Access.

rl


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------






From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jun 18 10:43:18 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 10:43:18 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] PacketFront gets RUS Tech. Acceptance
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706181035190.25151-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

As an advocate of 'open' community fiber broadband networking, I'm also
an advocate for PacketFront's technology and services solutions.   The RUS
seems to agree.   Links to PacketFront, the RUS and other 'open' broadband
resources can be found on the 1st-Mile web site's Resources pages.
rl
-----------------------

www.packetfront.com
Nashua, NH // 2007-05-31

PacketFront's total FTTH solution accepted by USDA's Rural Utilities
Service

PacketFront, the pioneer of open-access broadband networking, announced
today that its complete Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) solution has attained
Technical Acceptance by the United States Department of Agriculture's
Rural Utilities Service (RUS).   By achieving Technical Acceptance, rural
FTTH and tele-communication projects are now able to implement the
PacketFront solution with the assistance of grants and loans from RUS.
PacketFront is the first fully integrated FTTH solution to attain
Technical Acceptance from RUS.

The key component in PacketFront's FTTH solution is the award-winning BECS
control and provisioning system.   BECS makes it possible for operators to
build and run fully automated broadband networks with self-provisioning
capabilities, in both open-access and retail business models.   End users
are able to self-subscribe to their own broadband services through a
web-based portal, without any manual interaction between the service
provider or network operator. This keeps operational costs low for the
delivery and support of the services, while passing on to the consumer the
savings from increased efficiencies.   The PacketFront solution also
consists of the SMT and HMT management tools for customer care and
helpdesk responsibilities, as well as the ASR portfolio of Advanced
Services Routers and the DRG family of customer premises equipment.   The
complete PacketFront FTTH solution has been Technically Accepted by RUS.

"We are thrilled to have attained Technical Acceptance from RUS for our
total FTTH solution," said Matt Wenger, VP Sales for the Americas of
PacketFront Inc. "This will only strengthen our commitment to providing
successful broadband solutions, both technically and economically, to
rural America."

Proven in over 150 communities worldwide, the PacketFront solution
provides a cost-efficient infrastructure for the delivery of advanced
broadband services such as telemedicine, distance education, television,
telephone, Internet, and more.   PacketFront's expertise is in delivering
a fully successful broadband network, based on advanced technology and
solid economic principals, fulfilling the community's goals and
objectives.   PacketFront's customers include the largest, most successful
community and utility fiber networks in the world, as well as property
developers, carriers and cable companies. Several of these customers have
won prestigious industry accolades such as the Cornerstone Awards for
"Municipal Area Network of the Year", "Most Advanced Fiber to the Premise
Network", "Best Use of Fiber to Bridge the Digital Divide", and "FTTH and
FTTB with Most Advanced IP Services".

RUS provides funding to rural communities for deploying the most advanced
broadband systems that support the delivery of vital community services,
such as distance learning and telemedicine. By having access to these
broadband applications, communities have an opportunity to improve quality
of life and continue to grow.   The Broadband Access Loan program provides
loans for funding the costs of construction, improvement, and acquisition
of facilities to provide broadband service to eligible rural communities.
The Distance Learning and Telemedicine program continues its charge of
bringing electronic educational resources to rural schools and improving
health care delivery in rural America.   Lastly, the Community Connect
Grant program provides financial assistance to eligible applicants that
will provide currently unserved areas with broadband service that fosters
economic growth and public safety services.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Mon Jun 18 11:13:16 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 12:13:16 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Cell phone in Africa demonstrate demand and growth
Message-ID: <e04090490706181113r32371aa8l342f2e764f80fb4e@mail.gmail.com>

The sharp upward curve for cell phone communications in Africa has
significance for New Mexico.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/business/yourmoney/17stream.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From editorsteve at gmail.com  Mon Jun 18 11:35:21 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:35:21 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Cell phone in Africa demonstrate demand and growth
In-Reply-To: <e04090490706181113r32371aa8l342f2e764f80fb4e@mail.gmail.com>
References: <e04090490706181113r32371aa8l342f2e764f80fb4e@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <4676D069.4070906@gmail.com>

You are talking to someone who watches India add 20 million 
new cell phone subscribers A MONTH. In three years, India 
will reach China's total -- and each will have more than 500 
million cell phone users.


Steven S. Ross
Editor-in-Chief
Broadband Properties Magazine
steve at broadbandproperties.com
www.bbpmag.com, www.killerapp.com
SKYPE: editorsteve
781-284-8810
646-216-8030 fax
201-456-5933 mobile

Tom Johnson wrote:
> The sharp upward curve for cell phone communications in Africa has 
> significance for New Mexico.
> 
> http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/business/yourmoney/17stream.html?_r=1&oref=slogin 
> <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/17/business/yourmoney/17stream.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>
> 
> -- tj
> ==========================================
> J. T. Johnson
> Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
> www.analyticjournalism.com <http://www.analyticjournalism.com>
> 505.577.6482 (c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
> http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us 
> <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.us>
> 
> "You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
> To change something, build a new model that makes the
> existing model obsolete."
>                                                    -- Buckminster Fuller
> ==========================================
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm


From jtjohnson555 at gmail.com  Thu Jun 21 09:58:27 2007
From: jtjohnson555 at gmail.com (J T  Johnson)
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 10:58:27 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] New distance record for WiFi transmission
Message-ID: <e04090490706210958g12c15813g9276eb5f201910ca@mail.gmail.com>

FYI

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: O'Reilly Radar <radar+feedburner at oreilly.com>
Date: Jun 21, 2007 7:24 AM
Subject: O'Reilly Radar
To: jtjohnson555 at gmail.com

   O'Reilly Radar <http://radar.oreilly.com/>

WiFi: Record Range Now 382
KM<http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Er/oreilly/radar/atom/%7E3/126515677/wifi_record_ran.html>

Posted: 20 Jun 2007 05:17 PM CDT

By Brady Forrest

[image: 200706201022]

The record for point-2-point WiFi transmission is now 382 kilometers
(pdf<http://www.eslared.org.ve/articulos/Long%20Distance%20WiFi%20Trial.pdf>).
The transmission was made from Platillon to Aguila in Venezuela. This news
comes to us via The Foundation Latin American School of
Networks<http://www.eslared.org.ve/>website.

The researchers behind the project used the WRT54 Linksys router in their
experiment. If they are able to make long distance connectivity work in a
stable manner and are able to keep the equipment cheap this could make a
huge difference in connecting emerging markets.

Connectivity will make the OLPC even more important and make the use of SMS
servers (Radar post<http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2007/03/sms_servers_bei.html>)
even more interesting. Hacker Friendly
Books<http://hackerfriendly.com/wp/books/>(Radar
post<http://radar.oreilly.com/archives/2006/01/wireless_networking_in_the_dev.html>)
has continued releasing books that aid emerging markets in building out
effective networking infrastructure.

According to Internet World Stats<http://www.internetworldstats.com/sa/ve.htm>,
only 12.8% of Venezuela's population is connected. It's not surprising that
the record was broken in a country that is still finding its internet
footing. The dominant US method of most people paying for their connectivity
will not work in an emerging market.

[via Gadget Lab <http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2007/06/w_wifi_record_2.html>]

 <http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Ef/oreilly/radar/atom?a=lL9L6gG8>
<http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Ef/oreilly/radar/atom?a=tsnDAeBp>
<http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Ef/oreilly/radar/atom?a=Ug9HDTjt>
<http://feeds.feedburner.com/%7Ef/oreilly/radar/atom?a=QKk82Xun>


==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Thu Jun 21 19:52:34 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 21 Jun 2007 19:52:34 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC's Martin wants to subsidize rural broadband
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706211948010.5505-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Martin Wants To Subsidize Rural Broadband
By Gene J. Koprowski, for Technology Daily

www.njtelecomupdate.com/2007/06/martin_wants_to_subsidize_rura.html#more

(Tuesday, June 19) CHICAGO -- FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said on Tuesday
that the concept of universal service needs to be substantially upgraded
to encompass financial support for high-speed Internet services in rural
areas.

In a live video presentation at the NEXTComm industry show here, Martin
said broadband policies should be updated so rural consumers could receive
the same services as their urban counterparts. "But there's a limited
amount of funding to do this," said Martin, who responded to questions
from industry leaders. "We need ... a policy that is technologically
neutral."

Martin said the FCC should move away from "subsidizing multiple voice
carriers in rural areas" to subsidizing broadband. He added, "It's
critical that the concept of universal service stays in place -- and that
everyone stays connected."

Last year, the FCC sought to foster investment in broadband, providing
incentives to carriers to invest in the technology. The move has worked,
according to the Telecommunications Industry Association, noting that $70
billion was spent last year on broadband infrastructure.

Access to broadband for many previously underserved demographic groups,
including the poor, has increased as a result, TIA said. But industry
leaders here cautioned that 45 percent of Americans still do not own
computers.

The universal service fund, which subsidizes telecom service, has been a
point of controversy of late. On May 1, the FCC's Joint Federal-State
Board on Universal Service recommended a temporary cap on USF subsidies to
competitive telecom carriers, mostly wireless firms. Last week, Senate
lawmakers from both parties sharply criticized that proposal and urged the
agency to take the lead on a comprehensive overhaul.

In terms of other policy priorities for his agency, Martin said his vision
is to "remove regulations that inhibit innovation."

Speaking at the conference, Chris Rice, the chief technology officer of
AT&T, commented that in coming years, industry leaders no longer will
think of themselves in terms of "wireless" or "wireline" providers but
will present themselves as "multimedia" service providers.

But Martin said it is also a priority for the FCC to ensure that access to
content on the Internet is equal for all Americans, even if telecom
companies continue with the trend of providing different levels of service
at distinct prices.

Another area where strong regulation will remain in place is in
guaranteeing access to emergency services for consumers, Martin said.

Posted by Michael Martinez on June 20, 2007


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Jun 22 08:53:31 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2007 08:53:31 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Minneapolis WiFi example
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706220845120.20299-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Minneapolis is setting one of the better examples in the U.S., for a
municipal wireless network, which includes a communitywide 'digital
inclusion' program, to involve local residents in the use and content
generation for the network.   The city will also benefit financially from
this initiative.
rl
-------

Posted by Carol Ellison at 9:52 AM on June 21, 2007
(From MuniWireless.com)

"On track"
Minneapolis network is poised to welcome neighbors
The Minneapolis network is "on track"--so much so that officials there are
inviting neighboring communities to join it. With so much negative
publicity about muni-WiFi generated by the Associated Presss recent
erroneous report, its nice to see news like this coming in.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune quotes Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak: "The
Wi-Fi plan is on track. The other issue yet to be decided is how many
other Twin Cities communities will join us. We want the suburbs, the
university and the transit system to be part of this. So we're talking
with everyone."

The network is going live downtown this week and officials project service
will be available city-wide in November. Provider US Internet is charging
$20 per month for the service.

City officials are scheduled to meet tonight to discuss the Digital
Inclusion fund and name a community advisory board for it. Five percent of
the $20 per month per paid subscription--as much as $1 million per year
over USIs 20-year contract with the city--will go to the fund to provide
service and equipment to address the digital divide and will train
residents to build community web pages. Money will be used to upgrade
equipment and provide training at 70 non-profit community technology
centers. Six initial web pages are expected to launch soon; as many as 100
are expected to be created when the network is complete.

The city recently announced a schedule of community training sessions
where residents wil learn about how to create content.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Jun 29 12:00:25 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 29 Jun 2007 12:00:25 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Richardson on the 'digital divide'
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0706291157330.24981-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Last night, at Howard University in Washington, DC, PBS hosted a debate
among the Democratic candidates running for president.  After the event,
Internet activist and blogger, Andy Carvin had a chance to speak with four
of the candidates about their perceptions about the digital divide and the
role schools might play in bridging it.

The full text of his blog is at:
www.pbs.org/teachers/learning.now/2007/06/ask_a_presidential_candidate.html

Here is Bill Richardson's brief response.

"There should be a national plan to have broadband across the country to
narrow the digital divide. We should have science and math academies to
produce more engineers, up our scores in science and math. And then
lastly, I believe the federal government needs to say that the digital
divide is real. That because our minorities, and in minority
neighborhoods, don't have the same access to computers. We need to take
steps like have a computer for every child in the seventh grade - laptop
computers. Find ways to increase computers in the home. Find ways for the
federal government to play an active role in not just funding some of
these programs but working with the IBMs, the Microsofts to provide more
technology. Especially in minority communities."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From pete at ideapete.com  Mon Jul  2 21:53:01 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Mon, 02 Jul 2007 22:53:01 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Maybe we should delete all references to this
 contract its about to blow wide apart
Message-ID: <4689D62D.6070109@ideapete.com>

Sunday, July 1, 2007

What Did Sandoval Get For $1.2M?

By Sean Olson
Copyright ? 2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Staff Writer
    It appears Sandoval County is the proud owner of a completely 
useless $1.2 million wireless broadband network.
    Records obtained by the Journal show that, since 2005, roughly $1.2 
million of taxpayer money has been spent on the Internet network for the 
Sandoval Broadband project.
    But officials say the network will be abandoned as the county starts 
building a new one from scratch--- a cost estimated at nearly $1 million.
    "All the stuff (the county) was promised is vaporware. It doesn't 
exist," said Eric DaVersa, vice president of a national consulting 
company brought in last month to review the project.
    County Commissioner David Bency used layman's terms to describe what 
the county has to show for its $1.2 million--- "a series of tomato cans 
attached to a string."
    County Manager Debbie Hays has defended the project and the previous 
contractor but now claims the county was fleeced.
    "It is clear to me at this point that (Dandin Group CEO Dewayne 
Hendricks) has defrauded us," she said.
    Hays said the county is considering litigation and making insurance 
claims to recover its money.
   
*Project delays*
    The Dandin Group, a wireless consulting and engineering firm, was 
hired to build the network. The group began by consulting on the network 
in 2005.
    The company has quit work on the project, which was supposed to have 
been up and running by today.
    County officials still don't have an accurate report of equipment 
used in the project, but estimate its worth at around $80,000.
    No records show exactly where the money was spent after being 
distributed to Dandin.
    Hays said the county now believes Dandin CEO Dewayne Hendricks 
defrauded the county for equipment costs and will try to recoup all 
funding Dandin received since 2005.
    Hendricks said in a phone interview Thursday that he had no comment 
regarding Dandin's work on the project because he expected to be sued soon.
    The project, once hailed as cutting-edge technology that would 
thrust Sandoval County into the national spotlight, is supposed to 
deliver cheap ultra-high-speed Internet access for Internet service 
providers across the county.
    The county plans to sell the network to a private company after its 
completion with the condition that all county schools, health facilities 
and emergency services get free access.
    NetLogix, a national wireless consulting firm, was brought in about 
a month ago to review the project and come up with a plan to build it.
    A June 28 report from NetLogix estimates the county will need to 
spend about $950,000 to build the network.
    The majority of that cost, $800,000--- which is 10 times what Dandin 
is estimated to have spent--- would go toward equipment.
    DaVersa said Thursday that, for $1.2 million, Dandin should have 
been able to deliver a top- of-the-line network.
    Instead, he said, the system in place--- which is not working--- 
could only deliver a tenth of the signal strength Dandin had promised.
    "The gear they had up in total brand-new value, from what we saw, is 
(worth) maybe $40,000," DaVersa said.
    DaVersa said that Dandin's system had various kinds of equipment at 
different sites throughout the county but that there was no connection 
between the sites--- which are supposed to beam a wireless signal from 
point to point.
    Hays defended giving the initial contract to Dandin, citing the 
company's resume that includes experience on wireless projects all over 
the world.
    "Dandin's credentials are impeccable ... there was no reason to 
believe otherwise," Hays said Wednesday.
    She said the county believed promises that Hendricks was close to 
finishing the network before he left nearly two months ago.
    "The fact that he didn't complete the project is amazing to me," 
Hays said.
    Hendricks said he left the project after finding out about $252,000 
in unaccounted-for funds in the project.
    He said that poor accounting practices by former project head 
Jonathan Mann made him uneasy and that, after finding out about the 
missing funds, his attorney advised him to leave the project immediately.
    "Things were done with the best of intentions, but, at some point, 
there has to be some accountability," Hendricks said Thursday.
    Mann has said the missing funds were the result of an invoice 
problem caused by Dandin. He said Dandin billed in advance for 
anticipated spending needs and never returned invoices on specific 
purchases after the money had been spent.
    Mann served as the project's head from its inception and acted as 
the first CEO of the Sandoval Broadband company, which in turn 
contracted with Dandin.
    Hendricks was hired in early 2005 to install the network infrastructure.
    Mann left the project in August 2006, and Hendricks became head of 
Sandoval Broadband in January of this year.
    Hendricks resigned as Sandoval Broadband CEO in mid-May, shortly 
after the State Auditor began an investigation.
    He has since left New Mexico to work on a wireless project in 
Vermont and New Hampshire.
    Records show that Dandin was paid about $630,000 between January 
2005 and August 2006 for consulting, engineering and equipment fees.
    From August 2006 to December, when the last check was written, the 
county estimates it paid Dandin an additional $600,000.
    Hendricks said Thursday the number was closer to $250,000 between 
August and December.
    Hays said the county is already pursuing a refund from an insurance 
policy held by Sandoval Broadband, a private company created 
specifically to partner with the county on the project.
    Sandoval Broadband currently has no CEO, board of directors or 
employees.
   
*Still optimistic*
    The broadband project has been marred by delays and vague 
accounting--- including a series of invoices signed off on by Hays with 
little or no detail on how public dollars were being spent.
    Hays has said she approved the invoices because line items of 
technical jargon would have meant nothing to her and she was paying for 
a final product.
    Hays remains optimistic about the project.
    She said that broadband is only six months behind schedule and that 
the overall goal is still within reach. The new deadline for a completed 
network is January.
    The county still has about $400,000 of its original funding, and 
there are federal grants and appropriations for the project coming up, 
Hays said.
    County Commission chair Don Leonard said Thursday that the network 
problem was only a bump in the road and that other aspects of the 
project had gone well.
    Applications associated with the broadband project, such as a new 
education program being tested across the county and an Internet 
post-traumatic stress disorder program, have been going very well on 
pre-existing Internet systems, Hays said.
    The original goal of finishing the project--- complete with numerous 
applications and economic development initiatives--- in 2009 with a 
total price tag of $9 million hasn't changed, she said.
    Leonard said that, when broadband is up and running, it will have 
been worth the wait.
    "I've never felt the project was not a good project," Leonard said.
    Commissioner Bency is focused on attempting to recover the $1.2 
million through legal action or insurance claims.
    "It is my intention to nail them to the wall for breach of 
contract," he said.
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From tom at jtjohnson.com  Thu Jul  5 15:04:09 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Thu, 5 Jul 2007 16:04:09 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Circuits: Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers Calcified?
In-Reply-To: <20070705190340.3E0B52834F7C@emd2-ims4.emaildefenseservice.com>
References: <20070705190340.3E0B52834F7C@emd2-ims4.emaildefenseservice.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490707051504h1ad1ee81nde2c94b40c014c56@mail.gmail.com>

No, what's below is not directly about 1st Mile --The Three 100s issues, but
it does directly related to the communications environment and how starved
for resources we are in the U.S.  (Will Americans ever get over this "We're
No. 1" crap?)

-tom

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: The New York Times Direct <NYTDirect at nytimes.com>
Date: Jul 5, 2007 2:03 PM
Subject: Circuits: Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers Calcified?
To: tom at jtjohnson.com

  If you have trouble reading this e-mail, go to
http://www.nytimes.com/circuitsemail<http://www.nytimes.com/circuitsemail?cir>

 [image: Circuits] <http://www.nytimes.com/circuits?8cir&emc=cir> [image:
E-mail Preferences] <http://www.nytimes.com/mem/email.html> [image:
Circuits] <http://www.nytimes.com/circuits>       [image: In Today's
E-mail] Thursday,
July 5, 2007
*THIS WEEK IN CIRCUITS:*  Lost? A Personal Locator Beacon Could Save Your
Life <#11397c438ff97e29_1>
    [image: From the Desk of David Pogue]
 *Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers Calcified?*

Last week, I spoke at a cellular-industry conference in Lake Como, Italy.
(Yes, I know, life's rough. And no, I did not spot George Clooney.)

Continue reading. <#11397c438ff97e29_continue>

Advertisement


My topic was the increasing number of cool services that tie together the
phone and the Internet. I've reviewed a number of these service in The Times
recently: GrandCentral, which makes all your phones ring at once so people
don't have to hunt you down (and was just bought by Google); Teleflip, which
turns your e-mail into text messages on your phone; SimulScribe, which turns
voicemail messages into text that arrives on your phone or in e-mail; and so
on.

The talk went well, but in the end, I wound up learning as much from the
attendees as they did from me.

The cellular industry is going through insanely rapid change. Almost
everyone there - 800 attendees from 200 phone companies in 65 countries -
was running scared of VOIP. That's voice over I.P., better known as Internet
phone. VOIP includes cheapo unlimited home-phone service like Vonage, as
well as absolutely free computer-to-computer calling with programs like
Skype. It's all growing like crazy, which is making a huge dent in these
companies' ARPU.

Oh, yeah - that's Average Revenue Per User. Telecom companies live and
breathe ARPU. The talks at this conference were all about "Improving Your
ARPU." (They *love* acronyms in this business. Typical seminar description:
"Learn how ISM and FSM can decrease your OPEX and CAPEX and boost your
ARPU!")

Most of these carriers intend to fight off VOIP by growing into a Double
Play, Triple Play, or even Quad Play.

What, you don't know those terms either!?

If you're a single-play company, you just provide landline service. Add
cellphone coverage, and you're a double play. Add Internet service and TV,
and you're a quad play. You can see the same syndrome here in the U.S., too,
as cellphone companies try to deliver TV service, cable companies roll out
phone service, and so on.

On the exhibit floor, companies were demonstrating very, very cool
next-generation services for the onrushing era of unified communications.
FastWeb, a company that started only in 2000 and is now a $365 million
quad-play company in Italy, lets its customers watch any TV show that's
aired in the past three days, on any channel, whenever they like. It's like
retroactive TiVo.

Other demos included upcoming services that let you text messages to and
from characters inside Second Life, the virtual-reality game; a software
module that brings your phone's incoming text messages onto your computer
screen, so you don't miss them and can reply with your keyboard; and various
systems that unify your communications (voice, text messages and chat, for
example), giving you a single address book and mailbox for all of them.

You know how young people are spending $10 billion a year on ringtones, just
because it lets them express themselves? The next big thing, I'm convinced,
will be avatars. This feature, too, was on display: You design your own
little character, or avatar, choosing a hairstyle, clothes, facial features
and so on. Then, whenever you call people, your character appears on their
cellphone screens. I'll bet avatars will be the next huge teen fad in 2010
or so.

But don't look for any of these goodies here in the United States.

I get the distinct impression that American cellphone carriers are
calcified, conservative and way behind their European and Asian
counterparts. (For one thing, I wasn't aware of any cellphone companies from
the United States at this conference.)

One guy at the conference told me that his company, which sells software
modules to cell carriers, had developed visual voicemail - a highly touted
feature of Apple's iPhone, in which your voicemail appears on the phone like
e-mail messages - *three years ago.* It had no takers among American
carriers. ("This week, our phones are ringing off the hook," he told me
sardonically. "We're digging the CD's out of storage.")

I also remember hearing friends on the Palm Treo team tell me what a
nightmare it was to sell their early phones to the American carriers, who
traditionally wield veto power and design control over every feature of the
phone. The Treo team had all kinds of great ideas for improving the design
and software of cellphones - but those carriers turned up their noses with a
"we know what's best" attitude.

As you can imagine, the iPhone was a primary conversation topic at this
conference. Lots of grudging admiration and amazement at what Apple pulled
off.

Not just technologically, either. The biggest impact of the iPhone may be
the way Steve Jobs managed to change the phone maker/cell carrier
relationship for the first time in years. "We'll give you an exclusive,"
Apple told AT&T, "and you'll let us do whatever we like. We're going to
handle the billing. We're going to take the signup process out of your
stores and let people do it at home. You're going to redesign your network
so that it works with our visual voicemail system." And so on.

Stan Sigman, president and chief executive for wireless at AT&T, is on
record as saying that he had no idea what Apple's phone would be like when
he agreed to this-a deal that would have been unthinkable in the pre-Jobs
era.

If the iPhone becomes a hit, then, it could wind up loosening the carriers'
stranglehold on innovation. Maybe phone makers' imaginations will at last be
unleashed, and a thousand iPhone-like breakthroughs might bloom.

The cellular executives at the conference didn't seem to oppose this
development; indeed, several were thrilled by the shift, as though they'd
been feeling just a little uneasy about the whole "we're-the-gatekeeper"
thing themselves. That's really exciting stuff.

Note to the cell carriers: Go with this new flow. You'll only improve your
ARPU.

(P.S. ... As longtime Pogue's Posts readers know, my biggest cellular pet
peeve is the endless recording you hear when you reach someone's voicemail:
"To page this person, press 2 now. You may leave a message at the tone. When
you finish recording, you may hang up. Or press 5 for more options" - and so
on.

At the conference, I asked one cellular executive if that message is
deliberately recorded slowly and with as many words as possible, to eat up
your airtime and make more ARPU for the cell carrier. I was half kidding -
but he wasn't fooling around in his reply: "Yes."

The secret's out.)

*

This week's Pogue's
Posts<http://www.nytimes.com/technology/poguesposts/index.html?8cir&emc=cir>blog.

Visit David Pogue on the Web at
*DavidPogue.com <http://www.davidpogue.com>.


  <#11397c438ff97e29_top>


















-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From editorsteve at gmail.com  Thu Jul  5 17:47:00 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Thu, 05 Jul 2007 20:47:00 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Circuits: Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers
	Calcified?
In-Reply-To: <e04090490707051504h1ad1ee81nde2c94b40c014c56@mail.gmail.com>
References: <20070705190340.3E0B52834F7C@emd2-ims4.emaildefenseservice.com>
	<e04090490707051504h1ad1ee81nde2c94b40c014c56@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <468D9104.6090607@gmail.com>

Cellular service overseas is vastly better than in the US, 
although usually at a higher price -- I travel with an 
unlocked GSM phone and use local SIMs regularly.

BUT there are some neat things happening. T-Mobile, for 
instance, just introduced a combo wifi and GSM phone. For 
the $10 extra per month (on top of whatever plan you have), 
you get a new wifi router for your home. Your phone also 
latches on to any other wifi hotspot that does not require a 
web registration, and latches onto hotspots that are 
exclusively t-Mobile (like starbucks, but not like hotels 
and airports) even if they Do require web registration.

unlimited calling on the wifi. If you begin a call on wifi 
and wander out of the hotspot area and back onto cellular, 
if the call isn't dropped you get the remainder free as 
well. free calling from overseas t-mobile and open hotspots.

Nice in our NYC apartment, where cell strength is lousy but 
the wifi router becomes a local hotspot.

Right now, the two phones they offer on the plan aren't as 
good as my 18-month-old razr, but I suspect new models will 
quickly become available.


Steven S. Ross
Editor-in-Chief
Broadband Properties
steve at broadbandproperties.com
www.bbpmag.com, www.killerapp.com
SKYPE: editorsteve
+1 781-284-8810
+1 646-216-8030 fax
+1 201-456-5933 mobile

Tom Johnson wrote:
> No, what's below is not directly about 1st Mile --The Three 100s issues, 
> but it does directly related to the communications environment and how 
> starved for resources we are in the U.S.  (Will Americans ever get over 
> this "We're No. 1" crap?)
> 
> -tom
> 
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: *The New York Times Direct* <NYTDirect at nytimes.com 
> <mailto:NYTDirect at nytimes.com> >
> Date: Jul 5, 2007 2:03 PM
> Subject: Circuits: Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers Calcified?
> To: tom at jtjohnson.com <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.com>
> 
> If you have trouble reading this e-mail, go to 
> http://www.nytimes.com/circuitsemail 
> <http://www.nytimes.com/circuitsemail?cir>
> 
> Circuits <http://www.nytimes.com/circuits?8cir&emc=cir>
> 	E-mail Preferences <http://www.nytimes.com/mem/email.html> 		Circuits 
> <http://www.nytimes.com/circuits> 	
> 
> 		
> In Today's E-mail 	Thursday, July 5, 2007
> 
> *THIS WEEK IN CIRCUITS:*  Lost? A Personal Locator Beacon Could Save 
> Your Life <#11397c438ff97e29_1>
> 
>  From the Desk of David Pogue
> *Are U.S. Cellphone Carriers Calcified?*
> 
> Last week, I spoke at a cellular-industry conference in Lake Como, 
> Italy. (Yes, I know, life's rough. And no, I did not spot George Clooney.)
> 
> 
> Continue reading. <#11397c438ff97e29_continue>
> 
> Advertisement
>  
> 
> My topic was the increasing number of cool services that tie together 
> the phone and the Internet. I've reviewed a number of these service in 
> The Times recently: GrandCentral, which makes all your phones ring at 
> once so people don't have to hunt you down (and was just bought by 
> Google); Teleflip, which turns your e-mail into text messages on your 
> phone; SimulScribe, which turns voicemail messages into text that 
> arrives on your phone or in e-mail; and so on.
> 
> The talk went well, but in the end, I wound up learning as much from the 
> attendees as they did from me.
> 
> The cellular industry is going through insanely rapid change. Almost 
> everyone there - 800 attendees from 200 phone companies in 65 countries 
> - was running scared of VOIP. That's voice over I.P., better known as 
> Internet phone. VOIP includes cheapo unlimited home-phone service like 
> Vonage, as well as absolutely free computer-to-computer calling with 
> programs like Skype. It's all growing like crazy, which is making a huge 
> dent in these companies' ARPU.
> 
> Oh, yeah - that's Average Revenue Per User. Telecom companies live and 
> breathe ARPU. The talks at this conference were all about "Improving 
> Your ARPU." (They *love* acronyms in this business. Typical seminar 
> description: "Learn how ISM and FSM can decrease your OPEX and CAPEX and 
> boost your ARPU!")
> 
> Most of these carriers intend to fight off VOIP by growing into a Double 
> Play, Triple Play, or even Quad Play.
> 
> What, you don't know those terms either!?
> 
> If you're a single-play company, you just provide landline service. Add 
> cellphone coverage, and you're a double play. Add Internet service and 
> TV, and you're a quad play. You can see the same syndrome here in the 
> U.S., too, as cellphone companies try to deliver TV service, cable 
> companies roll out phone service, and so on.
> 
> On the exhibit floor, companies were demonstrating very, very cool 
> next-generation services for the onrushing era of unified 
> communications. FastWeb, a company that started only in 2000 and is now 
> a $365 million quad-play company in Italy, lets its customers watch any 
> TV show that's aired in the past three days, on any channel, whenever 
> they like. It's like retroactive TiVo.
> 
> Other demos included upcoming services that let you text messages to and 
> from characters inside Second Life, the virtual-reality game; a software 
> module that brings your phone's incoming text messages onto your 
> computer screen, so you don't miss them and can reply with your 
> keyboard; and various systems that unify your communications (voice, 
> text messages and chat, for example), giving you a single address book 
> and mailbox for all of them.
> 
> You know how young people are spending $10 billion a year on ringtones, 
> just because it lets them express themselves? The next big thing, I'm 
> convinced, will be avatars. This feature, too, was on display: You 
> design your own little character, or avatar, choosing a hairstyle, 
> clothes, facial features and so on. Then, whenever you call people, your 
> character appears on their cellphone screens. I'll bet avatars will be 
> the next huge teen fad in 2010 or so.
> 
> But don't look for any of these goodies here in the United States.
> 
> I get the distinct impression that American cellphone carriers are 
> calcified, conservative and way behind their European and Asian 
> counterparts. (For one thing, I wasn't aware of any cellphone companies 
> from the United States at this conference.)
> 
> One guy at the conference told me that his company, which sells software 
> modules to cell carriers, had developed visual voicemail - a highly 
> touted feature of Apple's iPhone, in which your voicemail appears on the 
> phone like e-mail messages - *three years ago.* It had no takers among 
> American carriers. ("This week, our phones are ringing off the hook," he 
> told me sardonically. "We're digging the CD's out of storage.")
> 
> I also remember hearing friends on the Palm Treo team tell me what a 
> nightmare it was to sell their early phones to the American carriers, 
> who traditionally wield veto power and design control over every feature 
> of the phone. The Treo team had all kinds of great ideas for improving 
> the design and software of cellphones - but those carriers turned up 
> their noses with a "we know what's best" attitude.
> 
> As you can imagine, the iPhone was a primary conversation topic at this 
> conference. Lots of grudging admiration and amazement at what Apple 
> pulled off.
> 
> Not just technologically, either. The biggest impact of the iPhone may 
> be the way Steve Jobs managed to change the phone maker/cell carrier 
> relationship for the first time in years. "We'll give you an exclusive," 
> Apple told AT&T, "and you'll let us do whatever we like. We're going to 
> handle the billing. We're going to take the signup process out of your 
> stores and let people do it at home. You're going to redesign your 
> network so that it works with our visual voicemail system." And so on.
> 
> Stan Sigman, president and chief executive for wireless at AT&T, is on 
> record as saying that he had no idea what Apple's phone would be like 
> when he agreed to this-a deal that would have been unthinkable in the 
> pre-Jobs era.
> 
> If the iPhone becomes a hit, then, it could wind up loosening the 
> carriers' stranglehold on innovation. Maybe phone makers' imaginations 
> will at last be unleashed, and a thousand iPhone-like breakthroughs 
> might bloom.
> 
> The cellular executives at the conference didn't seem to oppose this 
> development; indeed, several were thrilled by the shift, as though 
> they'd been feeling just a little uneasy about the whole 
> "we're-the-gatekeeper" thing themselves. That's really exciting stuff.
> 
> Note to the cell carriers: Go with this new flow. You'll only improve 
> your ARPU.
> 
> (P.S. ... As longtime Pogue's Posts readers know, my biggest cellular 
> pet peeve is the endless recording you hear when you reach someone's 
> voicemail: "To page this person, press 2 now. You may leave a message at 
> the tone. When you finish recording, you may hang up. Or press 5 for 
> more options" - and so on.
> 
> At the conference, I asked one cellular executive if that message is 
> deliberately recorded slowly and with as many words as possible, to eat 
> up your airtime and make more ARPU for the cell carrier. I was half 
> kidding - but he wasn't fooling around in his reply: "Yes."
> 
> The secret's out.)
> 
> /
> 
> This week's Pogue's Posts 
> <http://www.nytimes.com/technology/poguesposts/index.html?8cir&emc=cir> 
> blog.
> 
> Visit David Pogue on the Web at
> 
> /DavidPogue.com <http://www.davidpogue.com>.
> 
> 
> 
> <#11397c438ff97e29_top>
> 
> 
> 
> 		
> 
> 			
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 		
> 
> 	
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> ==========================================
> J. T. Johnson
> Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
> www.analyticjournalism.com <http://www.analyticjournalism.com>
> 505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
> http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us 
> <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.us>
> 
> "You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
> To change something, build a new model that makes the
> existing model obsolete."
>                                                    -- Buckminster Fuller
> ==========================================
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm


From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jul  9 12:02:29 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 9 Jul 2007 12:02:29 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Digital Pathways Conference
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707091200460.14295-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The 2007 Digital Pathways Conference, facilitating distance education for
American Indian communities, will be held at Southwestern Indian
Polytechnic Institute, Albuquerque, New Mexico, on August 6-7, 2007.

http://distance.nmsu.edu/digital_pathways/2007_conference/index.html

This two-day conference will bring together tribal and educational leaders
for discussions, hands-on demonstrations, and information sessions on NMSU
and SIPI distance education programs.  The conference is sponsored by NMSU
and SIPI and supported by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Participants at this conference can attend sessions on:

    * Distance education tools
    * Services for distance education students
    * NMSU admissions, financial aid, and registration
    * Support for American Indian students
    * Preparing Native students for higher education
    * Mentoring American Indian students in distance education
    * Next steps for NMSU's Digital Pathways program

The conference will conclude with a panel discussion on meeting the needs
of American Indian communities and students through distance education. It
will develop action items to meet these needs and develop recommendations
for next steps for Digital Pathways.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jul  9 16:40:29 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 9 Jul 2007 16:40:29 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Pew Broadband Report
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707091638480.19219-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Pew Internet Project just released their latest (2007)
report on the state of at-home broadband access in the U.S.

http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/217/report_display.asp

The report offers a national 'snapshot'.   It would be of
interest to see the status of New Mexico, among the states.

Among the report findings:

    * African Americans: 40% of now have broadband at
home, up by 8 percentage points from 2006.

    * Rural Americans: 31% of those living in rural
areas have broadband at home, up 6 percentage points
from 2006.

    * Low income households, that is, adults who
report living in households with annual household
incomes under $30,000 annually: 30% of those in this
group report having broadband at home, up by 9
percentage points the prior year and matching the
end-of-2005 national average.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Wed Jul 11 09:21:34 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Wed, 11 Jul 2007 10:21:34 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Int'l broadband stats
Message-ID: <e04090490707110921u79db5497o4c01d23b3d15cf45@mail.gmail.com>

See

OECD Broadband Statistics to December 2006

http://www.oecd.org/document/7/0,3343,en_2825_495656_38446855_1_1_1_1,00.html

Of course the agency is using the good-for-nothing download rate of 256k
(good-for-nothing unless you're having to use a dial-up modem), but.....

-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Wed Jul 11 14:44:43 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Wed, 11 Jul 2007 14:44:43 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] California Broadband Report
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707111437540.7976-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

A report such as the following, would be a good first step in creating a
Strategically Integrated Broadband Plan for New Mexico.
rl
------------

The Public Policy Institute of California has just published it's new
online report:  Broadband for All? Gaps in California's Broadband Adoption
and Availability

www.ppic.org/main/publication.asp?i=758


July 2007, 24 pp.
Vol. 3, No. 2
Free download of report (PDF)

California has consistently led the rest of the country in the average
number of households with access to the high-speed Internet connection
known as broadband.   Yet within the state broadband availability and
adoption vary dramatically.   Some rural areas have no access at all.
In others, households cannot afford it.   Recognizing the advantages more
broadband could bring to its citizenry and its economies, local and state
government agencies have initiated a number of programs to increase
availability and adoption.   Using new data and techniques, this issue of
California Economic Policy examines the current broadband landscape and
the potential effects and deficiencies of these new initiatives.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Jul 13 10:06:08 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 13 Jul 2007 10:06:08 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] How to Sell the Airwaves
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707131000290.4985-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The FCC is preparing to auction a portion of the EM spectrum, formerly
used for broadcast television, for new wireless applications; a process
that is filled with controversy.   The following article offers a good
overview on this issue.
rl
---------

HOW TO SELL THE AIRWAVES?
[SOURCE: Washington Post, AUTHOR: Kim Hart]

The airwaves that carry billions of calls, text messages and e-mails
have become one of the hottest corporate properties. Not only are
they in demand by a nation of 240 million mobile-phone users, they
are also in short supply. Soon, one of the last available sections of
airwaves -- and one of the most attractive -- will be sold, and the
issue of how to manage that sale has become the focus of debate. The
Federal Communications Commission is overseeing the auction of a
portion of the radio frequency spectrum once used by television
broadcasters, and this week drafted rules for the sale. The auction,
scheduled for January, is expected to raise at least $15 billion,
with bidders ranging from start-ups to established phone companies.
Companies and policymakers have different ideas on how to allocate
the airwaves. The battle pits software firms against traditional
telecom carriers, Republican commissioners against Democratic, and
phone companies against cable companies. To complicate matters,
police and other public safety organizations also have a stake in the
auction as they push for a national network that would allow all
first responders to communicate with each other.

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/12/
AR2007071202221.html>


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jul 16 08:59:09 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 16 Jul 2007 08:59:09 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Sandoval's Network a High-Tech Debacle
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707160842460.15431-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following long series of articles were forwarded by subscriber
pete at ideapete.com

Though I have followed the Sandoval County Broadband Project for the past
year, have posted information about it on this list and on the 1st-Mile
web site, and personally know or have met some of the noted players, there
are no ties between us.   I agree that the consequences of this project
are and will have many very unfortunate consequences.
rl
------

I'll say no more ( read below ) this contract is imploding and a total
embarrassment to all the good players in the industry and first mile needs
to cut the ties and say why.,

 Its a perfect text case of how NOT to develop a broadband project

 I printed out the whole article as well as the html because it is a
subscription site

 Sad sad day for broadband

 ) : ) : pete


Sunday, July 15, 2007

http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/578656metro07-15-07.htm
Sandoval's Network a High-Tech Debacle

By Colleen Heild and Sean Olson
Copyright  2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Investigative Reporter;
Journal Staff Writer
 Where did the county go wrong?
  That's the million-dollar question now that the county is poised to
resuscitate its lifeless wireless system with another influx of taxpayer
dollars.
  The answer, based on interviews and records obtained by the Journal:
right from the start and at almost every step along the way.
  A recent consultant's report says the $1.2 million it cost to design and
build an affordable broadband network essentially bought "vaporware." An
estimated $950,000 will be needed to get a network up and running.
  The county has spent more than $2.6 million on the project since 2004,
but officials say not all the money has gone down the drain. They say
subcontractors have come up with related educational and health programs
that have value even without a countywide wireless system.
  "It was never just about building a backbone," said County Manager
Debbie Hays.
  But, for the most part, the initiative has been an embarrassing bust
that is attracting the wrong kind of attention for county officials who
once hyped the project and said it would bring national accolades.
  For the past several months, private investigators hired by the State
Auditor's Office have been conducting interviews and poring over project
records.
  There is plenty to pique their interest. For example:
  The man hired to write the county's bid specifications for the project
master plan was allowed to bid on and ended up winning the master plan
contract a practice banned by the state and many local government
entities.

 The county only put $300,000 of the project to competitive bid a process
designed to ensure the best work for the best price. And that piece of the
project is arguably tainted by the fact that the winner wrote the specs.

 The county paid thousands of dollars up front rather than waiting for
detailed bills in effect, loaning contractors money to do work, some of
which wasn't performed.

 The county didn't require the primary contractor to post a performance
bond to ensure the job would be completed as promised. Liability insurance
for the project wasn't purchased until last September, a year into the
implementation.

 The county shelled out more than $50,000 to set up a private company,
Sandoval Broadband, to oversee the project a move that allowed the hiring
of subcontractors and disbursement of public dollars to be shielded from
public scrutiny.
  Sandoval County had $3 million for the project, of which $2 million came
from the proceeds of a revenue bond deal it approved for Intel. The state
kicked in another $1 million.
  Now the county is seeking to recoup some of its costs after design
engineer Dewayne Hendricks of the California-based Dandin Group walked off
the job in May.
  The Dandin Group was paid $1.2 million to design and build the network,
but county officials have estimated that the equipment installed is worth
about $80,000 and the project will have to start over practically from
scratch.
  The county spent another $300,000 for a master plan. Other money went to
consultants, travel, public relations and other expenses.
  "New Mexico had a chance to leap frog and to really be in the game,"
said Marshall Monroe, a Corrales consultant who created Gov. Bill
Richardson's strategic plan for film in New Mexico. He believes the
ambitious project in the right hands can still be salvaged.
  Monroe chairs a communications task force for the National Intelligence
Science Board, which advises the director of the CIA.
  He said he worked on the Sandoval County project in 2005. But he bailed
within months.
  "They had a little team and that's where it just started to smell," he
said.
  Former County Commissioner William Sapien said, "There have been some
challenges that should have been addressed as we went along and they
weren't. I think if the oversight had been closer, a lot of these things
would have been caught beforehand.
  "Pretty much the commission was left out of it, certainly in speaking
for myself," he added.
  Hays, who refers to the Sandoval Broadband project as her "baby," called
the shots and signed off on payments.
  Looming over the project is an inquiry by State Auditor Hector Balderas,
who told the Journal last week that he has decided a special forensic
audit is now needed.
  Balderas said the special audit will make recommendations on how to
improve accountability and ensure lawful conduct.

Utah man takes charge
  Jonathan Mann came to the Sandoval County broadband project as a
business consultant from Salt Lake City in 2004.
  He had no background in wireless technology but was put in charge of a
cutting-edge broadband venture and said he earned an estimated $350,000 by
the time he walked away two years later.
  Hays said she hired Mann and his one-man firm, AQV Communications, in
October 2004 after getting his name from Intel government relations
manager Terry McDermott.
  Hays said she never considered anyone else for the task, in part because
she hoped Mann could bring private funding to the project through his
business contacts and acumen.
  Mann's initial assignment was to write the request for proposals for the
broadband master plan, for which he was paid $5,000.
  His RFP didn't award points for a company's experience and didn't
require references.
  A model request for proposals published by the New Mexico Public
Procurement Association says a minimum of 30 calendar days should be given
between the date an RFP is issued and proposals are due.
  The county RFP written by Mann gave companies just 11 business days to
respond.
  Mann himself bid on the project, stating in his proposal that he would
coordinate a team that included Intel, the University of New Mexico "and
10 to 15 other interested parties" in developing the master plan. The 10
to 15 parties weren't identified.
  A review by four county employees, including Hays, rated Mann's proposal
better than those of four other firms some with national experience in the
field.
  Mann's proposed cost of $300,000 was higher than all the other bidders.
  The state Governmental Conduct Act bars state agencies from accepting
bids on a project from anyone who had direct or indirect involvement in
developing the specifications.
  New Mexico counties aren't technically covered by the act, but
contractors and government officials interviewed said the prohibition
makes sense.
  "If you write the specifications, the same company should not be allowed
to bid on it. It's good practice is what it is. It would be a conflict of
interest," said Ramona Gutierrez, president of the New Mexico Public
Procurement Association.
  Peter Baston of Ideas Inc. of Albuquerque came in second in the
competition to create the master plan. Baston told the Journal he talked
with county officials about a broadband project before Mann came on the
scene.
  He said that, at Hays' request, he met with Mann in October 2004.
  Baston said that, during the meeting, Mann told him he would see to it
Baston got the master plan contract if Baston would hire him and several
people who were "close to county government."
  "I felt like I was being shaken down," said Baston.
  Mann met with Baston, according to an e-mail obtained by the Journal.
But in an interview with the Journal, Mann disputed Baston's account of
the conversation.
  "That's a lie," Mann said. "There were no commitments made to Peter
Baston of any nature."
  Baston said he told investigators for the state Auditor's Office about
the meeting with Mann and passed a polygraph they asked him to take.
  Balderas said he couldn't address specifics of the inquiry but said his
office is using a "vast amount of tools ... to make sure we're getting
accurate information."

No-bid project
  In 2005, the project went from a master plan to a $2 million
implementation without ever going to another public bid.
  Instead, the county created a private company to develop the system and
named Mann's company to oversee it.
  Monroe, former creative executive for The Walt Disney company, said the
Sandoval Broadband project was "an enormously sophisticated technology
challenge.
  "One of the main problems is that the county gave a no-bid $2 million
contract to somebody with no technical background," he said.
  Hays contends the implementation phase didn't need to be put to bid
"because we had competitively bid it in the beginning."
  But the 2004 request for proposals for the master plan didn't require
contractors to bid on implementation costs.
  One unsuccessful bidder on the master plan proposed a national RFP to
find candidates to build the system.
  To retain Mann for the next phase of the project, the county in 2005
rolled 11 new duties into his old contract by issuing addendums.
  Such a practice is often frowned on in government procurement circles,
said Gutierrez.
  "That's a really gray area. Normally, we don't allow it," she said.
  A July 2005 addendum said AQV would be paid $250,000 a year plus a stock
option to act as "executive director" for the private company. Initially
called Olla Grande, the company was later renamed Sandoval Broadband.
  Mann retained his former business associate, Betty Anne McDermott of Rio
Rancho, and Hendricks to work for the new company. Both had helped on the
earlier master plan.
  A November 2005 addendum stated that AQV "is now providing oversight to
all the development and deployment efforts to facilitate completion of the
broadband project and is now incurring expenses."
  It added: "It is necessary for the county commission to now authorize
expenditure of $2 million infrastructure funds to reimburse the Contractor
for the costs."
  Sapien, commission chairman at the time, said he didn't recall anyone
asking whether the county should go to bid for the $2 million portion of
the work.
  "I think we were relying on Debbie Hays' recommendation that what was
taking place was the right thing to do," he said.
  Monroe said he was assured by county officials that Mann wouldn't
continue to lead the project after the master plan was submitted in July
2005.
  Mann said he never intended to stay on but said Hays talked him into it.
  Monroe said a number of people in New Mexico were qualified to build the
system.
  "And keep in mind," Monroe added, "there is a global stampede in this
area to roll out municipal wireless infrastructure."

Paid in advance
  State law generally bars government from issuing checks for any purchase
of services, construction or tangible personal property unless it has
actually received them and they have met specifications.
  Yet the county frequently paid contractors in advance.
  County records show that during the last six months of 2006, more than
$500,000 was paid in "anticipated costs" for engineering, equipment and
administration.
  Mann said he was reimbursed for roughly $125,000 he personally spent
before December 2005 but was later advanced funds to distribute to
subcontractors.
  Hendricks in a Journal interview said his company never had to shell out
a dime for any work on the project.
  Hays has said the county wasn't looking for immediate results with early
invoices and payments. She said the county was prepared to spend $3
million for a finished product and wasn't as concerned with the process.
  She signed off on many early invoices that contained little or no detail
about where money was being spent, explaining that line-item detail would
have been technical jargon she would never understand.

No performance bond
  William Bridges, owner of RITE Brain consulting of Littleton, Colo.,
worked for Mann in 2005, investigating the costs of setting up a trial for
the broadband network.
  He said that, after he submitted the plans, Mann told him "to take a
hike," leaving the Dandin Group as the primary engineer.
  Bridges said government agencies usually require performance or surety
bonds on public projects in case contractors don't finish the job. The
contractor is supposed to pay for the bond.
  "There is not a single RFP that I have seen in the last five years for
any wireless network where the municipal government didn't require a bond
and/or some equivalent," he said.
  The city of Albuquerque, for instance, plans to deploy an affordable,
wireless broadband network. One requirement of the city's RFP is that the
winning contractor obtain a performance bond.
  Mann's contract and the addendums contained no such requirement.
  Hays said through a spokesman that there was no need for a performance
bond because Sandoval Broadband had insurance.
  But invoices show that a commercial liability insurance policy wasn't
purchased until more than a year into the project. Sandoval Broadband
bought two policies in September 2006 at a cost to the county of $23,300.
  Hendricks said his firm wasn't required to provide proof of insurance
because Sandoval Broadband was insured.

A private company
  Sapien said he understood that the purpose of the county setting up a
private company was so "that when the project got up and running, there'd
be a private company that would come in and buy it and take it over."
  Mann told the Journal that the private company wasn't obliged to adhere
to government standards.
  After Mann resigned in August 2006, Hendricks became president of
Sandoval Broadband.
  In response to Journal inquiries, Hendricks refused to produce receipts
and records of how money was being spent. He refused to name anyone else
working on the project.
  Mann said that, after he left, Sandoval Broadband paid him $50,000 as
part of the transition.
  But Hays told the Journal she knew nothing about the payment because it
involved the private company.
  During the investigation by Caswell Investigations of Albuquerque
earlier this year, the county lacked detailed records about how project
money was spent. So the state auditor went to court to obtain subpoenas
requiring the documents from Mann and Hendricks. By that time, both men
had resigned.
  Today, the private company Sandoval Broadband has no CEO, board of
directors or employees. It also owes money to vendors.
  Bridges said he's saddened to hear how the project deteriorated.
  As part of his work for Mann, he proposed creating an oversight team
representing county government, the private firms involved and an
independent member who wasn't associated with any of the parties involved.
  "You have to have oversight," Bridges said. "There has to be reporting."



Sunday, July 15, 2007

http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/578659metro07-15-07.htm
Intel Exec's Wife Played Key Role

By Colleen Heild
Copyright  2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Investigative Reporter
 The wife of Intel government relations manager Terry McDermott had a key
role in the Sandoval Broadband project and was paid nearly $220,000,
records show.
  Betty Anne McDermott was chiefly involved in public relations,
educational and communications work, invoices show.
  She was also one of three shareholders in Sandoval Broadband, the
private corporation the county formed in the fall of 2005 to develop the
system that has been plagued by delays and is not yet operational.
  None of Betty Anne McDermott's work was put to competitive bid including
$80,000 in educational services the county paid for via the prime
contractor who resigned months earlier.
  Betty Anne McDermott, of Rio Rancho, was originally hired by AQV Inc., a
Utah-based consulting company owned by Jonathan Mann of Salt Lake City.
Mann worked for Betty Ann McDermott in New Mexico in the mid-1980s.
  Mann was hired for the project after County Manager Debbie Hays got his
name from Terry McDermott.
  The county launched the initiative with $2 million from the proceeds of
a revenue bond agreement with Intel.
  As part of the deal, Intel pledged a total of $85 million to the county
and agreed to give technical advice on a wireless system in exchange for
approval of a $16 billion industrial revenue bond.
  Hays said there was no "collusion" involving the hiring of Mann and
Betty Anne McDermott.
  The McDermotts, she added, "are two incredible New Mexicans that are
incredibly devoted to improving the state."

Word of mouth
  Terry McDermott said his wife was out of state and couldn't be reached
by telephone or e-mail.
  He confirmed that Mann and Betty Anne McDermott knew each other from
working for a New Mexico video production company called Sunrise Video
West.
  The two had kept in touch over the years as business associates, Terry
McDermott said.
  Hays said Mann's name came up during a "hallway discussion" she had with
Terry McDermott at a county function in 2004.
  "I told him what I wanted to do is provide free connectivity for the
schools, for health initiatives, for emergency services. He said, 'I know
someone who has been incredibly successful in getting grants.' ''
  Hays said she didn't get the idea the McDermotts and Mann were social
friends but said Terry McDermott told her he had incredible respect for
Mann.
  "He said, 'Jonathan is the kind of person, quite frankly, if something
happened to me, I would want him to raise my children, he's that ethical
of a person.' ''
  Mann and Hays talked for the first time subsequent to that conversation.
  In a recent telephone interview, Terry McDermott had a somewhat
different account, saying Hays never mentioned the broadband project at
the time.
  He recalled that Hays talked about a movie studio project and "she
wanted to know if there was somebody that I could help her with that could
bring more companies to the table."
  Though he never worked with Mann, McDermott said he knew of his work as
a business consultant.
  Both Mann and Terry McDermott say there was no "quid pro quo" for Mann
to hire his wife.

$220K in invoices
  Mann resigned from the Sandoval County broadband project in August 2006,
and, weeks later, the county formally removed AQV Inc. from the contract.
  About the same time, Betty Anne McDermott formed a company called
Sandoval Broadband Educational Services.
  "The county began working with Betty Anne directly because the county
was pleased with what she had done," Mann said.
  Financial documents on file with Sandoval County show that checks
written for the benefit of Betty Anne McDermott, Sandoval Broadband
Educational Services or McDermott Enterprises totaled $219,880.
  Terry McDermott said he didn't have the invoices but knows his wife
hired a number of contractors and subcontractors and didn't put the entire
$219,880 "in her pocket."
  Documents show at least $10,000 was reimbursement for supplies and at
least $13,500 went to fees charged by technology companies.
  Mann said Betty Anne McDermott "wasn't paid excessive at all for what
she did."
  Mann said he checked with Hays before hiring her and was told there was
no conflict of interest.
  Hays in an interview said she couldn't remember that discussion but said
McDermott's employment posed no problem.
  Hays said Betty Anne McDermott was initially hired as a spokeswoman for
the project and was Mann's "point person in Sandoval County since he was
actually out of Utah."
  Betty Anne McDermott eventually moved on to a role assessing the
computer needs of Sandoval County schools and "having meetings with
principals in helping to pull the initiative together," Hays added.
  Hays said the educational component of the broadband project is separate
from building the network and doesn't necessarily rely on the county's
planned high-speed Internet system to be up and running.
  The $80,000 bill involving McDermott's company was for work that could
someday allow students to take handheld computers home to further their
education.
  Hays said the handheld computer program is "still under construction."

Payment arrangement
  Contracts of $30,000 or more are required to be put to competitive bid
under the state procurement code.
  But Sandoval County instead paid McDermott in April by making the
$80,000 check out to Mann's consulting firm, AQV Inc.
  A March 20, 2007, invoice related to the work shows the letters "AQV" at
the top.
  It also states "work directed by SBES (Sandoval Broadband Education
Services), submitted within AQV contract with Sandoval County at the
request of the County."
  That was despite the fact that AQV Inc. had been formally removed as the
primary contractor on the project six months earlier.
  Mann said in the phone interview that he "didn't invoice the county for
that money. I was simply not involved at that point."
  He referred a reporter to Betty Anne McDermott and Hays.
  Hays said the payment arrangement was a means to pay Betty Anne
McDermott for work she had done. The invoice shows some tasks were still
in progress.
  The invoice listed $41,300 as administrative fees.
  Asked why the county didn't issue a separate contract to Betty Anne
McDermott, Hays replied: "Not for that amount, not without going out to
bid."
  Why was the check made out to AQV, Mann's company?
  "Because, quite frankly, she (McDermott) didn't want to go under Dandin
at that point," Hays said. "There were already problems with Dandin."
  Dandin is owned by Dewayne Hendricks, a California wireless design
engineer who headed the project after Mann left.
  The county contends Dandin is now in breach of his contract on the
project after he resigned in early May.
  Hays said she didn't know Betty Anne McDermott very well before the
broadband project.
  But Hays said she is "an incredibly talented woman who has been mostly
home raising kids, but she's had her own contractual services and work for
the television stations previously.
  "I can tell you Betty Anne didn't make any money on this project by the
time it's all gone out with regards to taxes and a number of other
things," Hays said.


Sunday, July 15, 2007

http://www.abqjournal.com/news/metro/578658metro07-15-07.htm

Broadband Project Players Weren't Vetted

By Colleen Heild
Copyright  2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Investigative Reporter
 The consultant who once headed the county's complex $3 million wireless
broadband project doesn't have a Web site.
  "I'm wonderfully low tech," said Jonathan Mann in a recent telephone
interview.
  Governments and many private sector businesses often perform "due
diligence" inquiries before hiring contractors.
  County Manager Debbie Hays told the Journal she researched Mann's
credentials and found they were "impeccable."
  Mann owns a Salt Lake City business consulting firm, AQV Inc.
  When asked for Mann's resume, county spokesman Gayland Bryant said the
county didn't have one and referred a reporter to a proposal Mann wrote in
2004 to create the county's broadband master plan.
  Mann spent 18 years as an "advisor/consultant to CEOs and business
owners" and listed six clients including Intel, the proposal said. The
five others were out of the country. No dates of work, phone numbers or
contacts were listed.
  It gave a number of New Mexico companies, but no dates or details about
the assignments.
  Mann also listed work in television and video production, including
winning an MTV Music Video of the Year. No dates or details were given.
  Mann's proposal gave no information about his education.
  Bryant said the county also had no resume on Dewayne Hendricks, a
California design engineer who replaced Mann on the project in 2006.
  Bryant said the county went to the Internet to check on Hendricks and
found he had worked on a wireless project in Tonga and serves on a Federal
Communications Commission advisory council.
  Hendricks resigned as head of the Sandoval Broadband project in May amid
a state auditor's inquiry into the project's finances. The county claims
Hendricks is in default of his contract.
  Hendricks, under the company name of Tetherless Access, is now helping
design a $12 million wireless broadband system for a group of 16
communities along the Vermont-New Hampshire border.
  Project manager Tom Joyce in a recent phone interview said Hendricks
started earlier this year and has fulfilled his commitments.
  "He has a big reputation, he's one of the best in the world for building
wireless systems," Joyce said.
  But heading up an entire wireless project?
  "I'd put my dog in charge of an operation because he'd bite you if you'd
stepped out of line. I wouldn't put Dewayne in there. He's nice," Joyce
said recently. "I'm the jerk that tells you it's due yesterday ... and
he's not that guy. He couldn't do that. I never thought of him that way."
  Joyce said it doesn't make sense to put someone living outside the state
in charge of a long-term project.
  "We would never hire a consultant or a contractor that's got other jobs
around to run a project. It's a 24/7 job."
  Hendricks did get an unusual plug from a former colleague at Sandoval
Broadband, Betty Anne McDermott of Rio Rancho.
  On the project's Web site in an article dated a year ago, she stated:
"Dewayne brings savoir-faire cutting edge. Without him there would not be
a Sandoval project."






From tom at jtjohnson.com  Fri Jul 20 13:13:20 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2007 14:13:20 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband Data Improvement Act
Message-ID: <e04090490707201313x3092467bpa24fde57a52de86b@mail.gmail.com>

>From ars technica
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070719-broadband-data-improvement-act-clears-senate-commerce-committee.html
Broadband Data Improvement Act clears Senate Commerce
Committee<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070719-broadband-data-improvement-act-clears-senate-commerce-committee.html>

By Nate Anderson <http://arstechnica.com/authors.ars/Nate+Anderson> |
Published: July 19, 2007 - 07:53PM CT

Congress has at last taken an interest in a seemingly arcane debate over the
metrics used by the FCC and is moving on the issue with surprising speed.
For years, geeks have criticized the way that the agency collects broadband
information, focusing especially on the fact that the bar for "broadband" is
set laughably low (200Kbps) and that if one person in a ZIP code has access,
then the entire ZIP code is considered "served." The Broadband Data
Improvement Act<http://commerce.senate.gov/public/_files/BROADBANDDATAIMPR1.pdf>(PDF)
hopes to remedy
some of these problems<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070525-new-senate-bill-pushes-for-second-generation-broadband.html>,
and it has just unanimously cleared the Senate Commerce Committee.
Related Stories

   - Senate committee passes bill to outlaw "fleeting"
f-bombs<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070720-senate-a-single-curse-word-is-one-too-many.html>
   - New Senate bill defines "second generation
broadband"<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070525-new-senate-bill-pushes-for-second-generation-broadband.html>
   - House Dems: Broadband isn't broadband unless it's
2Mbps<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070517-house-dems-broadband-isnt-broadband-unless-its-2-mbps.html>
   - FCC network neutrality comments due
tomorrow<http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070614-fcc-network-neutrality-comments-due-tomorrow.html>

 The bill, should it pass the broader Senate and House, would force the FCC
to make a couple of major changes to the way that it puts together its
broadband information. For one thing, the agency is directed to come up with
a new metric for "second generation broadband," defined as being the minimum
speed needed to stream full-motion, high-definition video.

The FCC also needs to get far more granular with its reporting, switching
from the use of simple ZIP codes to the far more specific ZIP+4 codes. That
may still not appease everyone, but it will greatly increase the quality of
data from large, yet sparsely populated areas that might share a zip, but
not the full ZIP+4. Arguably, it is these areas that need study the most.

The idea is that, unless policymakers have good data to work with, they are
likely to end up making poor policy. Passage of the bill out of committee
has already drawn praise from Free Press, one of the groups that has lobbied
hard for the bill and has appeared at committee hearings where it was
discussed.

Free Press policy director Ben Scott said, "For too long, policymakers have
been forced to operate in the dark, relying on misleading and sometimes
inaccurate information about the U.S. broadband market. By providing
detailed information about the deployment, availability and use of broadband
services in this country, the Broadband Data Improvement Act promises to
bring us one step closer to our shared goal of universal, affordable
broadband."

-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Sat Jul 21 11:46:00 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 21 Jul 2007 11:46:00 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Google Pushes for Rules to Aid Wireless Plans
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707211128230.13236-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Numerous articles are appearing daily, as the battle over the FCC's 700
MHz auction, scheduled for next year, heats up.   At stake are rival
approaches and interests, with the incumbents (AT&T, Verizon) wanting to
own and sell their new wireless services, vs Google leading the charge for
new 'open' wireless services.   Lots more to be played out over the coming
months, with lots at stake for end-users, communities, devices and service
providers.   This from today's NY Times.

July 21, 2007

Google Pushes for Rules to Aid Wireless Plans
By MIGUEL HELFT and STEPHEN LABATON

<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/21/technology/21google.html?
ex=1342670400&en=2a8a51ec5cb4daf2&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss>

If Google succeeds with federal regulators, it could change the way
millions of Americans use their cellphones and how they connect to
the Internet on their wireless devices.

In the Internet giant's view of the future, consumers would buy a
wireless phone at a store, but instead of being forced to use a
specific carrier, they would be free to pick any carrier they wanted.
Instead of the wireless carrier choosing what software goes on their
phones, users would be free to put any software they want on it.

Google believes that the cost of voice calls and data connections to
the Internet may be partly subsidized by advertisements brought to
users by Google's powerful online advertising machine.

There might even be a Google phone.

That vision, according to several analysts, is the reason Google said
yesterday that it would bid upward of $4.6 billion for a swath of the
nation's airwaves, which are set to be auctioned by the federal
government next year ? as long as certain conditions are met.

But Google's efforts to position itself on the side of the consumer
are also part of a fierce lobbying battle that pits it and other tech
companies against wireless carriers, who oppose conditions that
Google wants to set on the winners of the auction. Verizon Wireless
has called the conditions "corporate welfare for Google."  And AT&T
rejected Google's latest effort, calling it an "all or nothing
ultimatum."  The Federal Communications Commission chairman, Kevin
Martin, has come out squarely against two of Google's four proposed
conditions.

The F.C.C.'s rules governing the auction could shape the landscape
for the next generation of mobile telephones and wireless Internet use.

"When you go to Best Buy to buy a TV, they don't ask whether you have
cable or satellite," said Blair Levin, a former F.C.C. official who
is now an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus & Company. "When you buy a
computer, they don't ask what kind of Internet service you have, and
the computer can run any application or service. That doesn't exist
in the wireless world. That's where Google wants to go with this
auction."

Google has already invested millions of dollars in mobile phone
technology, in part, to develop a comprehensive set of software for
mobile devices that goes well beyond the mobile search and map
services it already offers. Rumors about a Google phone that would
provide easy access to the company's mobile services have been
persistent.

The company has been characteristically circumspect about its mobile
plans, and just this week, Eric E. Schmidt, Google's chief executive,
deflected questions from an analyst about plans for a mobile phone.
"We have looked pretty carefully at wireless and are thinking about
what we want to do there," Mr. Schmidt said.

But Mr. Schmidt stressed the importance to Google of a network where
anyone could plug in any device and have access to the full abilities
of the Internet. In such an environment, Mr. Schmidt noted, mobile
phone users would become significant consumers of online advertising,
Google's core business.

Google fears that some of its mobile efforts could be thwarted "or
prove less lucrative", if a handful of cellphone carriers continue to
dominate the wireless Internet world and retain the power to
determine what services and applications run on their networks.
Google's set of proposed rules would have the F.C.C. require that any
devices and any application could be connected to the wireless
network using the auctioned spectrum. Further, they would require
that whoever wins the spectrum make a portion of it available to
resellers on a wholesale basis, which Google and other technology
companies believe is necessary to promote broadband competition.

[snip]




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Tue Jul 24 12:34:39 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 13:34:39 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Ah,
	those nasty Frenchies. Beating us on broadband. Next it will be how
	they prepare potatoes
Message-ID: <e04090490707241234u73b2069fsef53606e5028e605@mail.gmail.com>

Paul Krugman | The French Connections
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/072407H.shtml
"According to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation,
 French broadband connections are, on average, more than three times as
 fast as ours. Japanese connections are a dozen times faster. Oh, and
 access is much cheaper in both countries than it is here," writes Paul
 Krugman of The New York Times.


July 21, 2007
Google Pushes for Rules to Aid Wireless Plans
By MIGUEL HELFT and STEPHEN LABATON
      If Google succeeds with federal regulators, it could change the way
millions of Americans use their cellphones and how they connect to the
Internet on their wireless devices.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/21/technology/21google.html?pagewanted=print


-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From editorsteve at gmail.com  Tue Jul 24 14:09:47 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 17:09:47 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Ah,
 those nasty Frenchies. Beating us on broadband. Next it will be
 how	they prepare potatoes
In-Reply-To: <e04090490707241234u73b2069fsef53606e5028e605@mail.gmail.com>
References: <e04090490707241234u73b2069fsef53606e5028e605@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <46A66A9B.5030707@gmail.com>

Krugman is right, but the story is really complicated. Until 
late last year, France was committed to ADSL, topping out at 
less than 20 Mbps and typically 12.

Not enough to deliver HDTV.

But Free and Illiad showed the way, and in a matter of 
months France Telecom committed to fiber to the home. Quick 
reaction to a changing economic landscape. remember, 
Verizon's 18-million-household US build alone would cover 
all of France with FTTH easily capable of 200 Mbps (if they 
chose to market it).

We, on the other hand, live in a country that can't figure 
out how to issue passports in a timely manner or rescue 
people from floods, let alone figure out a broadband policy.

BTW, Corning yesterday announced an amazing new fiber -- 
VERY bendable, and much cheaper than others in its class, 
both to buy and to deploy. Verizon stock went wild. The 
technical press is buzzing -- I did hours of reporting on it 
yesterday. The business part of CNN did a little story that 
covered the bases. Fair enough. Corning issued a minimal 
press release to keep from being accused of violating 
insider trading laws.

I didn't see a single newspaper article. Nada. Zip. Yet no 
development in the past year will affect the newspaper 
business more (by expanding the reach of broadband).

Come to think of it, the passport people and newspaper 
management seem to be cut from the same cloth.

Google corning nanostructure to get more info.

Steven S. Ross
Editor-in-Chief
Broadband Properties
steve at broadbandproperties.com
www.bbpmag.com, www.killerapp.com
SKYPE: editorsteve
+1 781-284-8810
+1 646-216-8030 fax
+1 201-456-5933 mobile

Tom Johnson wrote:
> 
> 
> Paul Krugman | The French Connections
> 
> http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/072407H.shtml
> "According to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation,
>  French broadband connections are, on average, more than three times as
>  fast as ours. Japanese connections are a dozen times faster. Oh, and
> 
>  access is much cheaper in both countries than it is here," writes 
> Paul
>  Krugman of 
> The New York Times.
> 
> 
> July 21, 2007  
> Google Pushes for Rules to Aid Wireless Plans  
> By MIGUEL HELFT and STEPHEN LABATON        
>       If Google succeeds with federal regulators, it could change the 
> way millions of Americans use their cellphones and how they connect to 
> the Internet on their wireless devices.
> http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/21/technology/21google.html?pagewanted=print
> 
> 
> -- tj
> ==========================================
> J. T. Johnson
> Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
> www.analyticjournalism.com <http://www.analyticjournalism.com>
> 505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
> http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us 
> <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.us>
> 
> "You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
> To change something, build a new model that makes the
> existing model obsolete."
>                                                    -- Buckminster Fuller
> ==========================================
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm


From editorsteve at gmail.com  Tue Jul 24 14:16:40 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 17:16:40 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Corning release
In-Reply-To: <e04090490707241234u73b2069fsef53606e5028e605@mail.gmail.com>
References: <e04090490707241234u73b2069fsef53606e5028e605@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <46A66C38.30902@gmail.com>

Corning Announces Breakthrough Optical Fiber Technology

Performs over 100 times better than standard single-mode fiber
Working closely with Verizon on FTTH installation challenges

CORNING, N.Y. ?? Corning Incorporated (NYSE:GLW) today 
announced the development of a new optical fiber-based 
technology that solves an historic technical challenge for 
telecommunications carriers installing fiber-to-the-home 
(FTTH) networks.

Corning?s breakthrough is based on a nanoStructures? optical 
fiber design that allows the cabled fiber to be bent around 
very tight corners with virtually no signal loss.  These 
improved attributes will enable telecommunications carriers 
to economically offer true high-speed Internet, voice and 
HDTV services to virtually all commercial and residential 
(apartment and condominium) buildings.  Current optical 
fiber installations lose signal strength and effectiveness 
when bent around corners and routed through a building, 
making it difficult and expensive to run fiber all the way 
to customers? homes.

?This is a game-changing technology for telecommunications 
applications,? said Peter F. Volanakis, president and chief 
operating officer at Corning.  ?We have developed an optical 
fiber cable that is as rugged as copper cable but with all 
of the bandwidth benefits of fiber.  By making fundamental 
changes in the way light travels in the fiber, we were able 
to create a new optical fiber that is over 100 times more 
bendable than standard fibers.?  Corning?s newest fiber 
technology achieves this while maintaining compatibility 
with industry performance standards, existing manufacturing 
processes and installation procedures.  ?So, customers don?t 
have to sacrifice one benefit to get another,? he said.

?There are more than 680 million apartment homes worldwide, 
including more than 25 million in the United States.  The 
high cost of installation and difficulty in delivering fiber 
to the home made this market unappealing to most providers. 
  We have been working closely with these carriers to create 
a solution that will make this more economically viable for 
them and for their customers,? he said.


One of the early proponents of this emerging technology was 
Verizon Communications Inc.  In February of this year, 
Corning and Verizon commissioned a joint working team to 
solve the problems of multiple dwelling unit installation 
using this new fiber solution.  ?Continued innovation in 
advanced telecommunications networks is critical to the 
long-term success of Verizon and our ability to provide our 
FiOS service on a mass scale in the United States,? said 
Paul Lacouture, executive vice president of Engineering and 
Technology, Verizon Telecom Group.  ?We are working closely 
with Corning to solve the challenges of providing fiber 
solutions to high-rise apartment complexes across the United 
States.  This fiber technology will enable us to bring 
faster Internet speeds, higher-quality high-definition 
content, and more interactive capabilities than any other 
platform which exists today.?

Corning first introduced low-loss optical fiber in the early 
1970s.  Optical fibers are waveguides that transmit light 
within the fiber?s central region, or core.  However, with 
standard single-mode fiber, tight bends cause leakage of the 
light, resulting in signal loss or optical power 
degradation.  A bend or curve that is too tight will result 
in total signal loss.  With Corning?s new nanoStructures 
design, the optical fiber maintains its signal strength when 
bent or curved, with performance results 100 times better 
than standard single-mode fibers.  The new fiber also 
enables simpler and more aesthetically pleasing designs for 
the cable, hardware and equipment used in the deployment.

Corning will introduce a full suite of optical fiber, cable 
and hardware and equipment solutions based on its 
nanoStructures technology platform this fall at the 
Fiber-to-the-Home Conference in Orlando, Fla., Sept. 30 ? 
Oct. 4.
About Corning Incorporated
Corning Incorporated (www.corning.com) is the world leader 
in specialty glass and ceramics.  Drawing on more than 150 
years of materials science and process engineering 
knowledge, Corning creates and makes keystone components 
that enable high-technology systems for consumer 
electronics, mobile emissions control, telecommunications 
and life sciences.  Our products include glass substrates 
for LCD televisions, computer monitors and laptops; ceramic 
substrates and filters for mobile emission control systems; 
optical fiber, cable, hardware & equipment for 
telecommunications networks; optical biosensors for drug 
discovery; and other advanced optics and specialty glass 
solutions for a number of industries including 
semiconductor, aerospace, defense, astronomy and metrology.
(more)


Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements that 
involve a variety of business risks and other uncertainties 
that could cause actual results to differ materially.  These 
risks and uncertainties include the possibility of changes 
in global economic and political conditions; currency 
fluctuations; product demand and industry capacity; 
competition; manufacturing efficiencies; cost reductions; 
availability of critical components and materials; new 
product  commercialization; changes in the mix of sales 
between premium and non-premium products;  new plant 
start-up costs; possible disruption in commercial activities 
due to terrorist activity, armed conflict, political 
instability or major health concerns; adequacy of insurance; 
equity company activities; acquisition and divestiture 
activities; the level of excess or obsolete inventory; the 
rate of technology change; the ability to enforce patents; 
product and components performance issues; stock price 
fluctuations; and adverse litigation or regulatory 
developments.  Additional risk factors are identified in 
Corning?s filings with the Securities and Exchange 
Commission.  Forward-looking statements speak only as of the 
day that they are made, and Corning undertakes no obligation 
to update them in light of new information or future events.


Steven S. Ross
Editor-in-Chief
Broadband Properties
steve at broadbandproperties.com
www.bbpmag.com, www.killerapp.com
SKYPE: editorsteve
+1 781-284-8810
+1 646-216-8030 fax
+1 201-456-5933 mobile

Tom Johnson wrote:
> 
> 
> Paul Krugman | The French Connections
> 
> http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/072407H.shtml
> "According to the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation,
>  French broadband connections are, on average, more than three times as
>  fast as ours. Japanese connections are a dozen times faster. Oh, and
> 
>  access is much cheaper in both countries than it is here," writes 
> Paul
>  Krugman of 
> The New York Times.
> 
> 
> July 21, 2007  
> Google Pushes for Rules to Aid Wireless Plans  
> By MIGUEL HELFT and STEPHEN LABATON        
>       If Google succeeds with federal regulators, it could change the 
> way millions of Americans use their cellphones and how they connect to 
> the Internet on their wireless devices.
> http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/21/technology/21google.html?pagewanted=print
> 
> 
> -- tj
> ==========================================
> J. T. Johnson
> Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
> www.analyticjournalism.com <http://www.analyticjournalism.com>
> 505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
> http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us 
> <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.us>
> 
> "You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
> To change something, build a new model that makes the
> existing model obsolete."
>                                                    -- Buckminster Fuller
> ==========================================
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm


From rl at radlab.com  Thu Jul 26 20:28:23 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 26 Jul 2007 20:28:23 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] More humor " there really is a BROADBAND "
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707262023240.28912-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Forwarded message from Pete <pete at ideapete.com>

http://www.savetheinternet.com/broadband.html

 I wonder if there is a first mile singing group

 ( : ( : pete





From rl at radlab.com  Fri Jul 27 20:08:38 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 27 Jul 2007 20:08:38 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Web discussion on nation' broadband future
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707272004560.5359-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

For the last four evenings, there has been a very (surprisingly)
informative online discussion on national broadband technologies,
strategies and policies, led by Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, with a
number of invited 'expert' participants and open pubic exchange.   Tonight
was the last of formal discussions, though the exchange is expected to go
on over coming days, yet.

Log on to:  http://openleft.com/tag.do?tag=legislation+2.0
for tonight's session, and to find links to the previous evenings topics
and sessions.    The opening statement follows:

Live Blog Here at 7pm ET
by: Matt Stoller
Fri Jul 27, 2007 at 19:00:00 PM EDT

Building out broadband access to everyone in America is not a simple
topic, but as Jim Baller notes, the the need for a national broadband
strategy in the context of global economic trends is clear.  Just what is
broadband?  Is it current DSL speeds in the US, or 100MB connections like
we see in Korea?  How can we close the rural divide, and bring full
broadband access to those in public housing?

There are some interesting public-private partnerships at, and we have
Paul Morris of the Utah-based fiber network UTOPIA on how government
policy can support such work.  And then, of course, there's the issue of
money.  The Universal Service Fund, the Department of Agriculture, and HUD
are all possible places where money for universal access can be found.
John Windhausen writes on full deployment and the Universal Service Fund,
and Waldo McMillan at One Economy Corporation disussed his organization's
'Broadband in Public Housing' initiative through HUD. And finally, Andrew
McNeill of Connect Kentucky described his  telecom-backed private-public
program, and how it should be expanded to the rest of the country.

The live-blog should be interesting.  To be honest, I'm quite skeptical of
McNeill's broad claims.  John Windhausen pointed out that real deployment
is going to cost $2000 per household, and the idea that there's a free
lunch out there, where industry will pay for full deployment, seems like a
stretch.  I'd like to see McNeill and Windhausen discuss where they agree,
and where they don't.

Building out infrastructure in broadband is core to America's future.  How
it happens, or doesn't, is something that should concern us all.

Discuss :: (84 Comments) at:
http://openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=451


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Sun Jul 29 23:02:05 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2007 00:02:05 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 2007 Digital Pathways Conference, 8/6/2007,
Message-ID: <e04090490707292302g3b2de619hafb5341d2a1fe580@mail.gmail.com>

  Title:   2007 Digital Pathways Conference   Date:   Monday August 6, 2007
Time:   All Day Repeats:

Next reminder:

Location:
http://distance.nmsu.edu/digital_pathways/2007_conference/index.html Notes:
  2007 Digital Pathways Conference Facilitating Distance Education for
American Indian Communities
Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute, Albuquerque, New Mexico
August 6-7, 2007
<http://calendar.yahoo.com/YYY,c81f85/?v=75>
 Copyright (c) 2007  Yahoo! Inc. <http://www.yahoo.com> All Rights
Reserved | Terms
of Service <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> | Privacy
Policy<http://privacy.yahoo.com/privacy/us>


-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Mon Jul 30 10:45:08 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 30 Jul 2007 10:45:08 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 2007 Digital Pathways Conference, 8/6-7/2007
In-Reply-To: <e04090490707292302g3b2de619hafb5341d2a1fe580@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707301025400.16216-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Tom,
Thanks for the reminder about the Digital Pathways Conference, which was
first noted on this list a couple of weeks ago.

For those that are interested, the opening keynote for the conference, on
Monday morning, the 6th, will be by Frank Odasz, a long-time friend and
champion of rural community networking and online learning.   Frank was a
pioneer in this arena, networking the one room schoolhouses in Montana, in
the pre-Internet BBS days of the late 80s and early 90s: "Big Sky
Telegraph".   I'll be meeting with Frank after his presentation on
the 6th, in Albuquerque, and if anyone on this list is interested, please
join us to talk about rural opportunities and issues here in NM.
Following is a short description from Frank, about his presentation, with
links to his web site.
-----------

Frank Odasz     http://lone-eagles.com/new.htm

Typical Presentations:
Using Technology to Inform and Support Teachers
                                     Presentation Description:
Frank Odasz, president of Lone Eagle Consulting, will share his 20 years
experience mentoring educators online. While the evolution of new
technologies has accelerated, many of the human aspects of online
mentoring have remained the same. This presentation will share lessons
learned with online mentoring, and will address the importance of
supporting teachers as innovators - if they are to produce students who
can help the U.S. lead in global competitiveness. Trends in broadband
distance learning related science, math, and technology education will
be addressed.

Lone Eagle Resources
http://lone-eagles.com/future-proofing.htm

Educating Native American, Alaskan, and Hawaiian Students
                                     Presentation Description:
Narrowing the achievement gap for indigenous students requires addressing
basic motivation in a community and cultural context as well as leveraging
students innate interest in the new digital communications mediums. This
presentation will address applying constructivist concepts, where students
are in charge of building their own knowledge, with new models for
project-based learning and international multiclassroom projects. Alaskan
Native and International Indigenous broadband applications will be
addressed.

Presenter Frank Odasz, Lone Eagle Consulting,
http://lone-eagles.com


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Tue Jul 31 15:09:41 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 15:09:41 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] F.C.C. Approves Airwave Sale Rules
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707311506410.11287-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


F.C.C. Approves Airwave Sale Rules

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 5:05 p.m. ET  July 31, 2007

<http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/washington/AP-Airwaves-Auction.html?
_r=1&hp&oref=slogin>

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FCC approved rules Tuesday intended to give
people more choice on their cell phones and wireless devices after a
pivotal airwaves auction next year.

The vote clears the way for the auction, which is expected to raise
as much as $15 billion.

The Federal Communications Commission approved a much-debated ''open
access'' provision, pushed by Chairman Kevin Martin, a Republican,
and supported by the agency's two Democrats, that will allow
customers to use whatever phone and software they want on about one-
third of the spectrum to be auctioned.

A more ambitious provision that would have required a licensee to
sell access to its network on a wholesale basis was not included in
the rules. That makes it unlikely that Google Inc. will bid. Google
had been expected to challenge traditional wireless companies if the
rules had been favorable.

The rules also will allow for the creation of a shared public safety
network that commissioners hope will solve many of the communication
problems that firefighters and other first responders have
experienced during disasters like the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The vote was not unanimous. Republican Commissioner Robert McDowell
dissented on the open access provision, his first ''no'' vote since
joining the commission. Republican Deborah Taylor Tate also expressed
concerns about the provision, but she did not oppose it.

The two Democrats, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, would have
preferred that the rules had included the wholesale concept sought by
Google and consumer groups. Still, they ended up supporting the final
rules.

The text of the rules was not released at Tuesday's meeting. The
language in the document ultimately will determine which investors
will commit billions of dollars to develop new wireless networks and
which may not bid at all.

The spectrum to be auctioned has been praised for its ability to
travel long distances and penetrate walls easily -- the same
characteristics that made it attractive to broadcasters who are
vacating it to make way for all-digital television.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the auction's proceeds will
amount to between $10 billion and $15 billion.

A total of 62 megahertz will be auctioned under the new band plan.
Twenty-two megahertz will be subjected to the ''open access'' rules
being pushed by Martin. Another 10 megahertz will be dedicated to the
national public safety network, which will be shared between a
commercial operator and public safety agencies.

Martin said he tried to ''strike an appropriate balance'' with the
new rules, noting the criticism from his fellow commissioners.

Copps said that by failing to adopt a wholesale provision, the
commission ''misses an important opportunity to bring a robust and
badly needed third broadband pipe into American homes.''

While the Democrats thought the rules didn't go far enough, the two
Republicans on the commission felt they went too far.

McDowell was concerned the rules would impose too much control on the
wireless industry.

Last April, Martin described the auction as the last best opportunity
to introduce a ''third pipe'' competitor to the world of high-speed
Internet access, which is largely dominated by cable and telephone
companies.

Public interest groups, later joined by Internet search engine giant
Google, argued that the best way to ensure that a third-pipe
competitor would emerge was to reserve some of the spectrum for use
by a wholesaler.

Google even said it might bid if such a condition were imposed. A
wholesale requirement would have discouraged big cable and telephone
companies -- who would be unlikely to lease space on the new network
to potential competitors -- from bidding.

The spectrum will be occupied by television broadcasters until
February 2009. The winning bidder or bidders then have to ''build
out'' the network. This could take several years and billions of
dollars.




From rl at radlab.com  Tue Jul 31 15:15:11 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 15:15:11 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Governor Announces 'Broadband Ohio' Initiative
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707311509470.11287-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

As the federal government stalls on any comprehensive broadband policies
or initiatives, we are seeing more states taking the lead on meeting their
economic, education, healthcare, governance and rural broadband needs.
What about New Mexico?
rl
----------------------

Governor Announces 'Broadband Ohio' Initiative
Creates Ohio Broadband Council to Coordinate Network Efforts

COLUMBUS, Ohio - July 27, 2007 -Governor Ted Strickland today issued an
executive order announcing the Broadband Ohio initiative to extend the
reach of Ohio's broadband resources, further Ohio's leadership in network
innovation and improve technology access for all citizens throughout the
state.

Ohio's economic future relies on our ability to compete in a high-speed,
high-tech global marketplace, Strickland said. The Ohio Broadband Council
will partner with the public and private sectors to help make sure that
every Ohioan has viable access to affordable, high-speed Internet service,
regardless of where they live, work or learn.

The Broadband Ohio executive order pairs higher education's OSCnet
(formerly the Third Frontier Network) with the Next Generation Network
(NextGen Network), a new state and local government network being
developed by acquiring available bandwidth from OSCnet.
The order also creates the Ohio Broadband Council to serve as the
coordinating body for Broadband Ohio and to provide oversight of the
initiative from a policy, procedure, process and development standpoint.
The Ohio Broadband Council will be co-chaired by Ohio's chief information
officer and the executive director of the Ohio Supercomputer Center.

The NextGen Network has been created to consolidate and improve broadband
service delivery to state and local government, underserved populations,
county and city network rings, economic development, public safety, courts
and public/private initiatives. Ohio's Office of Information Technology
will manage the NextGen Network.

The Ohio Supercomputer Center will continue to manage OSCnet, providing
connectivity and computing resources to K-12 education, colleges and
universities, hospitals, public broadcasting stations and local, state and
federal research centers. Neither OSCnet nor NextGen Network will provide
retail broadband connectivity, but, rather, improve the business case for
telecommunications firms to further expand their services to unserved and
underserved regions of the state.

The Ohio Supercomputer Center has pioneered the development of OSCnet -
the nation's leading statewide fiber-optic communications network, said
Stanley C. Ahalt, executive director of the center. The technical design
of OSCnet allows for the addition of the NextGen Network and sufficient
capacity to serve all the future bandwidth needs of all of its current
clients. The resulting integrated statewide network infrastructure will be
unmatched in service to the state and considered a model for the rest of
the nation.

OSCnet, launched in November 2004, focuses on innovation, research,
education and economic competitiveness, according to Ahalt. The Ohio
Supercomputer Center staff and OSCnet clients will continue to develop and
deploy new technology that focuses on the retention, enhancement and
attraction of high-quality jobs to Ohio.

A renewed focus on service to industry and job creation has resulted in
OSC initiatives such as Blue Collar Computing and the Ralph Regula School
of Computational Science. Blue Collar Computing is a nationally recognized
endeavor to supply high-performance computing to small- and medium-sized
industries that do not have the time, capital or expertise to invest in
supercomputing resources. The Ralph Regula School is a collaborative
project of the center and several colleges and universities to instruct
students in advanced computer modeling and simulation, which industries
use to solve complex business, technical and academic research problems.

Leveraging the 1,850 miles of optical fiber OSCnet infrastructure, the
dual network backbone is powered by optical switches that provide almost
limitless bandwidth over a single pair of fibers. Improved service and
significant cost avoidance will quickly be realized as the state
transitions from current more-expensive leasing arrangements.

Additional information about the Ohio Broadband Council and Broadband Ohio
can be found on the web at http://www.ohiobroadbandcouncil.org
or by calling 1-888-672-6382.

OSCnet Technical Notes: OSCnet, launched in November 2004 as the Third
Frontier Network, is a statewide, superscale, fiber-optic
telecommunications network. Using different frequencies of light
(lambdas), the 1,850-mile OSCnet backbone can support 32 independent
optical networks up to OC-192 (Sonet) transport to 10-gigabit Ethernet
speeds. OSCnet utilizes the IP network protocol, but also can implement
other protocols, such as SANS and native HDTV. The network uses Dense Wave
Division Multiplexing with ITU Grid frequencies, as well as ITU G.709
transport protocol specification. At its launch, OSCnet was the largest
implementation of Cisco 15454 transponder service in the world.

Ohio Supercomputer Center: Celebrating 20 years of service, the Ohio
Supercomputer Center (OSC) is a catalytic partner of Ohio universities and
industries that provides a reliable high performance computing and high
performance networking infrastructure for a diverse statewide/regional
community including education, academic research, industry, and state
government. Funded by the Ohio Board of Regents, OSC promotes and
stimulates computational research and education in order to act as a key
enabler for the state's aspirations in advanced technology, information
systems, and advanced industries. For additional information, visit
http://www.osc.edu






From rl at radlab.com  Tue Jul 31 15:21:54 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 15:21:54 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] RuralTeleCon '07, Springfield, IL
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0707311515200.11287-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Following is a short update announcement on the Oct. 14-17 Rural
Telecommunications Congress, to be held in Springfield, IL.
I will be making an invited presentation on the 1st-Mile New Mexico
Initiative, at the conference, and am working (off list) to try and have
New Mexico host the Oct. 2008 conference.   Stay tuned for updates.   If
interested in helping to make this happen, please be in contact directly.
rl
----------

Capturing the Promise is the theme of RuralTelecon '07
http://www.rtcconference.org

As the Rural Telecommunications Congress celebrates its 10th anniversary
conference it is also time to debate how broadband telecommunications can
be designed/developed to reach its full potential. Those who have attended
past RuralTelecon conferences will recall an intimate atmosphere that for
three days offers the chance to discuss issues and ideas with speakers and
other conference participants.

RuralTelecon '07 is focusing these opportunities on methods and issues
that can help practitioners and communities reach the real promise of
broadband.

    * Monday (Oct. 15th) opens with one of the most engaging and energetic
professionals in the telecom industry. Matt Wenger of PacketFront, who
last year presented broadband issues in a Who Wants to Be a Millionaire
format, will kickoff the conference and set the stage for important topics
of discussion.
      Policy wonks won't want to miss Monday's debate between Becca Vargo
Daggett and Christopher Mitchell on infrastructure ownership.
    * Tuesday (Oct. 16th) begins with RTC's tradition of Communities of
Interest facilitated breakout sessions that each year identifies best
practice projects and sets direction for efforts that affect broaband
deployment.
    * Researchers will again spend three days in special sessions
targeting discussions around methods and areas of interest that link
broadband to community and economic development as well as sustainability
models.
    * Wednesday (Oct. 17th) continues with best practice examples of
Capturing the Promise, transformational discussions and a keynote from
Hilda Legg who has for years shared her comprehensive vision of the
promise created by broadband.

Join us for the dialog and intimate atmosphere of RuralTelecon '07 in
Springfield, Illinois.
The conference web site is filling out and is located at
http://www.rtcconference.org


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Aug  3 09:51:44 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 3 Aug 2007 09:51:44 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Qwest: Santa Fe DSL Update
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708030949280.20131-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


More residents get high-speed Internet access
www.santafenewmexican.com/news/65923.html

By Wendy Brown | The New Mexican
wbrown at sfnewmexican.com
August 2, 2007

More than 500 Santa Fe residents in the areas of Old Pecos Trail and Los
Sueos Trail are among those in the state reaping the benefits of Qwest's
$270 million settlement with the state Public Regulation Commission.

The company extended high-speed Internet access to remote terminals on
those roads in April, May and June, according to a progress report the
company filed this week.

Increasing the number of Qwest customers in New Mexico with high-speed
Internet access is one of the top priorities in the company's 2006
settlement with the commission. And the company outlined other high-speed
Internet plans in this week's report.

Although Qwest officials had given up on providing high-speed Internet
access to Chupadero, a small community north of Tesuque, officials are
reconsidering that decision, the report says.
The company might be able to provide the service to Chupadero with a new
radio technology, the report said.

Since the company began spending the settlement money in February, Qwest's
central offices in Angel Fire, Amber Mesa, La Mesa and Santa Teresa have
received high-speed Internet service, the report says. Central offices
with high-speed service are able to provide customers with that service.

The company expects to deploy high-speed Internet services to the
remaining 18 offices on the company's list in the next 12 months, the
report says.

Eldorado is included on the list of places to receive high-speed Internet
services, but there is no set deployment date. The company will not
release the deployment date until it is just about to happen, said Gary
Younger, a Qwest spokesman.

In all, the company plans to provide high-speed Internet service to 13
remote terminals in Santa Fe with the settlement money. Remote terminals
help the company expand service beyond the company's central offices.

Younger said the company expects to provide high-speed Internet access to
two more Santa Fe remote terminals soon, and that will provide the service
to hundreds of more customers. Younger said he could not provide more
details about where the terminals are located.

The availability rate for broadband should be up to 73 percent for the
state's Qwest customers by the end of 2007, the report says. That is up
from an original rate of 69.7 percent. The final goal is 83 percent.

As for the big picture, the company more than tripled the amount of money
it spent it the first quarter, but is $17.4 million behind on keeping up
with the average the company must spend per month to comply with its $258
million investment requirement by 2010.

Younger, however, said that is to be expected because the company is in
the phase of planning and gathering resources for the settlement's
projects. We're on track, said Younger. We're going to meet all our
targets.

The company spent $3.06 million in the first quarter and more than tripled
that amount to $10.07 million in the second quarter, according to Qwest.

John Arnold, spokesman for the commission, said it is reviewing Qwest's
report and does not have a comment on it yet. The PRC expects to have
Qwest officials present the second quarter numbers at a commission
meeting, but hasn't set a date yet, he said.

When the company released its first-quarter results in May, commissioners
did not express concern about the low investment number, which represented
two month's worth of information.
Brian Harris, a telecommunications lawyer with the state Attorney
General's Office, said the office is keeping an eye on the numbers as they
come in, but he does not think there is cause for concern over Qwest's
progress so far.

The company has three years to spend the money, Harris said, and it takes
time to plan telecommunications projects.

The commission approved the settlement agreement in December, ending
ongoing litigation over a 2005 promise the company made to invest $788
million in New Mexico's telecommunications system.

----------
Qwest spending in New Mexico since Feb. 1
Five investment categories were listed in a settlement with state
regulators:

o High-speed Internet deployment: $6.93 million
o Diverse telecommunications routes: $140,174
o Cable improvements: $709,237
o Advanced telecommunications technology projects: $3.71 million
o Network improvement: $1.63 million

o Total: $13.1 million
o Spending required by July 31, 2010: $258 million

Source: Qwest


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From bob at bobknight.net  Fri Aug  3 11:32:23 2007
From: bob at bobknight.net (Bob Knight)
Date: Fri, 03 Aug 2007 12:32:23 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Qwest: Santa Fe DSL Update
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708030949280.20131-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708030949280.20131-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <46B374B7.4090102@bobknight.net>

Interesting. Speeds and pricing for each tier? Is it symmetric (doubtful)?

LCWA is installing its DS-3 (45 megabits symmetric) in the next two weeks. The membership 
fees will remain at $30 per month. We'll also be working to ensure our backbones are 
running as fast as possible. With 802.11a channel bonding, that's 108 megabits nominal, 
100 observed on some links. Without, 54 megabits, 48+ observed. There are customer premise 
equipment (CPE) limitations to 3 megabits for some, but upgrades are fairly inexpensive 
and will deliver 7+ megabits. That's 802.11b. If a member wants to go to 11a, there are 
some caveats, but they should be able to see in excess of 15-20 megabits near the network 
edge, presuming a clean backbone path.

While some of our technology may eventually be supplanted by WiMax, I don't think the 
business model will, unless national or global service is a requirement.

Not for everyone, but it works for many people.

Bob
President, La Canada Wireless Association

Richard Lowenberg wrote:
> More residents get high-speed Internet access
> www.santafenewmexican.com/news/65923.html
> 
> By Wendy Brown | The New Mexican
> wbrown at sfnewmexican.com
> August 2, 2007
> 
> More than 500 Santa Fe residents in the areas of Old Pecos Trail and Los
> Sueos Trail are among those in the state reaping the benefits of Qwest's
> $270 million settlement with the state Public Regulation Commission.
> 
> The company extended high-speed Internet access to remote terminals on
> those roads in April, May and June, according to a progress report the
> company filed this week.
> 
> Increasing the number of Qwest customers in New Mexico with high-speed
> Internet access is one of the top priorities in the company's 2006
> settlement with the commission. And the company outlined other high-speed
> Internet plans in this week's report.
> 
> Although Qwest officials had given up on providing high-speed Internet
> access to Chupadero, a small community north of Tesuque, officials are
> reconsidering that decision, the report says.
> The company might be able to provide the service to Chupadero with a new
> radio technology, the report said.
> 
> Since the company began spending the settlement money in February, Qwest's
> central offices in Angel Fire, Amber Mesa, La Mesa and Santa Teresa have
> received high-speed Internet service, the report says. Central offices
> with high-speed service are able to provide customers with that service.
> 
> The company expects to deploy high-speed Internet services to the
> remaining 18 offices on the company's list in the next 12 months, the
> report says.
> 
> Eldorado is included on the list of places to receive high-speed Internet
> services, but there is no set deployment date. The company will not
> release the deployment date until it is just about to happen, said Gary
> Younger, a Qwest spokesman.
> 
> In all, the company plans to provide high-speed Internet service to 13
> remote terminals in Santa Fe with the settlement money. Remote terminals
> help the company expand service beyond the company's central offices.
> 
> Younger said the company expects to provide high-speed Internet access to
> two more Santa Fe remote terminals soon, and that will provide the service
> to hundreds of more customers. Younger said he could not provide more
> details about where the terminals are located.
> 
> The availability rate for broadband should be up to 73 percent for the
> state's Qwest customers by the end of 2007, the report says. That is up
> from an original rate of 69.7 percent. The final goal is 83 percent.
> 
> As for the big picture, the company more than tripled the amount of money
> it spent it the first quarter, but is $17.4 million behind on keeping up
> with the average the company must spend per month to comply with its $258
> million investment requirement by 2010.
> 
> Younger, however, said that is to be expected because the company is in
> the phase of planning and gathering resources for the settlement's
> projects. We're on track, said Younger. We're going to meet all our
> targets.
> 
> The company spent $3.06 million in the first quarter and more than tripled
> that amount to $10.07 million in the second quarter, according to Qwest.
> 
> John Arnold, spokesman for the commission, said it is reviewing Qwest's
> report and does not have a comment on it yet. The PRC expects to have
> Qwest officials present the second quarter numbers at a commission
> meeting, but hasn't set a date yet, he said.
> 
> When the company released its first-quarter results in May, commissioners
> did not express concern about the low investment number, which represented
> two month's worth of information.
> Brian Harris, a telecommunications lawyer with the state Attorney
> General's Office, said the office is keeping an eye on the numbers as they
> come in, but he does not think there is cause for concern over Qwest's
> progress so far.
> 
> The company has three years to spend the money, Harris said, and it takes
> time to plan telecommunications projects.
> 
> The commission approved the settlement agreement in December, ending
> ongoing litigation over a 2005 promise the company made to invest $788
> million in New Mexico's telecommunications system.
> 
> ----------
> Qwest spending in New Mexico since Feb. 1
> Five investment categories were listed in a settlement with state
> regulators:
> 
> o High-speed Internet deployment: $6.93 million
> o Diverse telecommunications routes: $140,174
> o Cable improvements: $709,237
> o Advanced telecommunications technology projects: $3.71 million
> o Network improvement: $1.63 million
> 
> o Total: $13.1 million
> o Spending required by July 31, 2010: $258 million
> 
> Source: Qwest
> 
> 
> ------------------------------------------------
> Richard Lowenberg
> P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
> 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
> 
> New Mexico Broadband Initiative
> www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
> ------------------------------------------------
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
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From cohill at designnine.com  Fri Aug  3 11:51:56 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Fri, 3 Aug 2007 14:51:56 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Qwest: Santa Fe DSL Update
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708030949280.20131-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708030949280.20131-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <17C0B314-AA15-40A0-A4DD-70937879E606@designnine.com>


On Aug 3, 2007, at 12:51 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:

>
> More than 500 Santa Fe residents in the areas of Old Pecos Trail  
> and Los
> Sueos Trail are among those in the state reaping the benefits of  
> Qwest's
> $270 million settlement with the state Public Regulation Commission.
>
> The company extended high-speed Internet access to remote terminals on
> those roads in April, May and June, according to a progress report the
> company filed this week.
>

The problem, of course, is the liberal use of "high speed" in  
describing the upgrades, without really providing any context.  Qwest  
"high speed Internet access" is the miserably inadequate DSL  
service.  If you have been on dial up and are now getting DSL, it is  
a great improvement, but overall, the heavy investment in DSL does  
not prepare New Mexico for competition against other communities in  
the U.S. and other countries that are investing in open access and  
open services fiber systems with a typical 100x improvement in  
capacity over DSL.

Andrew


-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400







From rl at radlab.com  Tue Aug  7 09:15:09 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 2007 09:15:09 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] PacketFront Acquires DynamicCity
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708070907070.22771-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following just-released announcement is most important for the ongoing
development of 'open' fiber broadband in this country.   It also has
potential strategic significance for this 1st-Mile New Mexico Initiative,
and municipal projects being considered in this state.   Stay tuned for
updates and further details as they come in.   There are links to both
PacketFront and DynamicCity on the 1st-Mile web site's Resources page, as
well as informative articles on Open Service Provider (Fiber) Networks.
rl
------

www.packetfront.com/en/news_events/press_releases/2007/0015.html

Denver, CO // 2007-08-07
PacketFront Inc. announces acquisition of DynamicCity

PacketFront, the pioneer of open-access broadband networking, today
announced its US subsidiary, PacketFront Inc., has completed its
acquisition of DynamicCity, the operational force behind the
groundbreaking UTOPIA initiative.

"This acquisition is about taking the best thinking in North America on
open access broadband and public broadband initiatives and combining it
under one roof," said Matt Wenger, President of PacketFront Inc. "Our most
important product is our customer's success and we all know that
technology alone does not guarantee that. With the addition of the
DynamicCity team we can now offer the local experience, knowledge and
capacity our clients need to design, finance, build and manage
large-scale, successful open access networks."

Keith Wilson, former CEO of DynamicCity and now VP of Asset Management for
PacketFront Inc., concurs, "We are very enthusiastic about joining with
PacketFront. They have what are undisputedly the best tools and systems
for managing open, multi-provider networks. Combined with our asset
management experience and capabilities we can deliver the premier turn-key
solution for open networks in the marketplace. It is a positive move for
us and our customers."

"PacketFront's acquisition of DynamicCity is a truly exciting development
for the UTOPIA network," says Paul Morris, Executive Director of UTOPIA,
Utah's 14-city municipal open access fiber network. "Adding PacketFront's
open access technologies and global experience to DynamicCity's proven
track record of outstanding network operations and asset management is
just great news for us and our subscribers. We're looking forward to
taking our customer's network experience to the next level with this
world-class organization."

Partners of both companies will benefit as well, as the acquisition
enables PacketFront to expand on its opportunities aggressively. "A
successful open network is built on the work of tens if not hundreds of
companies," said Wenger. "Both PacketFront and DynamicCity have long
treasured our strong relations with our finance, design, engineering and
construction partners, other technology vendors, and of course the service
providers of data, voice, video and other innovative applications that
make our open networks so successful and unique. We look forward to
growing these strategic relationships further with our accelerating
expansion."

The company will integrate its operations in North America over the next
several months, with the Utah office emerging as the primary operations
center and the new Denver location serving as the Management and Sales
office.

About DynamicCity
DynamicCity is the operational force behind the groundbreaking UTOPIA
network, which was created by 14 cities in the state of Utah which joined
together to provide wholesale, open fiber network services to businesses
and residents. DynamicCity is also involved in various other projects
throughout the United States. DynamicCity provides cost & revenue analysis
and business plan creation services, as well as service provider
management, network design and consulting, network implementation and
construction management, and ongoing network operation services.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From granoff at zianet.com  Tue Aug 14 08:18:06 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2007 08:18:06 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Job Opportunity: Web/Internet Specialist for RDC
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070814081607.01b3dd68@zianet.com>

 From another list.

>The Regional Development Corporation (RDC) is looking for a
>Web/Internet Specialist.
>
>Please forward this notice to any persons or lists you believe are 
>appropriate.
>
>If you are anyone you know is interested in this consulting or staff
>position, please see the position description at
>http://www.rdcnm.org/JobOpportunities.aspx
>
>To apply please send cover letter and resume to: Ed Burkle at
>ed at rdcnm.org, 505-820-1226, or mail to RDC, 1010 Marquez Place, Santa
>Fe, NM 87506.
>
>The RDC is an equal employment opportunity company.
>
>The Regional Development Corporation is an Economic Development
>Organization in Santa Fe. It is a non-profit organization that has
>been in existence since 1996. The RDC promotes economic development
>activity in Northern New Mexico, primarily in the Counties of Los
>Alamos, Mora, Rio Arriba, San Miguel, Santa Fe and Taos.



From tom at jtjohnson.com  Thu Aug 16 14:43:58 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2007 15:43:58 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: AT&T censors Pearl Jam, then says it is sorry.
In-Reply-To: <203e4cf70708161302u4194abc7qd8ef3cf3e9103d89@mail.gmail.com>
References: <203e4cf70708161302u4194abc7qd8ef3cf3e9103d89@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490708161443x512ed82eo2ff779d8e37e87ac@mail.gmail.com>

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Steve Ross <editorsteve at gmail.com>
Date: Aug 16, 2007 2:02 PM
Subject: AT&T censors Pearl Jam, then says it is sorry.
To: Masha Zager <masha at broadbandproperties.com>, jtjohnson555 at gmail.com

Check this out on Net neutrality:

http://www.forbes.com/2007/08/09/att-pearljam-music-tech-cx_pco_0809paidcontent.html?partner=telecom_newsletter


-- 
Steve Ross
201-456-5933
781-284-8810
editorsteve at gmail.com


-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Aug 22 10:32:41 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 22 Aug 2007 11:32:41 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Looking for HP 9000
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070822112835.01d12d70@mail.zianet.com>


John also runs several rural bookmobile sites on behalf of the state 
library.  If you can help him out, please contact him directly.  Please 
feel free to post this to other lists.

Regards,

Marianne

>We have an HP 9000 server that we are hoping to retire by February or March.
>
>Due to the increase in maintenance from HP (some components are going end 
>of life this year) we chose not to renew the maintenance contract.
>
>Do you know of anyone in the state that has an HP 9000 that they would be 
>willing to give to the library so we could have it available for parts?
>
>Thanks,
>
>John
>
>+----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
>John Chadwick, Ed.D. Information Technology Manager
>New Mexico State Library
>1209 Camino Carlos Rey
>Santa Fe, NM 87507
>Phone: 505-476-9740  Cell: 505-629-8116 Fax: 505-476-9761
><mailto:john.chadwick at state.nm.us>john.chadwick at state.nm.us
>http://www.stlib.state.nm.us
>
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From tom at jtjohnson.com  Sun Aug 26 17:55:58 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:55:58 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] [MAPPING-CYBERSPACE] Web Trend Map 2007 and Wired
	Countries of the World map
In-Reply-To: <Pine.LNX.4.58.0708262220340.21152@asklater.com>
References: <Pine.LNX.4.58.0708262220340.21152@asklater.com>
Message-ID: <e04090490708261755o19a4bd92qeeb9b9d7e07f6d46@mail.gmail.com>

fyi

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: martin dodge <m.dodge at manchester.ac.uk>
Date: Aug 26, 2007 4:07 PM
Subject: [MAPPING-CYBERSPACE] Web Trend Map 2007 and Wired Countries of the
World map
To: MAPPING-CYBERSPACE at jiscmail.ac.uk

Hi, a couple of new(ish) and interesting cyber maps that I came across
this today.

Information Architects Japan's 'Web Trend Map 2007', a fascinating
reworking of the subway metaphor.
http://www.informationarchitects.jp/ia-trendmap-2007v2

World Information Access Project has put together a 'Wired Countries of
the World'
http://www.wiareport.org/wia_report_2007_map_only.pdf
( Further details at
http://www.wiareport.org/index.php/2007-briefing-booklet/ )

Not sure how workable the WIA 'wired' map really is, but it reminds me of
Nico Macdonald's 'Network Society' map from ten years,
http://www.spy.co.uk/Research/NetworkSocietyMap/index.html
http://www.spy.co.uk/Research/NetworkSocietyMap/NetworkSocietyMap.pdf

cheers
martin



-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Tue Aug 28 15:10:03 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2007 15:10:03 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Navajo Nation Councilman Leonard Tsosie Convenes
	Lambda Rail Meeting
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0708281503520.23957-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

NAVAJO NATION TRIBAL COUNCIL MEDIA RELEASE  ---  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
AUGUST 28, 2007

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Sarisesa Begay, PIO, Navajo Nation Office of the Speaker - 928-871- 6384
Colleen Keane, Internet to the Hogans Committee, 505-379-3315

On August 15th, Council Delegate Leonard Tsosie Convened the 10th Internet
to the Hogans meeting featuring The National Lambda Rail Agreement between
the University of New Mexico and Navajo Technical College

AN INTERNET TO THE HOGANS HISTORIC SIGNING

In front of a packed room of Navajo and non-Navajo engineers, scientists,
educators, health and telemedicine specialists, television producers and
community people at the University of New Mexico (UNM)  on Wednesday,
August 15, 2007, Dr. Elmer Guy, President of Navajo Technical College
(NTC) and Dr. Barney Maccabe, UNMs Chief Information Officer for the
Computer Science Department signed an agreement that brought NTC into a
national partnership made up of research universities and scientific
laboratories  The National Lambda Rail Partnership.
MORE INTEREST AND MORE SUPPORT!

NTC is a Navajo Nation owned and operated tribal college located in
Crownpoint, New Mexico located about 170 miles northwest of Albuquerque.
Like most Navajo communities, Crownpoint is surrounded by mountains and
has limited telecommunications. Most families dont even have telephones or
electricity. With the signing of the National Lambda Rail Agreement,
Crownpoint will have access to a second Internet system that runs parallel
to our everyday Internet connectivity on the World Wide Web. The signing
of the agreement on August 15th at UNM was an historic moment for both
Navajo Technical College and the University of New Mexico.

This agreement is important to bringing high speed Internet access and
state of the art communication to Navajo communities. Navajo Technical
College and Din College, (another major Navajo-owned and operated college)
will soon have abundant broadband access to students and faculty to
conduct research, just like mainstream institutions, Steve Grey, Chairman
of the Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, (NNTRC)
said.
 UNMs Dr. Maccabe agreed. The connectivity supported by this partnership
will allow faculty and students at both institutions to form virtual
communities where individuals can share their cultures and their
experiences. Students and faculty from Navajo Technical College and the
broader Navajo communities will be able to participate in UNM degree
programs in both the learning and instructional roles. UNM will, in turn,
increase enrollment in its degree programs and these programs will benefit
from the knowledge and experiences of instructors who choose to be located
on the Navajo Nation.

AUGUST 15th MEETING HOSTED BY UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

The Internet to the Hogans meeting on August 15th was hosted by the
University of New Mexicos University Libraries. The Dean of University
Libraries, Dr. Martha Bedard, welcomed everyone along with Mary Alice
Tsosie, the Outreach and Liaison Librarian for the Indigenous Nations
Library Program. Participants included: Mr. James Tutt, former President
of Navajo Technical College and currently the Executive Director of
Nizhoni Smiles, Inc.; Dr. Elmer Guy, the current President of Navajo
Technical College; Dr. Barney Maccabe, UNM; Sandra Begay-Campbell, former
UNM Regent; Jeanne Whitehouse and Mildred Walters, New Mexico Tribal
Libraries Program; Dean Tom Davis, Navajo Technical College; Nancy
Martine-Alonzo, Assistant Cabinet Secretary for the Indian Education
Division of the State of New Mexico; Dr. Maggie George and Dr. Veronica
Chavez-Newman, State of New Mexico Higher Education Department; Dr. Anita
Pfeiffer, UNM Professor Emeriti; Dr. Gregory Cajete, UNMs Director of the
Native American Studies Department; Dr. Gayle Dinechacon,  Director UNM
Center for Native American Health; Dr. Dale Alverson, Medical Director UNM
Center for Telehealth; Toney Begay, Executive Director of New Mexico MESA
and Brent Nelson, Director of Navajo Nations Department of Din Education.

THE HOGAN HEROES!

The Internet to the Hogans effort also has a growing group of reformers
known as the Hogan Heroes -- Native and non-Native people working
individually or through their organizations to develop digital services
and resources. Navajo language programming and streaming video, electronic
mentoring, academic courses, dental services, health services, cultural
story telling, training programs and technical services are some of the
resources the Hogan Heroes plan to provide to Navajo families and chapter
houses once the wireless system is in place. There are 110 Navajo chapter
houses - community meeting places - across the Navajo Nation, a Tribal
Nation that spans three states: Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.

Most of the people attending previous Internet to the Hogans meetings came
back together with several new people joining the effort. This was the
10th Internet to the Hogans meeting convened by Delegate Leonard Tsosie.
The participants came from departments of the Navajo Nation, departments
of UNM, the UNM Gallup Branch, Navajo Technical College, Sandia National
Laboratory, New Mexico State Tribal Library, Institute for American Indian
Education, National Network of Digital Schools and Native American
Television Network. New representation came from Din Department of
Education, UNM College of Education, New Mexico Higher Education
Department, New Mexico Indian Education Department, Navajo Nation DHR, UNM
Native American Studies, Fort Lewis College,  Nizhoni Smiles, Inc. and New
Mexico MESA.

MORE DEVELOPMENTS!

Like the National Lambda Rail Agreement between UNM and NTC, additional
formal partnerships are falling into place as ITTH people and
organizations find ways to address the digital divide for Native American
communities.  Recently, the Navajo Nation, Indian Health Services, Navajo
Technical College, UNMs Center for Telehealth and Din College created a
committee to coordinate telecommunications, distance learning and
telemedicine resources for the Navajo people, according to Steve Grey.
Council Delegate Tsosie, Steve Grey, Ernest Franklin, Jason Arviso,
Norbert Nez, Harold Skow, Pearl Lee, Elrena Mitchell, Sylvia Jordan and
Francesca Shiekh are among the Navajo Nation dignitaries and technology
experts who sit on the committee. UNM representation includes Dr. Barney
Maccabe, Moria Gerety and Dr. Dale Alverson.

This effort establishes the foundation for ongoing collaboration with
Native American Tribes and communities throughout New Mexico and the
Southwest. We are learning how we can best work together to serve the
health and education needs of Native people, starting with the Navajo
Nation, Dr. Alverson said.

Like other social movements - the Womens Movement and the Civil Rights
Movement - the Internet to the Hogans initiative started at the community
level; it is marked by significant and sometimes spontaneous growth; and
it has dynamic leadership that keeps it moving it forward.

More and more people are coming forward and asking how can we contribute
to the effort?  Support for this project is getting larger and larger as
you can see from the August 15th attendance. I would like to thank Council
Delegate Tsosie for leading this initiative, Jason Arviso, Director,
Technology Services, Navajo Technical College.

NEXT ITTH MEETING

Watch for an announcement about the next groundbreaking event for the
Internet to the Hogans  a demonstration of Internet connectivity at a
traditional Navajo Hogan in the community of Crownpoint, New Mexico.

AFTER TEN MAJOR ITTH GATHERINGS, HERE ARE SOME OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS TO
DATE:

In early 2000, under the leadership of President James Tutt, Crownpoint
Institute of Technology, (CIT) which is now known as Navajo Technical
College (NTC), receives initial funding from NASA to develop a wireless
grid for the Navajo Nation.

In 2005, State Senator Leonard Tsosie begins convening Internet to the
Hogans meetings to bring together scientists, engineers, educators, cell
and phone company representatives and community people to share resources.

In January, 2006, with sponsorship from Senator Leonard Tsosie, the State
of New Mexico provides more than one million dollars in funding for
Internet to the Hogans infrastructure which included $500,000 for
transition of a Navajo television station to a digital signal.

In January 2006 and January of 2007, Governor Bill Richardson promises to
support the effort to bridge the digital divide for Navajo families.

In January, 2007, ground breaks for the first Internet to the Hogans tower
in Crownpoint, New Mexico.

In March, 2007, Delegate Leonard Tsosie convenes his first Internet to the
Hogans meeting as Council Delegate for the Navajo Nation extending his
leadership of the Internet to the Hogans effort from the Northwestern
region to the Navajo Nation, which is includes three states, New Mexico,
Arizona and Utah.

In January, 2007, with sponsorship from Senator Linda Lovejoy, the State
of New Mexico awards another $550,000 to continue laying the wireless
infrastructure.

In May of 2007, the Ramah Navajo community turns on the first digital
television station broadcasting in Navajo and English with engineering
support from Jim Gale and Dan Zillich of KNME-TV.

In Summer 2007, the Telemedicine Committee is established, which includes
representation from the Navajo Nation Tribal Council, Indian Health
Service, Navajo Nation Telecommunications Regulatory Commission, Navajo
Technical College, Din College and UNMs Center for Telehealth.

In August, 2007, Navajo Technical College and UNM sign the historic
National Lambda Rail Agreement.

Internet to the Hogans participation grows from an estimated 15
participants and 6 organizations in 2005 to an estimated 240 interested
and contributing people from numerous organizations and communities.






From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Wed Aug 29 07:27:27 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:27:27 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Japan knows about REAL broadband
Message-ID: <027e01c7ea48$ba6bf290$6401a8c0@yourfsyly0jtwn>

 

 

 

 

  Japan's Warp-Speed Ride to Internet Future

By Blaine Harden
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, August 29, 2007; A01

TOKYO -- Americans invented the Internet, but the Japanese are running away
with it.

Broadband service here is eight to 30 times as fast as in the United States
-- and considerably cheaper. Japan
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/countries/japan.html?nav=el>
has the world's fastest Internet connections, delivering more data at a
lower cost than anywhere else, recent studies show.

Accelerating broadband speed in this country -- as well as in South
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/world/countries/korea.html?nav=el>
Korea and much of Europe
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Europe?tid=informline>  --
is pushing open doors to Internet innovation that are likely to remain
closed for years to come in much of the United States.

The speed advantage allows the Japanese to watch broadcast-quality,
full-screen television over the Internet, an experience that mocks the
grainy, wallet-size images Americans endure.

Ultra-high-speed applications are being rolled out for low-cost,
high-definition teleconferencing, for telemedicine -- which allows urban
doctors to diagnose diseases from a distance -- and for advanced
telecommuting to help Japan meet its goal of doubling the number of people
who work from home by 2010.

"For now and for at least the short term, these applications will be cheaper
and probably better in Japan," said Robert Pepper, senior managing director
of global technology policy at Cisco
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Cisco+Systems+Inc.?tid=info
rmline>  Systems, the networking giant.

Japan has surged ahead of the United States on the wings of better wire and
more aggressive government regulation, industry analysts say.

The copper wire used to hook up Japanese homes is newer and runs in shorter
loops to telephone exchanges than in the United States. This is partly a
matter of geography and demographics: Japan is relatively small, highly
urbanized and densely populated. But better wire is also a legacy of
American bombs, which razed much of urban Japan during World War II and led
to a wholesale rewiring of the country.

In 2000, the Japanese government seized its advantage in wire. In sharp
contrast to the Bush administration over the same time period, regulators
here compelled big phone companies to open up wires to upstart Internet
providers.

In short order, broadband exploded. At first, it used the same DSL
technology that exists in the United States. But because of the better,
shorter wire in Japan, DSL service here is much faster. Ten to 20 times as
fast, according to Pepper, one of the world's leading experts on broadband
infrastructure.

Indeed, DSL in Japan is often five to 10 times as fast as what is widely
offered by U.S. cable providers, generally viewed as the fastest American
carriers. (Cable has not been much of a player in Japan.)

Perhaps more important, competition in Japan gave a kick in the pants to
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (NTT), once a government-controlled
enterprise and still Japan's largest phone company. With the help of
government subsidies and tax breaks, NTT launched a nationwide build-out of
fiber-optic lines to homes, making the lower-capacity copper wires obsolete.

"Obviously, without the competition, we would not have done all this at this
pace," said Hideki Ohmichi, NTT's senior manager for public relations.

His company now offers speeds on fiber of up to 100 megabits per second   --
17 times as fast as the top speed generally available from U.S. cable. About
8.8 million Japanese homes have fiber lines -- roughly nine times the number
in the United States.

The burgeoning optical fiber system is hurtling Japan into an Internet
future that experts say Americans are unlikely to experience for at least
several years.

Shoji Matsuya, director of diagnostic pathology at Kanto Medical Center in
Tokyo <http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Tokyo?tid=informline>
, has tested an NTT telepathology system scheduled for nationwide use next
spring.

It allows pathologists -- using high-definition video and remote-controlled
microscopes -- to examine tissue samples from patients living in areas
without access to major hospitals. Those patients need only find a clinic
with the right microscope and an NTT fiber connection.

"Before, we did not have the richness of image detail," Matsuya said, noting
that Japan has a severe shortage of pathologists. "With this equipment, I
think it is possible to make a definitive remote diagnosis of cancer."

Japan's leap forward, as the United States has lost ground among major
industrialized countries in providing high-speed broadband connections, has
frustrated many American high-tech innovators.

"The experience of the last seven years shows that sometimes you need a
strong federal regulatory framework to ensure that competition happens in a
way that is constructive," said Vinton
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Vinton+G.+Cerf?tid=informli
ne>  G. Cerf, a vice president at Google
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Google+Inc.?tid=informline>
.

Japan's lead in speed is worrisome because it will shift Internet innovation
away from the United States, warns Cerf, who is widely credited with helping
to invent some of the Internet's basic architecture. "Once you have very
high speeds, I guarantee that people will figure out things to do with it
that they haven't done before," he said.

As a champion of Japanese-style competition through regulation, Cerf
supports "net neutrality" legislation now pending in Congress. It would
mandate that phone and cable companies treat all online traffic equally,
without imposing higher tolls for certain content.

The proposed laws would probably save billions for companies such as Google
and Yahoo
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/Yahoo!+Inc.?tid=informline>
, but consumer advocates say they would also save money for most home
Internet users.

U.S. phone and cable companies, which control about 98 percent of the
country's broadband market, strongly oppose the proposed laws, saying they
would discourage the huge investments needed to upgrade broadband speed.

Yet the story of how Japan outclassed the United States in the provision of
better, cheaper Internet service suggests that forceful government
regulation can pay substantial dividends.

The opening of Japan's copper phone lines to DSL competition launched a
"virtuous cycle" of ever-increasing speed, said Cisco's Pepper. The cycle
began shortly after Japanese politicians -- fretting about an Internet
system that in 2000 was slower and more expensive than what existed in the
United States -- decided to "unbundle" copper lines.

For just $2 a month, upstart broadband companies were allowed to rent
bandwidth on an NTT copper wire connected to a Japanese home. Low rent
allowed them to charge low prices to consumers -- as little as $22 a month
for a DSL connection faster than almost all U.S. broadband services.

In the United States, a similar kind of competitive access to phone company
lines was strongly endorsed by Congress in a 1996 telecommunications law.
But the federal push fizzled in 2003 and 2004, when the Federal
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/U.S.+Federal+Communications
+Commission?tid=informline>  Communications Commission and a federal court
ruled that major companies do not have to share phone or fiber lines with
competitors. The Bush administration did not appeal the court ruling.

"The Bush administration largely turned its back on the Internet, so we have
just drifted downwards," said Thomas Bleha, a former U.S. diplomat who
served in Japan and is writing a history of how that country trumped the
United States in broadband.

As the United States drifted, a prominent venture capitalist in Japan
pounced on his government's decision to open up the country's copper wire.

Masayoshi Son, head of a company called Softbank
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/related/topic/SOFTBANK+Corporation?tid=in
formline> , offered broadband that was much cheaper and more than six times
as fast as NTT's. He added marketing razzmatazz to the mix, dispatching
young people to street corners to give away modems that would connect users
to a service called Yahoo BB. (The U.S.-based Yahoo owns about a third of
it.) The company's share of DSL business in Japan has exploded in the past
five years, from zero to 37 percent. As competition grew, the monthly cost
of broadband across Japan fell by about half, as broadband speed jumped
33-fold, according to a recent study.

"Once a customer enjoyed the high speed of DSL, then he or she preferred
more speed," said Harumasa Sato, a professor of telecommunication economics
at Konan University in Kobe.

The growing addiction to speed, ironically, is returning near-monopoly power
in fiber to NTT, which owns and controls most new fiber lines to homes.
Growth of new fiber connections exceeded DSL growth two years ago. Fiber is
how all of Japan will soon be connected -- for phones, television and nearly
all other services.

"NTT is becoming dominant again in the fiber broadband kingdom," Sato said.

That infuriates its competitors. Yahoo BB and others are demanding that the
government once again compel NTT to unlock the lines.

In Japan, the regulatory wars over broadband are far from over.

Special correspondent Akiko Yamamoto contributed to this report.

 

 

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From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Aug 29 13:56:07 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2007 14:56:07 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 8.29.7
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070829144639.035db130@mail.zianet.com>

FYI.  Edited for interest.


>Dumb Thieves With Saws, Not Guns, To Blame For
>Internet Blackout, Techdirt, 8/29/2007
>Well, well, well. Earlier this week we wrote about a
>report (the second one we'd ever heard of!) saying
>that gunfire had damaged a fiber optic cable, causing
>a bit of an internet slowdown in the northeastern part
>of the US. Turns out that wasn't...
>  http://techdirt.com/articles/20070823/201044.shtml
>
>
>GoogleWiFi One Year Later - Municipal problems didn't
>stop growth, DSLreports, 8/29/2007
>It s been one year since the GoogleWiFi system brought
>wireless to all of Mountain View, California. The
>system has had problems with coverage and network
>performance as well as with security. However, the one
>year anniversary announcement on the...
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/GoogleWiFi-One-Year-Later-86965
>
>
>AT&T Scraps Springfield Wi-Fi - The muni-Fi implosion
>continues..., DSLreports, 8/29/2007
>AT&T has decided to scrap plans to build a citywide
>Wi-Fi network in Springfield, Illinois. The company
>originally "saw this as a growth opportunity" last
>year when the deal (a first for AT&T) was announced,
>but got cold feet just in the past few..
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/ATampT-Scraps-Springfield-WiFi-87069
>
>
>EarthLink's Wi-Fi dreams may be fading, CNET,
>8/29/2007
>Layoffs signal a major setback in the company's effort
>to break free of its dying dial-up business and become
>an Internet player.
> 
>http://news.com.com/EarthLinks+Wi-Fi+dreams+may+be+fading/2100-7351_3-6204984.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news
>
>Sprint and Samsung to Push WiMax in New York, NYT,
>8/29/2007
>Sprint, which recently said it would spend up to $5
>billion on a mobile high-speed wireless standard by
>2010, said it had awarded the New York WiMax market to
>Samsung.
> 
>http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/technology/tech-sprint-samsung.html?ex=1345867200&en=14f384608c06f527&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
>
>Technology history of WiMAX, Tech Industry and
>Regulation, 8/29/2007
>If you're a fan of technology history, you will enjoy
>this article in BusinessWeek. The article describes
>Intel's role in the development of this technology,
>that may well prove to be a marketplace disruptor.
>This article reminds me of the early...
>  http://telcom2935.blogspot.com/2007/08/technology-history-of-wimax.html
>
>Is Comcast Lying About BitTorrent Throttling? -
>Allegations denied but user experiences say otherwise,
>DSLreports, 8/29/2007
>Comcast was recently caught on message forums engaging
>in BitTorrent throttling through the Sandvine
>application. But Comcast flat out denies the
>allegations. Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas
>reportedly responded: "The company doesn't actively...
> 
>http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Is-Comcast-Lying-About-BitTorrent-Throttling-86981
>
>
>SurfCity USA? Not at Comcast, Consumer Affairs,
>8/29/2007
>Comcast is cracking down on customers it views as
>bandwidth hogs, warning them to curb their downloading
>or wind up on the curb. Trouble is, the company won't
>say what it considers excessive. It's like a state
>having a secret speed limit, customers complain.
>  http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2007/08/comcast_ban.html
>
>
>Japan to research Internet replacement, Globe and
>Mail, 8/29/2007
>U.S., European researchers have already started
>similar efforts to rebuild Net's underlying
>architecture
>  http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TheGlobeAndMail-Technology/~3/149734403/
>
>Security group voices concerns over VoIP, CNET,
>8/29/2007
>Following disclosure of an eavesdropping
>vulnerability, the Jericho Forum says VoIP tech is not
>ready for business deployment.
> 
>http://news.com.com/Security+group+voices+concerns+over+VoIP/2100-7355_3-6205178.html?part=rss&tag=2547-1_3-0-20&subj=news



From rl at radlab.com  Fri Sep  7 15:09:43 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 7 Sep 2007 15:09:43 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Children's Partnership Report on E-Health for Children
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709071458380.14587-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Children's Partnership has published another in it's continuing series
of excellent research reports and recommendations.   They have also issued
an accompanying report: Meeting the Health Care Needs of California's
Children: The Role of Telemedicine.   Telemedicine is a primary
application and requiring use of affordable and widely accessible
broadband infrastructure, especially in rural areas, such as here in NM.
rl


www.childrenspartnership.org/Content/NavigationMenu/Programs/EHealthAgendaforChildren/E_Health_Agenda_for_.htm

www.childrenspartnership.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=11378


Defining and Promoting an E-Health Agenda for Children

Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) are significantly
changing the health care system in the United States, and the pace of
change is accelerating. ICT is impacting how health care information is
gathered and shared, how patients educate themselves and participate in
medical decisions and how payments are calculated and made. It is also
altering how patients handle medical conditions and improve their health
as well as howpublic health issues are managed.

Yet, as this electronic revolution gathers momentum there has been
virtually no public discussion about how ICT tools could improve health
care for the nations children. Nor is there discussion about the relevance
of these ICT tools to childrens unique health care needs  including those
children who are low-income and most in need of better health care. At
this time, when large amounts of public and private dollars are being
invested in this new field, it is crucial to ensure the money is spent in
ways that benefit children.

There are more than 74 million children and young people under age 18 in
the United States today. They account for 12.3% of the $1.7 trillion
dollars spent in the U.S. on health care. A great many U.S. children do
receive quality health care. However, despite the significant investment
to ensure that all Americas children receive a healthy start in life, more
than 11.7% of children -- more than 8 million children-- do not have
health insurance and many more receive less than adequate care. For
example, 10.5% of children under age 18 go without seeing a physician
during the year.

The Children's Partnership is exploring ways to create a better
understanding of which aspects of emerging information technologies can
benefit the health of our nations children most and begin to build public
support to advance a successful E-Health Agenda for Children that ensures:

    * Affordable health insurance for all children;
    * Comprehensive, accessible and high quality care;
    * Public health education and measures that promote child health; and
    * Quality, accessible medical and health information for parents and
youth.

Components of our E-Health Agenda for Children Include:
E-Enrollment
Information and Communications Technology can be used to make health
insurance enrollment and renewal more efficient, more responsive to family
needs, and more accountable to the public.

E-Health Snapshot: Harnessing Technology to Improve Medicaid and SCHIP
Enrollment and Retention Practices reviews promising opportunities for
improving our public health programs through effective use of available
technology.
Telemedicine
Telemedicine, the application of Information and Communications Technology
to provide health care at a distance, is becoming a vital tool in meeting
the health care needs of low-income and underserved children.

Meeting the Health Care Needs of California's Children: The Role of
Telemedicine describes how telemedicinethe application of Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) to provide health care services at a
distanceis used to improve the health of Californias children, especially
those who are low-income or living in medically underserved areas. The
Brief provides an overview of the benefits of telemedicine for children
and families, health systems, and communities. It also outlines challenges
to successful adoption of telemedicine and provides concrete
recommendations for ensuring that telemedicine reaches its full potential
in meeting the health care needs of Californias most vulnerable children.

Download Meeting the Health Care Needs of California Children in Schools
and Child Care: Telemedicine Can Help to learn how telemedicine can help
California schools and child care centers meet the health care needs of
the children and communities they serve.

------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From granoff at zianet.com  Tue Sep 11 08:13:41 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 09:13:41 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: GigaLaw.com Daily News, September 11, 2007
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070911091025.02f82950@mail.zianet.com>

 From another list.  FYI.


>Comcast Cuts Off Internet Service for Excessive Downloaders
>      Comcast has punished some transgressors by cutting off their 
> Internet service, arguing that excessive downloaders hog Internet 
> capacity and slow down the network for other customers. The company 
> declines to reveal its download limits.
>      Read more: 
> http://www.gigalaw.com/news/2007/09/comcast-cuts-off-internet-service-for.html
>



From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Sep 11 10:07:48 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:07:48 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Germany doesn't like Wi-Fi period
Message-ID: <46E6CB64.60500@ideapete.com>

http://environment.independent.co.uk/lifestyle/article2944417.ece
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Sep 11 10:08:39 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 11:08:39 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] In Africa they do it differently
Message-ID: <46E6CB97.6010007@ideapete.com>

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/6983397.stm
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From rl at radlab.com  Tue Sep 11 15:20:48 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 15:20:48 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] CANARIE: Green Broadband
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709111513370.8954-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

>From our neighbors to the north, an innovative proposition and
demonstartion project:

Green Broadband and Free Gigabit Internet to the Home
<http://www.canarie.ca/canet4/library/customer/Green_Broadband.ppt>

"To address the problem of challenges of developing a FTTh business case,
especially in brownfields, CANARIE is brokering discussions between the
fiber contractor and several/gas electric companies on a more novel
business case to market and sell the fiber.  A small trial is underway in
a downtown Ottawa neighborhood.

The basic concept is to bundle FTTh as a premium on a customer's energy or
gas bill.  If the consumer reduces their energy consumption, (the higher
cost per kwh because of the broadband premium would serve as an economic
incentive to reduce consumption) then they may end up with free broadband
and the added of benefit of lower reduced green house gases. We have
nicknamed  it "Green broadband" or "Al Gore broadband"!  As well
additional revenues can be made in brokering CO2 credits because of
tele-communting, and other energy saving ideas."





From tom at jtjohnson.com  Tue Sep 11 18:16:06 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 19:16:06 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
Message-ID: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>

All:

I'm attending the Broadband Properties
Summit<http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2007summit/summit07.php>(
http://www.broadbandproperties.com/2007summit/summit07.php) at DFW this
week, and today I picked up a couple links to site resources we may find
valuable.  See especially the Connect Kentucky site.  Kentucky has much in
common with New Mexico in terms of educational and economic status, yet it
has made remarkable progress in the past 24-36 months.


   - http://www.app-rising.com/
   AppRising delivers insight into new broadband applications, exploring
   their impact on networks and their implications for public policy.

   - http://connectkentucky.org/default.htm
   Connect Kentucky:  ConnectKentucky manages and participates in
   numerous projects with one universal goal: to support the growth and
   economic development of technology in Kentucky. ConnectKentucky projects
   serve the needs of students, community leaders, local and state businesses,
   government officials, and most importantly, the Kentucky citizenry.  Learn
   more about the ConnectKentucky projects in the left navigational bar.
   Note how each of the state's 120 counties has developed a technology
   plan.  That they are all based on the same template means that there is
   vertical integration withing the country, but also horizontal planning and
   cooperation across the state in terms of similar categories, i.e.
   education, health care, etc.

   - http://connectkentucky.org/researchpol/annualreports.htm
   A lot of interesting, and relevant, data in this annual report.

-- tj

==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From owen at backspaces.net  Tue Sep 11 19:09:51 2007
From: owen at backspaces.net (Owen Densmore)
Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 20:09:51 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
In-Reply-To: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>
References: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>

Tom: They say that right out front of 632 Agua Fria, the wonderful  
site just beside Redfish, there is a fiber line.  We'd LOVE to figure  
out how to get 632 onto fiber and very high bandwidth.

Does anyone on the list know what we'd need to do to Make It Happen??

    -- Owen

On Sep 11, 2007, at 7:16 PM, Tom Johnson wrote:

> All:
>
> I'm attending the Broadband Properties Summit (http:// 
> www.broadbandproperties.com/2007summit/summit07.php ) at DFW this  
> week, and today I picked up a couple links to site resources we may  
> find valuable.  See especially the Connect Kentucky site.  Kentucky  
> has much in common with New Mexico in terms of educational and  
> economic status, yet it has made remarkable progress in the past  
> 24-36 months.
>
> http://www.app-rising.com/
> AppRising delivers insight into new broadband applications,  
> exploring their impact on networks and their implications for  
> public policy.
>
> http://connectkentucky.org/default.htm
> Connect Kentucky:  ConnectKentucky manages and participates in  
> numerous projects with one universal goal: to support the growth  
> and economic development of technology in Kentucky. ConnectKentucky  
> projects serve the needs of students, community leaders, local and  
> state businesses, government officials, and most importantly, the  
> Kentucky citizenry.  Learn more about the ConnectKentucky projects  
> in the left navigational bar.
> Note how each of the state's 120 counties has developed a  
> technology plan.  That they are all based on the same template  
> means that there is vertical integration withing the country, but  
> also horizontal planning and cooperation across the state in terms  
> of similar categories, i.e. education, health care, etc.
>
> http://connectkentucky.org/researchpol/annualreports.htm
> A lot of interesting, and relevant, data in this annual report.
> -- tj



From editorsteve at gmail.com  Tue Sep 11 22:29:16 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 01:29:16 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
In-Reply-To: <7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
References: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>
	<7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
Message-ID: <203e4cf70709112229i707ac7c3ja3ecc9bbd11a989b@mail.gmail.com>

FYI, over the next few weeks my staff and i will be putting together a
long report on the BBP conference, which ends Wed afternoon.. I also
have the PPTs and probably 20 hours of audio. The report will be in
our October issue at www.bbpmag.com.

Steve Ross

On 9/11/07, Owen Densmore <owen at backspaces.net> wrote:
> Tom: They say that right out front of 632 Agua Fria, the wonderful
> site just beside Redfish, there is a fiber line.  We'd LOVE to figure
> out how to get 632 onto fiber and very high bandwidth.
>
> Does anyone on the list know what we'd need to do to Make It Happen??
>
>     -- Owen
>
> On Sep 11, 2007, at 7:16 PM, Tom Johnson wrote:
>
> > All:
> >
> > I'm attending the Broadband Properties Summit (http://
> > www.broadbandproperties.com/2007summit/summit07.php ) at DFW this
> > week, and today I picked up a couple links to site resources we may
> > find valuable.  See especially the Connect Kentucky site.  Kentucky
> > has much in common with New Mexico in terms of educational and
> > economic status, yet it has made remarkable progress in the past
> > 24-36 months.
> >
> > http://www.app-rising.com/
> > AppRising delivers insight into new broadband applications,
> > exploring their impact on networks and their implications for
> > public policy.
> >
> > http://connectkentucky.org/default.htm
> > Connect Kentucky:  ConnectKentucky manages and participates in
> > numerous projects with one universal goal: to support the growth
> > and economic development of technology in Kentucky. ConnectKentucky
> > projects serve the needs of students, community leaders, local and
> > state businesses, government officials, and most importantly, the
> > Kentucky citizenry.  Learn more about the ConnectKentucky projects
> > in the left navigational bar.
> > Note how each of the state's 120 counties has developed a
> > technology plan.  That they are all based on the same template
> > means that there is vertical integration withing the country, but
> > also horizontal planning and cooperation across the state in terms
> > of similar categories, i.e. education, health care, etc.
> >
> > http://connectkentucky.org/researchpol/annualreports.htm
> > A lot of interesting, and relevant, data in this annual report.
> > -- tj
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>


-- 
Steve Ross
201-456-5933
781-284-8810
editorsteve at gmail.com


From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Sep 12 08:20:46 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 09:20:46 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
In-Reply-To: <7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
References: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>
	<7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20070912084704.044aba60@mail.zianet.com>

I am not sure who "they" refers to in the "they say" rumor below.
Having access to a fiber-optic connection is not just about the
fiber being close to your location.

It is also about the (very expensive) electronic equipment required
to "light" the fiber, what path it needs to take from where it is
to where you want it, and whether there is enough "extra" fiber at
the location where it has to be spliced to even allow that.

Generally, if there is a "vault" of some kind with extra rolled-up
fiber, you may at least have a talking point with the owner of the
fiber.  If the fiber conduit just passes by a place, you may not have
one at all.  That conduit could belong to someone who does not even
provide public telecommunications services in NM.

Minimally, find out whose fiber it is.  Comcast's?  Qwest's?  Santa
Fe County's?,  PNM's,  Someone else's?  Then, find out what the
fiber is used for.

In order to provide a conduit path for fiber optic cable anywhere in
NM, you may have to have archeological surveys/permits, DOT permits,
EPA permits, local government permits, etc.

You absolutely do have to have "rights-of-way" to place the conduit
and fiber.  In NM, that path may cross Native American tribal or
pueblo land, federal agency land, state agency land, private land,
or even land with disputed ownership.

You have to have official permission to cross all such land, and may
have to pay for that permission and make some guarantees about what
you will and won't allow the fiber to be used for.  All of this is
time consuming and costly just in the labor required.  Then there is
actually placing the conduit and fiber along that path.  That can
also be expensive, depending on the terrain.

Once all that is done, you still need to have that very expensive
electronic equipment on both ends of that fiber segment.

I am not trying to discourage anyone from trying to do this, but rather
am trying to put a realistic face on the tasks required.

I am not an engineer, nor an expert by any means, but I have asked this
question many times, and the above description includes many of the
issues that have been explained to me by those who are working in this
area.

Marianne

Marianne Granoff
Member of the Board of Directors
Chair, Public Affairs Committee
New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
P.O. Box 22641
Santa Fe, NM 87502
http://www.nmipa.org
505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
granoff at zianet.com


At 08:09 PM 9/11/2007 -0600, Owen Densmore wrote:
>Tom: They say that right out front of 632 Agua Fria, the wonderful
>site just beside Redfish, there is a fiber line.  We'd LOVE to figure
>out how to get 632 onto fiber and very high bandwidth.
>
>Does anyone on the list know what we'd need to do to Make It Happen??
>
>     -- Owen

Marianne Granoff
Member of the Board of Directors
Chair, Public Affairs Committee
New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
P.O. Box 22641
Santa Fe, NM 87502
http://www.nmipa.org
505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
granoff at zianet.com 



From pete at ideapete.com  Wed Sep 12 11:12:10 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 12:12:10 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
In-Reply-To: <6.1.2.0.2.20070912084704.044aba60@mail.zianet.com>
References: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>	<7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
	<6.1.2.0.2.20070912084704.044aba60@mail.zianet.com>
Message-ID: <46E82BFA.4060001@ideapete.com>

Hi All

There is one possible connection POP for fiber in Santa Fe , at a point 
called SFENMHQ all the rest are amplifiers

The active fiber in SF is probably Qwest

I believe Richard is also looking at nifty ideas about how the county 
could light some of these out from the possible Pop maybe using free 
space optics or similar

But do not count on any help from US Worst now Qwest

( : ( : pete

Marianne Granoff wrote:
> I am not sure who "they" refers to in the "they say" rumor below.
> Having access to a fiber-optic connection is not just about the
> fiber being close to your location.
>
> It is also about the (very expensive) electronic equipment required
> to "light" the fiber, what path it needs to take from where it is
> to where you want it, and whether there is enough "extra" fiber at
> the location where it has to be spliced to even allow that.
>
> Generally, if there is a "vault" of some kind with extra rolled-up
> fiber, you may at least have a talking point with the owner of the
> fiber.  If the fiber conduit just passes by a place, you may not have
> one at all.  That conduit could belong to someone who does not even
> provide public telecommunications services in NM.
>
> Minimally, find out whose fiber it is.  Comcast's?  Qwest's?  Santa
> Fe County's?,  PNM's,  Someone else's?  Then, find out what the
> fiber is used for.
>
> In order to provide a conduit path for fiber optic cable anywhere in
> NM, you may have to have archeological surveys/permits, DOT permits,
> EPA permits, local government permits, etc.
>
> You absolutely do have to have "rights-of-way" to place the conduit
> and fiber.  In NM, that path may cross Native American tribal or
> pueblo land, federal agency land, state agency land, private land,
> or even land with disputed ownership.
>
> You have to have official permission to cross all such land, and may
> have to pay for that permission and make some guarantees about what
> you will and won't allow the fiber to be used for.  All of this is
> time consuming and costly just in the labor required.  Then there is
> actually placing the conduit and fiber along that path.  That can
> also be expensive, depending on the terrain.
>
> Once all that is done, you still need to have that very expensive
> electronic equipment on both ends of that fiber segment.
>
> I am not trying to discourage anyone from trying to do this, but rather
> am trying to put a realistic face on the tasks required.
>
> I am not an engineer, nor an expert by any means, but I have asked this
> question many times, and the above description includes many of the
> issues that have been explained to me by those who are working in this
> area.
>
> Marianne
>
> Marianne Granoff
> Member of the Board of Directors
> Chair, Public Affairs Committee
> New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
> P.O. Box 22641
> Santa Fe, NM 87502
> http://www.nmipa.org
> 505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
> granoff at zianet.com
>
>
> At 08:09 PM 9/11/2007 -0600, Owen Densmore wrote:
>   
>> Tom: They say that right out front of 632 Agua Fria, the wonderful
>> site just beside Redfish, there is a fiber line.  We'd LOVE to figure
>> out how to get 632 onto fiber and very high bandwidth.
>>
>> Does anyone on the list know what we'd need to do to Make It Happen??
>>
>>     -- Owen
>>     
>
> Marianne Granoff
> Member of the Board of Directors
> Chair, Public Affairs Committee
> New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
> P.O. Box 22641
> Santa Fe, NM 87502
> http://www.nmipa.org
> 505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
> granoff at zianet.com 
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>   

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From editorsteve at gmail.com  Wed Sep 12 18:35:57 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 21:35:57 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Resources for the 1st Mile project
In-Reply-To: <46E82BFA.4060001@ideapete.com>
References: <e04090490709111816k7246caabvab62087130f07650@mail.gmail.com>
	<7EAE925D-B193-478A-820D-B282F506303A@backspaces.net>
	<6.1.2.0.2.20070912084704.044aba60@mail.zianet.com>
	<46E82BFA.4060001@ideapete.com>
Message-ID: <203e4cf70709121835q60b7000aj94b140a722f92b39@mail.gmail.com>

bear in mind that equipment costs have come down enormously in the
past year -- in many cases, by a factor of 10. It still isn't cheap,
and OLTs (the thingies with lasers at the POP end) haven't come down
as fast as everything else. But business cases are reasonable.
Strictly speaking, where ever fiber goes, you can establish your own
POP if you have rights t o some of the bandwidth. Obviously cheaper to
do that at a switch, though. Most states allow cities to tax these
things -- facilities and property tax -- so the records are asy to
get. Or should be.

Steve Ross

On 9/12/07, peter <pete at ideapete.com> wrote:
>
> Hi All
>
>  There is one possible connection POP for fiber in Santa Fe , at a point
> called SFENMHQ all the rest are amplifiers
>
>  The active fiber in SF is probably Qwest
>
>  I believe Richard is also looking at nifty ideas about how the county could
> light some of these out from the possible Pop maybe using free space optics
> or similar
>
>  But do not count on any help from US Worst now Qwest
>
>  ( : ( : pete
>
>
>  Marianne Granoff wrote:
>  I am not sure who "they" refers to in the "they say" rumor below.
> Having access to a fiber-optic connection is not just about the
> fiber being close to your location.
>
> It is also about the (very expensive) electronic equipment required
> to "light" the fiber, what path it needs to take from where it is
> to where you want it, and whether there is enough "extra" fiber at
> the location where it has to be spliced to even allow that.
>
> Generally, if there is a "vault" of some kind with extra rolled-up
> fiber, you may at least have a talking point with the owner of the
> fiber. If the fiber conduit just passes by a place, you may not have
> one at all. That conduit could belong to someone who does not even
> provide public telecommunications services in NM.
>
> Minimally, find out whose fiber it is. Comcast's? Qwest's? Santa
> Fe County's?, PNM's, Someone else's? Then, find out what the
> fiber is used for.
>
> In order to provide a conduit path for fiber optic cable anywhere in
> NM, you may have to have archeological surveys/permits, DOT permits,
> EPA permits, local government permits, etc.
>
> You absolutely do have to have "rights-of-way" to place the conduit
> and fiber. In NM, that path may cross Native American tribal or
> pueblo land, federal agency land, state agency land, private land,
> or even land with disputed ownership.
>
> You have to have official permission to cross all such land, and may
> have to pay for that permission and make some guarantees about what
> you will and won't allow the fiber to be used for. All of this is
> time consuming and costly just in the labor required. Then there is
> actually placing the conduit and fiber along that path. That can
> also be expensive, depending on the terrain.
>
> Once all that is done, you still need to have that very expensive
> electronic equipment on both ends of that fiber segment.
>
> I am not trying to discourage anyone from trying to do this, but rather
> am trying to put a realistic face on the tasks required.
>
> I am not an engineer, nor an expert by any means, but I have asked this
> question many times, and the above description includes many of the
> issues that have been explained to me by those who are working in this
> area.
>
> Marianne
>
> Marianne Granoff
> Member of the Board of Directors
> Chair, Public Affairs Committee
> New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
> P.O. Box 22641
> Santa Fe, NM 87502
> http://www.nmipa.org
> 505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
> granoff at zianet.com
>
>
> At 08:09 PM 9/11/2007 -0600, Owen Densmore wrote:
>
>
>  Tom: They say that right out front of 632 Agua Fria, the wonderful
> site just beside Redfish, there is a fiber line. We'd LOVE to figure
> out how to get 632 onto fiber and very high bandwidth.
>
> Does anyone on the list know what we'd need to do to Make It Happen??
>
>  -- Owen
>
>  Marianne Granoff
> Member of the Board of Directors
> Chair, Public Affairs Committee
> New Mexico Internet Professionals Association
> P.O. Box 22641
> Santa Fe, NM 87502
> http://www.nmipa.org
> 505 345-4771 or 505 980-7919
> granoff at zianet.com
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>
>
>
> --
>
>
>
> Peter Baston
>
> IDEAS
>
> www.ideapete.com
>
> 3210 La Paz Lane
>
> Santa Fe, NM 87507
>
> Albuquerque Office: 505-890-9649
>
> Santa Fe Office: 505-629-4227
>
> Cell: 505-690-3627
>
> Fax: 866-642-8918
>
> Mailto:pete at ideapete.com
>
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>


-- 
Steve Ross
201-456-5933
781-284-8810
editorsteve at gmail.com


From rl at radlab.com  Fri Sep 14 09:13:54 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 09:13:54 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] ILSR: Burlington Telecom FTTH Case Study
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709140906160.25598-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following is forwarded from another list, as posted by Bill St.Arnaud,
of the CANARIE project in Canada.   The Institute for Local Self Reliance,
also produced the earlier report: Localizing the Internet: Five Ways
Public Ownership Solves the U.S. Broadband Problem, which can be found on
the ILSR.org web site, or on the Resources pages of the 1st-Mile site.
Richard
-------

[For any community that is looking to deploy a community fiber
network, I highly recommend taking a look at this study on the Burlington
project.   Although the Burlington network bills itself as an "open
access" network, its network architecture, like that in Amsterdam is built
around home run fiber, terminating on GPON at the central office. GPON is
used to reduce interface costs only, so at a future date if a customer
wanted layer one connectivity to a given service provider and bypass the
PON altogether then it would only require a simple fiber patch. This
provides for a future proof architecture as new technologies and business
model evolve. Thanks to Frank Culuccio and Tim Nulty for this pointer --
BSA]

Burlington Telecom Case Study
Christopher Mitchell, Director, Telecommunications as Commons Initiative
christopher at ilsr.org | August 2007

<http://www.newrules.org/info/bt.pdf>




From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Mon Sep 17 09:27:12 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2007 10:27:12 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] South Korean Internet use keeps ramping up
Message-ID: <084a01c7f947$a08455d0$6401a8c0@yourfsyly0jtwn>

 

 

 

 

  Korea Times




09-16-2007 


Internet Traffic Swells on Web 2.0


By Cho Jin-seo 
Staff Reporter

The amount of data transferred on the Internet has rapidly increased due to
the spread of Web publishing, a private think-tank said Sunday. 

The Samsung Economic Research Institute said that the so-called Web 2.0
movement is the main reason behind the surge of online traffic. For example,
the number of blog users has increased 16 fold in the past two years, and
the number of monthly blog postings by 10 fold, it said. 

The most dramatic growth was seen in the circulation of short video clips,
often referred to as UCC (user-created content) in Korea. Visitors to video
sharing services at major portal sites more than quadrupled between March
2006 and March 2007. 

The volume of information flow on the Internet will continue to expand at an
ever-increasing speed, the report said. 

``The amount of two-way data traffic has soared as the role of Netizens has
changed from that of spectator to active participant,'' said the report
authored by Kim Chong-man. ``The development of IPTV, e-learning and
wireless Internet services will accelerate this trend.'' 

The phrase Web 2.0 refers to the emergence of web-based communities and
services, which are designed to facilitate collaboration and sharing of
collective wisdom between users. Wikipedia is one of the Web 2.0 services
that is well known globally, and Naver's Knowledge-In is also a popular site
based in South Korea. 

The report said that Korea's IT industry has benefited from the country's
well-established broadband network infrastructure, but the system isn't
organized well enough to handle the volatile traffic. At major portal sites,
the number of peak-time visitors on a given day is about 17 times the daily
low, the report said. 

``New technologies are needed for firms to efficiently utilize their limited
IT resources and to maximize their income from minimum investment,'' it
said. ``Improving old technologies may not be enough. The industry needs to
create new technologies that suit the next generation IT environment.''

Samsung suggested ``utility computing'' as a plausible solution. Utility
computing is the outsourcing of IT services and hardware. It enables
multiple companies to share computing resources such as CPUs and servers.
Under the system, customer companies can deal with any sudden peak in
traffic that they may not be able to manage single-handedly. 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Fri Sep 21 09:48:03 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Fri, 21 Sep 2007 10:48:03 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Doing it right Wiring America as Connect Nation
Message-ID: <46F3F5C3.2080800@ideapete.com>

  Wiring rural America

Sep 13th 2007 | BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY
 From /The Economist/ print edition


    A public-private partnership success 


    *http://www.connectednation.com/index.php*

FROM her remote farm in southern Kentucky, Lajuana Wilcher checks an 
online database for local ranchers demanding alfalfa. She can specify at 
what price she is willing to sell, which counties to search and whether 
her hay is square-baled or rolled. Without her high-speed internet 
connection, Ms Wilcher insists, it would take far too long to find the 
most generous alfalfa prices, order spare tractor parts and locate the 
best breeding stock for her small cattle operation.

Largely rural, Kentucky is best known for its bourbon and horse racing; 
it rarely ranks in the top tier of states on any measure of 21st-century 
success. According to Brian Mefford, president of ConnectKentucky 
<http://www.connectkentucky.org/>, a public-private partnership, a few 
years ago the state had among the lowest rates of broadband availability 
in the country. Internet service providers could not be sure that there 
were enough Lajuana Wilchers in the Kentucky countryside to justify new 
investment in cabling or wireless transmitters.

    But by the end of this year, Mr Mefford boasts, 98% of residents
    will have access to inexpensive broadband services. This is
    primarily because of ConnectKentucky's effort to map broadband
    demand in communities that didn't have access, he says, which
    indicated that enough people in Kentucky farm country would sign up
    if providers entered the market. At the same time, the organisation
    also talked up high-speed internet services to sceptical residents,
    creating demand where it was slack. Once isolated Kentuckians can
    now consult with doctors in faraway cities or telecommute. 

ConnectKentucky is just one effort among many programmes in different 
states and within the federal government to wire up the American 
countryside. Backers compare them to Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal push 
to bring electricity to the hinterland. Supporters also hope expanded 
rural broadband access will stop the steady loss of population to cities 
and suburbs. But not all have been as successful as Kentucky's.

In 2004 President George Bush set a goal to provide every American with 
access to broadband by this year. The federal Agriculture Department has 
distributed over a billion dollars in grants and cut-rate loans to 
high-speed internet providers interested in rural markets. But by Mr 
Bush's yardstick, the effort has been a failure. Swathes of the country 
still lack broadband access, though it is hard to tell how far they 
extend. Admittedly, wiring up the West, with its greater distances and 
thinner population densities, is tougher than wiring up Kentucky.

Part of the problem has been the poor design of federal loan and grant 
schemes by Congress. A loose definition of "rural area", for example, 
let an internet provider get federal funding to wire up a Houston suburb 
where million-dollar homes were under construction. Lawmakers in 
Washington, DC hope to reform the process. But there are other serious 
deficiencies in the federal system. Ensconcing large broadband loan and 
grant programmes in the Agriculture Department threatens to drain 
federal money for decades into parts of the country that already get 
other hefty---and often similarly mismanaged---federal farm and 
development subsidies. The comparison to Roosevelt's rural 
electrification efforts is apt: 70 years on, the Agriculture Department 
is still financing rural power companies long after electricity came to 
the American countryside.

Meanwhile, ConnectKentucky might beat Mr Bush to fulfilling his own 
goal. The group is morphing into a company called Connected Nation, and 
is helping to wire up the neighbouring states of West Virginia and 
Tennessee.

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From rl at radlab.com  Mon Sep 24 14:23:56 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 24 Sep 2007 14:23:56 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband Fiber for Libraries
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709241413460.23006-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

I'm posting this a bit after the noted meeting, but the subject is
relevent to this list.   New Mexico Libraries, while requiring broadband
access, and serving as primary community connection sites, are very
underserved.
rl
------------

http://www.telestructure.com/pressrelease.html

National Initiative to Deliver Fiber-Speed Internet Connectivity to Every
US Library Underway

Inaugural Workshop on July 2, 2007 To Develop Implementation Strategies
(Sausalito, CA - June 12 -) The Community TeleStructure Initiative (CTI)
announced today plans for a series of workshops on the National Fiber to
the Library (F2L) initiative; its goal being to connect every library in
the U.S. with fiber-speed internet by 2010.  The first workshop will be
held in Sausalito, CA on July 2, and will include broadband policy &
market leaders in California joined by key national policy leaders like
the American Library Association, the Fiber to the Home Council and the
FCC.

In spite of having invented the internet, each year shows the U.S.
slipping ever farther behind other developed economies in broadband
penetration and price/performance levels; even more so in the use of
fiber-based connections as fiber's potential has not been generally
understood or demonstrated.

Now, long sought killer applications requiring high performance internet
connections like distance learning, telemedicine, access to remote museum
resources, HD video conferencing and high resolution multi user
simulations may have found a new friend in the fiber-connected local
library.

After early leadership in broadband deployment the library has more
recently been portrayed as the place of last resort for access to the
internet; the default response for minimally bridging the digital divide.
The Fiber to the Library proposal advocates for the library as an early
adopter, a place where faster, better information and communications
technologies and services are available first.

Providing next-generation broadband access via optical fiber to America's
Libraries assures our library system will be able to meet the information
needs of the 21st Century. New, broadband-intensive services will be
generated sooner and made available more broadly via fiber-connected
libraries, asserts Joe Savage, FTTHC President.

Since March '05, the CTI consortium of national organizations including
TechNet, IEEE, ITAA, PTI & EDUCAUSE has called on communities to accept
lead responsibility for deployment strategies of broadband infrastructure
in their area. To date a number of states including California, Virginia,
Massachusetts and Florida have responded favorably to the challenge by
convening state policy and market leaders in TeleStructure Broadband
Roundtables developing ways to support local community initiatives in
their states www.telestructure.com.

According to CA State Librarian, Susan Hildreth: "Libraries are becoming
the digital hubs of our communities, where high-speed connections and
information intersect with community.

The Sausalito Workshop will also explore expanded tech-related roles for
libraries with regard to demonstrating & testing new technologies as well
as supporting their community's information and communication needs for
disaster preparedness and other E-government support services.

"Public libraries are facing a bandwidth crisis as they struggle to stay
abreast of a rapidly growing demand for Internet access to E-government,
emergency services, health information, and a wide range of other
information sources and services," said Rick Weingarten, Director, Office
for IT Policy, American Library Association.

The Sausalito Workshop will explore and propose strategies for rapid
deployment and identify possible enabling roles at all levels of
government from national to local.  There will be a special focus on the
potential for state governments to support local initiatives and act as
aggregator or as mediator for federal support.

Make connecting every public library in the country with fiber-based
internet by 2010 a national goal and a key component of a new national
broadband strategy.  The idea is simple, measurable and doable, says Don
Means, Principal at Digital Village and F2L Workshop host. If we connect
every library, we'll quickly have fiber within a mile of every residence
and since libraries are open to all, it will be effectively even closer.

The event will be supported in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and
Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and
Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian.  It
will also be co-sponsored by the Office for IT Policy, American Library
Association.

Contacts:

Jennifer Colton
Flashpoint PR
colton at flashpointpr.com

-----

American Library Association

ALA Office for Information Technology Policy has released a magnum opus,
the Public Library Connectivity Project: Findings and Recommendations,
(153 pages long, 57 pages of report and 96 pages of appendices) which was
commissioned by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

www.ala.org/ala/washoff/contactwo/oitp/papersa/public_version_final.pdf


ALA Broadband web site

http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/woissues/techinttele/broadband/broadband.cfm


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Tue Sep 25 12:20:21 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 25 Sep 2007 12:20:21 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Rio Rancho Terminates Wireless Contract
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709251216100.4709-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

RR Terminates Wireless Contract

By Rosalie Rayburn
Albuquerque Journal Staff Writer

Rio Rancho's ambitious free wireless Internet project is officially dead.

    City contracts administrator Steve Ruger sent a letter to Azulstar
president Tony van Houwelingen late last week immediately terminating the
wireless company's contract with Rio Rancho.
    The letter, dated Sept. 20, said the wireless company failed to honor
terms of the contract regarding payment for electricity charges, providing
a satisfactory business plan and proof of its financial ability to offer
continued service in the city of Rio Rancho.

    "The city does not see a continued relationship with Azulstar as in
its best interest," the letter said.

    Grand Haven, Mich.-based Azulstar signed a contract with the city in
2004 to operate a wireless network on city property and rights of way. In
return, Azulstar was supposed to provide eight free hours of Internet
service per month for residents of Rio Rancho.
    The letter said Azulstar was in breach of contract because it owes the
city $33,000 for electricity charges.

    Under the terms of the contract, Public Service Company of New Mexico
billed the city for electricity Azulstar used to run its wireless network.
Azulstar was, in turn, supposed to reimburse the city, Ruger said.
    The city sent Azulstar an invoice on July 27 for electricity charges
dating back to 2005, when the company began operating its network.

    Ruger said Azulstar did not respond and has continued to incur
electricity charges at the rate of about $1,600 per month.
    Reached by telephone on Monday, Houwelingen told the Journal he needed
to consult with the company's primary owners in New Mexico before he could
comment.
    Ruger said he sent the letter to Houwelingen because his name was on
official communications the city received from Azulstar.

    City officials have been pressuring Azulstar since early May to get
the wireless company to address complaints about poor service and lack of
customer support.

    In early July, city officials threatened to terminate Azulstar's
contract within 40 days unless the company provided a plan showing how it
would improve service.
    In mid-August, Azulstar submitted a plan to revamp its network and
billing procedures. Azulstar also said it would arrange to be billed
directly by PNM.
    The city spent nearly a month reviewing Azulstar's plan before it sent
the letter terminating the contract. The letter notified Azulstar that it
has until Dec. 31 to remove all its equipment from city facilities. After
that, the city will remove any remaining equipment and invoice Azulstar
for any associated costs.

    The city currently has no plans to seek another wireless provider,
Ruger said.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Sep 25 13:24:32 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 25 Sep 2007 14:24:32 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Rio Rancho Terminates Wireless Contract
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709251216100.4709-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709251216100.4709-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <46F96E80.40303@ideapete.com>

This is a classic example of what happens when you try any project 
without a good business plan.

I first met Tyler ( Not Tony ) Van Houwelingen just after the project 
started and had a conversation with him regarding the business 
feasibility of his endeavor and the lack of true testing that he had 
carried out to demonstrate whether or not he could provide good service 
at reasonable cost to tens of clients let alone the thousands he was 
predicting especially in the face of competition from cable and Qwest 
who could give away the same service he was providing in a bundled deal 
to wipe him out if he ever got his numbers above 500. He commented that 
" Qwest and Cable are inconsequential and  not a factor "

When I showed him test results of the abysmal service that 802.11 and 
even 802.16 has experienced especially through all buildings and 
structures emphasizing the major problems that Faux Adobe houses with 
chicken wire underlay turning buildings into mini Faraday cages he 
shrugged the problem of as non problematical. Add the terrain factors 
and he was dead meat from the get go

His business plan consisted of " Wireless is great and is the future " 
and had done 0 research or any financial or project due diligence after 
a previous company had withdrawn from RR judging the project unfeasible 
without massive RR City support which should have been a major red flag 
to anyone.

The project he consistently referred in Michigan was completed by his 
father at 4 times the cost the Tyler was quoting ( with its major 
clients in a harbor on boats with full line of site just like RR right ( 
:  )

Bluntly he was a young kid way out of his depth riding a wave of hype.

Taken together with the Sandoval Broadband project and Azul( did not 
)star I would bet that over $8m in man power and financing has been 
wasted and that would have provided a huge tract of fiber really moving 
Rio Rancho into the future

I personally think his plan was to suck in the city to buy his project 
out ( Like some poor locals did ) to save embarrassment for all, but the 
city manager he was playing with departed

The very good news about this projects collapse, and the pending one of 
its infamous sister county project, is that now Fiber through the city 
will come up for serious consideration

Maybe the council should send the bill to Intel who promoted this 
project in the first place

Again a very classic example of " Do It Right THE FIRST TIME  = Fiber + 
Fiber + Fiber  " all else is pure imitation

( : ( :  Pete

Richard Lowenberg wrote:
> Tuesday, September 25, 2007
>
> RR Terminates Wireless Contract
>
> By Rosalie Rayburn
> Albuquerque Journal Staff Writer
>
> Rio Rancho's ambitious free wireless Internet project is officially dead.
>
>     City contracts administrator Steve Ruger sent a letter to Azulstar
> president Tony van Houwelingen late last week immediately terminating the
> wireless company's contract with Rio Rancho.
>     The letter, dated Sept. 20, said the wireless company failed to honor
> terms of the contract regarding payment for electricity charges, providing
> a satisfactory business plan and proof of its financial ability to offer
> continued service in the city of Rio Rancho.
>
>     "The city does not see a continued relationship with Azulstar as in
> its best interest," the letter said.
>
>     Grand Haven, Mich.-based Azulstar signed a contract with the city in
> 2004 to operate a wireless network on city property and rights of way. In
> return, Azulstar was supposed to provide eight free hours of Internet
> service per month for residents of Rio Rancho.
>     The letter said Azulstar was in breach of contract because it owes the
> city $33,000 for electricity charges.
>
>     Under the terms of the contract, Public Service Company of New Mexico
> billed the city for electricity Azulstar used to run its wireless network.
> Azulstar was, in turn, supposed to reimburse the city, Ruger said.
>     The city sent Azulstar an invoice on July 27 for electricity charges
> dating back to 2005, when the company began operating its network.
>
>     Ruger said Azulstar did not respond and has continued to incur
> electricity charges at the rate of about $1,600 per month.
>     Reached by telephone on Monday, Houwelingen told the Journal he needed
> to consult with the company's primary owners in New Mexico before he could
> comment.
>     Ruger said he sent the letter to Houwelingen because his name was on
> official communications the city received from Azulstar.
>
>     City officials have been pressuring Azulstar since early May to get
> the wireless company to address complaints about poor service and lack of
> customer support.
>
>     In early July, city officials threatened to terminate Azulstar's
> contract within 40 days unless the company provided a plan showing how it
> would improve service.
>     In mid-August, Azulstar submitted a plan to revamp its network and
> billing procedures. Azulstar also said it would arrange to be billed
> directly by PNM.
>     The city spent nearly a month reviewing Azulstar's plan before it sent
> the letter terminating the contract. The letter notified Azulstar that it
> has until Dec. 31 to remove all its equipment from city facilities. After
> that, the city will remove any remaining equipment and invoice Azulstar
> for any associated costs.
>
>     The city currently has no plans to seek another wireless provider,
> Ruger said.
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------
> Richard Lowenberg
> P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
> 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
>
> New Mexico Broadband Initiative
> www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
> ------------------------------------------------
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>   

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From rl at radlab.com  Fri Sep 28 21:46:56 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 21:46:56 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Utah Fiber Updates
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709282142360.28990-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Following are two news stories, focusing largely on the UTOPIA and iProvo
projects in Utah.   Like many news reports, they do not provide the 'whole
story'.   The 1st-Mile email list has provided previous update reports on
UTOPIA, and has links on the 1st-Mile web site Resource Links page, to the
project, as well as to the Baller Herbst law firm, cited in the articles.
iProvo information can be found at: http://provo.org/util.telcom_main.html
Stay tuned for more.
rl
------

>From MuniWireless
www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/6460/1/23/

Is fiber the solution for public broadband build-outs?

Posted by Carol Ellison at 6:03 AM Today

Now that the heady notion of free Wi-Fi is disappearing from municipal
agendas, the merits of publicly owned fiber networks are bubbling back
onto the scene. St. Paul, Minnesota, hopes to have fiber in its future.
But Utah, where two ambitious fiber projects are already underway,
believers in muni broadband are fighting to preserve the massive
investment the state has already made.

Knowing that the cost of a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network could run as
high as $200 million, the St. Paul city council nevertheless approved a
proposal to seek partners to build a city-owned fiber optic cable network.
It's a heartening example of the kind of foresight that Tim Wu argues is
necessary if governments are to preserve and expand critical
infrastructures in the U.S.

The council's move does not make the network a reality, however. This will
be a massive undertaking and the city cannot fund it alone. According to a
story in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the city is seeking assistance from
the local school system, the county and the state.

Utah is at a crossroads and could end up as an example of what happens
when governments allow themselves to be led by private interests that
appeal to anti-tax groups to quash necessary, but expensive, investments
in broadband infrastructures. The state is presently conducting hearings
that could result in the abandonment of two ambitious fiber projects
there.

At risk are Utah's municipal broadband built-outs,iProvo and UTOPIA. Both
are behind schedule and are not meeting their projected targets for
subscribers. This week, Jim Baller, senior principal of the Baller-Herbst
Law Group which represents munis on broadband and telecommunications
issues, defended iProvo and UTOPIA, saying "Countries that have access to
broadband, particularly in the higher speeds, are going to be successful
and the ones who fall behind may have difficulty catching up for years or
even decades."

UTOPIA and iProvo have heavy opposition. Qwest, the incumbent telco in
Utah, has fought both projects from the start. The Reason Foundation and
the Heartland Institute, organizations that have known financial ties to
the telcos, have attacked both projects in reports and testimony to the
Utah legislature.

------

And, from the Deseret Morning News:

Lawmakers hear broadband praise

By Jared Page
Contributing: Tad Walch
Published: September 27, 2007

The United States needs municipal-broadband ventures like UTOPIA and
iProvo, and it's much too soon to consider pulling the plug on them, an
attorney who represents local governments in such matters told state
legislators Wednesday.

Jim Baller, senior principal of the Washington, D.C.-based Baller Herbst
Law Group, touted the importance of viewing fiber-optic networks as
necessary infrastructure for communities to meet the high-tech demands of
residents and businesses.

"We are in a broadband world," Baller told the Government Competition and
Privatization Subcommittee. "Much of what we do going forward is going to
move toward a broadband platform. ... Countries that have access to
broadband, particularly in the higher speeds, are going to be successful,
and the ones who fall behind may have difficulty catching up for years or
even decades."

Baller's comments come less than a month after Steven Titch of the
Heartland Institute, a Chicago-based nonprofit research and education
organization, addressed the committee. Titch asserted that allowing
government entities to become key players in broadband is a bad idea
because it puts the public and private sectors in competition.

Titch argued that municipal-broadband systems fail because governments
underestimate costs and overinflate the number of customers they will
attract.

That's been the case with the Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure
Agency, a consortium of Utah cities creating a fiber-optic network to
every business and household in the 14 member cities.

UTOPIA originally projected 2006 as its operation break-even period but
has moved that back to 2008. Revenue was projected to start coming in by
2009; now UTOPIA officials are saying 2012, according to Leif G. Elder,
legislative policy analyst for the subcommittee.

Provo's fiber-optic network iProvo has had its financial problems, too.
The network has not generated enough income to completely cover the
payments on the $40 million bonds backed by sales-tax revenue.

To make the payments, the Provo City Council has loaned $3 million to
iProvo over the past two years. This year, instead of a loan, the council
authorized $1.2 million from an expected sales-tax surplus to cover
another expected shortfall in the iProvo budget.

Despite UTOPIA and iProvo falling short of early projections, Baller told
lawmakers there's "no credible evidence" that suggests municipal broadband
systems don't work.

"It's much too early in the life cycle to judge," he said. "In my view,
UTOPIA and iProvo are tremendous assets to Utah and for America as a
whole."

David Shaw, general counsel for UTOPIA, told legislators the agency has
experienced "externalities" since the project began - forces outside of
UTOPIA's control that have caused the business plan to "shift by
approximately two to three years."

Shaw cited the federal lawsuit filed against UTOPIA by Qwest in June 2005
that accused the agency of creating unfair competition because UTOPIA
contractors can sell communications services at below-market prices.

UTOPIA also had trouble getting pole-attachment agreements from owners to
add wires and equipment to power poles, and a federal loan for the project
was delayed, he said.

Royce Van Tassell, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, said
he doesn't buy those excuses.

"(UTOPIA) suggested a rather artful term, 'externalities,' which sounded
suspiciously like 'competition happened,'" Van Tassell said. "This is a
competitive environment.... If their business model was based on
assumptions so lowly that they didn't account for the fact that
competitors would respond... it's hard for me to have a great deal of
confidence in their suggestion that they're just two years behind."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Sep 28 22:13:27 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2007 22:13:27 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] More Fiber News: Might We Get Lucky?
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0709282203470.894-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Fiber bandwidth and pricing news from abroad, and on Verizon's blazing
hot services.
rl
------

I'm feeling lucky: Hongkong fiber 100 Mbps $48 per month

<http://www.muniwireless.com/article/view/6442/>

Actually I would feel lucky about super fast broadband if I lived in
Hongkong where people get 100 Mbps for $48.50 and 1 Gbps for $215.40.
Here in the Netherlands we are nowhere near that. Our Amsterdam
Citynet FTTH project has not even reached the city center where I live.

But other people are even less lucky according to this article in
Gizmodo <http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/connectivity/hong-kong-fiber-
optic-rates-prove-verizons-fios-is-a-rip+off-303358.php> which says
Verizon in the US is "aggressively trying to sell the country on
their FiOS fiber optic web connection packages, which range from $40
per month for 5Mbps to 30Mbps for $180 (extra for TV and phone
service!)."

UPDATE

10 Mbps symmetrical service is the new dial-up.
Dirk van der Woude (Amsterdam) reports that in Hongkong, 10 Mbps
symmetrical service is being phased out. Too slow.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Thu Oct  4 11:25:08 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 11:25:08 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] TPRC Program
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041113450.7906-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The annual TPRC (Technology Policy Research Council) conference just took
place in DC.   The program, though very academic, always has important and
useful papers presented.  For those of you willing to wade through the
difficult stuff, there are some papers that are relevant to this list, and
to understanding the difficult issues facing us in New Mexico, with
regard to broadband fiber, wireless and our networked economic future.
Take a look.
	www.tprc.org/TPRC07/Program07.htm


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From ggomes at soundviewnet.com  Thu Oct  4 13:49:31 2007
From: ggomes at soundviewnet.com (Gary Gomes)
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 14:49:31 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] TPRC Program
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041113450.7906-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041113450.7906-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <00d701c806c8$108c86d0$0301a8c0@GARY>

Richard,

Thank you for the post - the Kentucky Broadband economic development paper
has valuable information for use in creating viable business cases in New
Mexico.

Gary Gomes

-----Original Message-----
From: 1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org
[mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org] On Behalf Of Richard Lowenberg
Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 12:25 PM
To: 1st-mile-nm at crank.dcn.davis.ca.us
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] TPRC Program

The annual TPRC (Technology Policy Research Council) conference just took
place in DC.   The program, though very academic, always has important and
useful papers presented.  For those of you willing to wade through the
difficult stuff, there are some papers that are relevant to this list, and
to understanding the difficult issues facing us in New Mexico, with
regard to broadband fiber, wireless and our networked economic future.
Take a look.
	www.tprc.org/TPRC07/Program07.htm


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------


_______________________________________________
1st-mile-nm mailing list
1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm





From rl at radlab.com  Thu Oct  4 16:46:54 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 16:46:54 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FTTH Stats
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Just in from the Fiber to the Home Council.

Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than doubled from
a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data released
today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.

<http://telephonyonline.com/home/news/ftth_homes_connections_100307/>


FTTH Con: U.S. FTTH connections top 2 million
By Ed Gubbins
Oct 3, 2007 2:00 PM

ORLANDO--Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than doubled
from a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data released
today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.

As of September, 2.14 million U.S. homes were connected to fiber, more
than double the 1.01 million connected a year earlier, RVA said. The
current annual growth rate of 112% is up from the 99% seen in March and
down from the 213% seen a year ago from a smaller base.

Fiber now passes 9.55 million U.S. homes, up 56% from a year earlier.

And FTTH video subscribers are up 160% from a year earlier to 1.1 million.

Verizon Communications accounts for about two thirds of the countrys FTTH
subscribers and more than two thirds of the homes passed by fiber.

While overall FTTH take rates had been suppressed while Verizon was
building its FTTH infrastructure faster than it was adding customers, the
company is connecting customers more quickly now, said the FTTH Council,
which released the results of RVAs research in conjunction with the
Telecommunications Industry Association.

However, Verizons take rates are low compared to the rest of the industry,
RVA said. The average take rate for all FTTH services is nearly 27% (up
from 22% six months ago). But while Verizon reports a 19% take rate for
its fiber broadband service, for example, the average take rate among the
rest of the FTTH sector is nearly 52%.

Though Verizon has the lions share of the domestic FTTH business, analysts
have been surprised by the growth rate of other FTTH providers. There are
369 FTTH providers in the U.S. today, 5% more than there were a year ago,
RVA said.

Bell companies account for 69% of the countrys FTTH subscribers, RVA said,
while other incumbent telcos account for 16%. Competitive local exchange
carriers hold 6% of FTTH subscribers, and those in partnership with
developers hold another 5%. Municipalities hold more than 3%.

RVAs numbers dont necessarily include multidwelling units, where fiber
often extends only to building basements, and subscribers are served more
directly by advanced DSL over copper.

Also this week, the FTTH Council pointed out that, as of the end of last
year, the U.S. was dead last in a list of 11 countries with more than 1%
FTTH and fiber-to-the-building market penetration. Topping the list was
Hong Kong, with 21% penetration, South Korea with 20% and Japan with 16%.
The U.S. had just 1% penetration.

However, the FTTH Council suggested earlier this week that the new data
could change the U.S. position in those rankings.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------





From tom at jtjohnson.com  Thu Oct  4 22:28:42 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 23:28:42 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Gmail - WiDAR 04Oct07 - WiMAX in a Developing World
Message-ID: <e04090490710042228y4bc3718w2530711d49f03cce@mail.gmail.com>

Ah, those "developing" countries.  Damn, they just keep developing.

http://mail.google.com/mail/?auth=DQAAAHUAAAAPlrUAgi0-HXm_BwfkjIJSwF37P32aPYxpTpKhISEHVcUD85v7xfvD72T2DPIVKdxps4ZValvxUzPOeeZdCVkOjccQPFkQbSqEiRhp4YlnF6dUs2E9TGS46IW7xrwFp9aGYdJJwQKbHkitMlsP5O6YkQa8agcv2GqRkwriqfIvrg---

-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From owen at backspaces.net  Thu Oct  4 16:52:58 2007
From: owen at backspaces.net (Owen Densmore)
Date: Thu, 4 Oct 2007 17:52:58 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FTTH Stats
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <C85B2F49-48E6-44B6-A9A2-157A7CBC8864@backspaces.net>

Just out of curiosity, what is the best broadband to the home  
possible in Santa Fe or all of NM for that matter?  .. regardless of  
price?

Owen


On Oct 4, 2007, at 5:46 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:

> Just in from the Fiber to the Home Council.
>
> Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than doubled from
> a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data released
> today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
>
> <http://telephonyonline.com/home/news/ftth_homes_connections_100307/>
>
>
> FTTH Con: U.S. FTTH connections top 2 million
> By Ed Gubbins
> Oct 3, 2007 2:00 PM
>
> ORLANDO--Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than  
> doubled
> from a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data  
> released
> today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
>
> As of September, 2.14 million U.S. homes were connected to fiber, more
> than double the 1.01 million connected a year earlier, RVA said. The
> current annual growth rate of 112% is up from the 99% seen in March  
> and
> down from the 213% seen a year ago from a smaller base.
>
> Fiber now passes 9.55 million U.S. homes, up 56% from a year earlier.
>
> And FTTH video subscribers are up 160% from a year earlier to 1.1  
> million.
>
> Verizon Communications accounts for about two thirds of the  
> countrys FTTH
> subscribers and more than two thirds of the homes passed by fiber.
>
> While overall FTTH take rates had been suppressed while Verizon was
> building its FTTH infrastructure faster than it was adding  
> customers, the
> company is connecting customers more quickly now, said the FTTH  
> Council,
> which released the results of RVAs research in conjunction with the
> Telecommunications Industry Association.
>
> However, Verizons take rates are low compared to the rest of the  
> industry,
> RVA said. The average take rate for all FTTH services is nearly 27%  
> (up
> from 22% six months ago). But while Verizon reports a 19% take rate  
> for
> its fiber broadband service, for example, the average take rate  
> among the
> rest of the FTTH sector is nearly 52%.
>
> Though Verizon has the lions share of the domestic FTTH business,  
> analysts
> have been surprised by the growth rate of other FTTH providers.  
> There are
> 369 FTTH providers in the U.S. today, 5% more than there were a  
> year ago,
> RVA said.
>
> Bell companies account for 69% of the countrys FTTH subscribers,  
> RVA said,
> while other incumbent telcos account for 16%. Competitive local  
> exchange
> carriers hold 6% of FTTH subscribers, and those in partnership with
> developers hold another 5%. Municipalities hold more than 3%.
>
> RVAs numbers dont necessarily include multidwelling units, where fiber
> often extends only to building basements, and subscribers are  
> served more
> directly by advanced DSL over copper.
>
> Also this week, the FTTH Council pointed out that, as of the end of  
> last
> year, the U.S. was dead last in a list of 11 countries with more  
> than 1%
> FTTH and fiber-to-the-building market penetration. Topping the list  
> was
> Hong Kong, with 21% penetration, South Korea with 20% and Japan  
> with 16%.
> The U.S. had just 1% penetration.
>
> However, the FTTH Council suggested earlier this week that the new  
> data
> could change the U.S. position in those rankings.
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------
> Richard Lowenberg
> P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
> 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
>
> New Mexico Broadband Initiative
> www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
> ------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm



From tom at jtjohnson.com  Fri Oct  5 11:12:57 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 12:12:57 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FTTH Stats
In-Reply-To: <C85B2F49-48E6-44B6-A9A2-157A7CBC8864@backspaces.net>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
	<C85B2F49-48E6-44B6-A9A2-157A7CBC8864@backspaces.net>
Message-ID: <e04090490710051112l38e4dbaej83244dcdddce65ca@mail.gmail.com>

Richard probably has a better answer than I, but you could buy a T1 for
around $400 per month.  But I look at these companies and see that they're
talking about 1.5mbps download.  Hell, that's DSL speeds so where's the
advantage today for T1?  Even Comcast is delivering much more for much less,
apparently.

But see http://t1links.com/nm/santa-fe-county.cfm

-tom


On 10/4/07, Owen Densmore <owen at backspaces.net> wrote:
>
> Just out of curiosity, what is the best broadband to the home
> possible in Santa Fe or all of NM for that matter?  .. regardless of
> price?
>
> Owen
>
>
> On Oct 4, 2007, at 5:46 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:
>
> > Just in from the Fiber to the Home Council.
> >
> > Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than doubled from
> > a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data released
> > today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
> >
> > <http://telephonyonline.com/home/news/ftth_homes_connections_100307/>
> >
> >
> > FTTH Con: U.S. FTTH connections top 2 million
> > By Ed Gubbins
> > Oct 3, 2007 2:00 PM
> >
> > ORLANDO--Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than
> > doubled
> > from a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data
> > released
> > today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
> >
> > As of September, 2.14 million U.S. homes were connected to fiber, more
> > than double the 1.01 million connected a year earlier, RVA said. The
> > current annual growth rate of 112% is up from the 99% seen in March
> > and
> > down from the 213% seen a year ago from a smaller base.
> >
> > Fiber now passes 9.55 million U.S. homes, up 56% from a year earlier.
> >
> > And FTTH video subscribers are up 160% from a year earlier to 1.1
> > million.
> >
> > Verizon Communications accounts for about two thirds of the
> > countrys FTTH
> > subscribers and more than two thirds of the homes passed by fiber.
> >
> > While overall FTTH take rates had been suppressed while Verizon was
> > building its FTTH infrastructure faster than it was adding
> > customers, the
> > company is connecting customers more quickly now, said the FTTH
> > Council,
> > which released the results of RVAs research in conjunction with the
> > Telecommunications Industry Association.
> >
> > However, Verizons take rates are low compared to the rest of the
> > industry,
> > RVA said. The average take rate for all FTTH services is nearly 27%
> > (up
> > from 22% six months ago). But while Verizon reports a 19% take rate
> > for
> > its fiber broadband service, for example, the average take rate
> > among the
> > rest of the FTTH sector is nearly 52%.
> >
> > Though Verizon has the lions share of the domestic FTTH business,
> > analysts
> > have been surprised by the growth rate of other FTTH providers.
> > There are
> > 369 FTTH providers in the U.S. today, 5% more than there were a
> > year ago,
> > RVA said.
> >
> > Bell companies account for 69% of the countrys FTTH subscribers,
> > RVA said,
> > while other incumbent telcos account for 16%. Competitive local
> > exchange
> > carriers hold 6% of FTTH subscribers, and those in partnership with
> > developers hold another 5%. Municipalities hold more than 3%.
> >
> > RVAs numbers dont necessarily include multidwelling units, where fiber
> > often extends only to building basements, and subscribers are
> > served more
> > directly by advanced DSL over copper.
> >
> > Also this week, the FTTH Council pointed out that, as of the end of
> > last
> > year, the U.S. was dead last in a list of 11 countries with more
> > than 1%
> > FTTH and fiber-to-the-building market penetration. Topping the list
> > was
> > Hong Kong, with 21% penetration, South Korea with 20% and Japan
> > with 16%.
> > The U.S. had just 1% penetration.
> >
> > However, the FTTH Council suggested earlier this week that the new
> > data
> > could change the U.S. position in those rankings.
> >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------
> > Richard Lowenberg
> > P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
> > 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
> >
> > New Mexico Broadband Initiative
> > www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
> > ------------------------------------------------
> >
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> > 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> > http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>



-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Fri Oct  5 15:22:59 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 15:22:59 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Jim Baller's Broadband Presentation in Utah
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710051519270.29135-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Forwarded from MuniWireless: (This is a follow-up to the recent past
posting about the UTOPIA and iProvo fiber projects in Utah.)

Posted by Carol Ellison at 6:27 PM on October 1, 2007
www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/6465/1/3/

Why the U.S. is losing the broadband race

Jim Baller of the Baller-Herbst Law Group, which represents municipalities
on broadband and telecom issues, has posted the presentation he made to
the Utah Legislature's Government and Privatization Committee last week.

It presents a compelling case for the role of government in providing
broadband access. Jim compared the imperative to the need for rural
electrification many years ago and illustrated how, if current trends
continue, the United States will enter a technological backwater behind
nations like China and Japan. Americans already pay 20 times as much to
receive one-thirtieth the broadband speed as citizens in Japan.

Jim's presentation:  www.baller.com/pdfs/Baller_Utah_9-26-07.pdf


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From pete at ideapete.com  Fri Oct  5 19:59:09 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 20:59:09 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] EBS 802.16 hidden money for schools
Message-ID: <4706F9FD.8000107@ideapete.com>

Just a neat twist in the licensing for Wi-Max 802.16

60% of the Wimax bandwidth is reserved for schools and non profits under 
the EBS or Educational Broadband System transition

Most schools do no have clue that they own the rights to these licenses 
and of course Qwest / Sprint / Clearwire are making a big push to take 
them from the districts at no cost

One non profit on the east coast has accumulated some $250m of these 
from unsuspecting school districts at very little cost

see below


*The Broadband Radio Service (BRS)*, formerly known as the Multipoint 
Distribution Service (MDS)/Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service 
(MMDS), is a commercial service. In the past, it was generally used for 
the transmission of data and video programming to subscribers using 
high-powered systems, also known as wireless cable. However, over the 
years, the uses have evolved to include digital two-way systems capable 
of providing high-speed, high-capacity broadband service, including 
two-way Internet service via cellularized communication systems. Such 
services provide consumers integrated access to voice, high-speed data, 
video-on-demand, and interactive delivery services from a wireless device.
*The Educational Broadband Service (EBS)*, formerly known as the 
Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS), is an educational service 
that has generally been used for the transmission of instructional 
material to accredited educational institutions and non-educational 
institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes, training centers, and 
rehabilitation centers using high-powered systems. Our recent revamping 
of the EBS spectrum will now make it possible for EBS users to continue 
their instructional services utilizing low-power broadband systems while 
also providing students with high-speed internet access.

-----------------------------------------

Sprint is placing a risky bet on the largely unproven technology to 
revive a wireless business that has lost ground to those of rivals 
Verizon and AT&T, analysts say. Upstart Clearwire, meanwhile, hopes 
WiMax can one day help the company become a major telecom player.
But laying the groundwork for WiMax has involved a messy endeavor to 
gather up access to necessary airwaves. Much of the spectrum is owned by 
non-profits and schools, such as those in Burke County, Ga. Many have 
held it for years, without assigning much value to it. Wrangling over 
rights to this spectrum has pitted Sprint against a number of the 
schools and non-profits, while underlining a rift with Clearwire, an 
important partner in dispatching WiMax in its early stages.
Decades ago, the Federal Communications Commission allocated to schools 
and non-profits much of the 2.5 gigahertz spectrum ideal for WiMax. 
Classified as "EBS," it can't be owned directly by businesses. The North 
American Catholic Educational Programming Foundation, for example, can 
use it to broadcast programming such as "Prayer Talk" and "Gift and 
Mystery."
Others, like the Burke County schools near Augusta, Ga., didn't even 
realize they had it until Sprint came calling.
General counsel for Burke County Public Schools, James Hyder, said 
Sprint made an unexpected offer early last year to lease one of the 
schools' two spectrum licenses.
"We woke up one day and saw we had these," Hyder said. After a call to a 
former superintendent to clear up what it was exactly Sprint was after, 
the schools agreed, Hyder said.
Seeing dollar signs
The relationship took an odd turn late last year, however, when the 
Burke County schools applied to the FCC to renew a second, expired 
spectrum license. Around 40 other organizations, ranging from Heartland 
Community College to Connecticut Public Broadcasting, had also applied 
for the renewal of expired EBS licenses which, thanks largely to WiMax, 
have dramatically increased in value.
The FCC granted those requests in January, inviting a flood of hundreds 
of subsequent late renewal requests. Sprint has called the development a 
mushrooming threat to its network plans. It filed a petition for the 
commission to reconsider the late renewals in February.
"These former licensees seek to hijack ... valuable spectrum," Sprint 
said in its petition, adding that the FCC "should not be mislead into 
granting new authorizations."
Clearwire, meanwhile, has sided with the schools and non-profits. The 
FCC hasn't yet issued a decision on the matter.
The EBS spectrum in question was long seen as having little value beyond 
broadcasting TV signals in one direction. That's changed as companies 
like Sprint and Clearwire have announced plans to use it for beaming 
data and voice communication among computers and phones on WiMax 
networks, and as the FCC has issued rules making it easier to lease for 
commercial purposes.
"These educational groups who didn't really care ... whether they had 
these [licenses] or not are now seeing dollar signs," said Tim Sanders, 
an analyst with research firm Maravedis Inc.
Indeed, some groups have seen handsome windfalls, thanks to the 
spectrum's increased value. But the grab for airwaves has also resulted 
in a series of lawsuits and a surplus of acrimony.
Pandora's box
WiMax can blast radio signals far more broadly than WiFi, thus requiring 
less network equipment to cover large areas, and some believe it also 
has certain technical advantages over cellular phone technology.
But the FCC's decision to grant renewals of expired EBS licenses could 
mar Sprint's WiMax rollout by cutting holes in carefully-planned network 
coverage areas, the company says. Sprint would either have to negotiate 
new deals for the reinstated licenses, or see them fall to competitors.
A number of educational groups with EBS licenses have also joined Sprint 
in complaining about the renewals, which they say threaten to impinge on 
existing coverage areas.
"You think you have a three-bedroom house, and then all of a sudden 
someone comes and says, 'hey, half the house is mine'," said Sprint 
spokesman Scott Sloat. "This has opened a whole Pandora's box."
So far, at least 188 expired EBS license renewal applications have now 
been filed with the FCC, Sloat said.
In a filing with the FCC posted Friday, Sprint, Clearwire and a number 
of license holders put forth a proposed settlement, under which 
late-renewed licenses would have slightly altered coverage areas.
The impetus for the schools' and non-profits' late renewals, Maravedis' 
Sanders said, is often "someone approaching them and saying, 'we'll 
lease your spectrum if you can get your license back'."
"I can't speak to their motivation other than to say spectrum is a 
valuable asset, and people aware of that may see that as an opportunity 
for a land grab," Sloat said.
Hyder, the Burke County schools' general counsel, said the decision to 
renew their second spectrum license and seek a suitor was an easy one. 
"It's the difference between getting nothing today, and something 
tomorrow," Hyder said, adding that whatever the schools are offered to 
lease the spectrum "doesn't have to be too significant" for a deal to 
make sense.
Sprint isn't solely dependent on EBS spectrum, as there are other 
varieties of 2.5 gigahertz airwaves that companies can own directly. So 
the flood of EBS license renewal applications doesn't pose a terminal 
threat, Sloat said.
"This isn't something we feel is going to threaten our rollout of what 
we announced as far as a WiMax network," he said, "but it can slow you 
down in spots."
Michael Thelander, an analyst with Signals Research Group in Oakland, 
Calif., said that EBS spectrum could be crucial to Sprint for filling in 
large coverage areas. "For what Sprint's trying to do, it's extremely 
important," he said.
Clearwire, however, is more dependent on EBS leases than Sprint, as 
Sprint owns more spectrum directly. That, analysts say, may be why 
Clearwire has sided against Sprint in the dispute over late renewals 
before the FCC, arguing that the schools and non-profits have the right 
to renew their expired licenses.
Gerard Salemme, an executive vice president at Clearwire, said the 
company only wants to uphold the rules. "We're a little nonplussed 
Sprint raised this issue," Salemme said. "This was us just reading the 
rules the way the FCC wrote them."
The more expired licenses are renewed, the more spectrum can be utilized 
quickly, Salemme argued. About two-thirds of Clearwire's 2.5 gigahertz 
spectrum is now leased through schools and non-profits, he said.
The split underlines the fact that while Sprint and Clearwire have 
agreed to partner on network rollout, they are still rivals, Thelander 
said.
"If you believe in what you're doing, you'd want to control the 
spectrum, and not your partner," he said.
Of the entire 2.5 gigahertz band, roughly two-thirds is EBS and must be 
leased through schools and non-profits, said Todd Gray, an attorney with 
law firm Dow Lohnes PLLC.
Such leasing arrangements thus underpin a technology carrying high 
expectations not only for Sprint and Clearwire, but other tech giants as 
well. Google Inc. (GOOG <http://www.marketwatch.com/quotes/goog>:
google inc cl
for example, has signed a deal whereby it will divvy up revenue with 
Sprint derived from mobile-phone advertising served over a WiMax network.

Cashing in
While it has sided with schools and non-profits before the FCC, 
Clearwire has had its own confrontations with the groups over spectrum 
rights.
Last year, Clearwire filed suit to prevent an Oakland, Calif.-based 
community college from wriggling out of a spectrum lease agreement and 
offering rights to a rival company. In court filings, Clearwire claimed 
the spectrum held by Peralta Community College District was the only 
batch of suitable airwaves available to it in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Peralta, meanwhile, complained it was not being properly compensated.
Earlier this year, following months of litigation, Peralta secured a 
more favorable agreement with Clearwire for the spectrum rights, 
according to a person familiar with the matter.
"I don't know the details on that," Salemme said of the settlement, 
adding that conflicts with schools and non-profits through which 
Clearwire leases spectrum are "more the anomaly."
While Clearwire hasn't yet offered service in San Francisco, it has 
begun advertising San Francisco-based jobs for network deployment 
managers on its Web site. Salemme declined to discuss the company's 
future rollout plans.
Clearwire's EBS spectrum holdings are a major plus in the eyes of Wall 
Street analysts. McAdams Wright Ragen initiated coverage of the company 
in August with a buy rating, noting that its "spectrum position" gives 
it a "significant advantage over its competitors."
The spectrum's importance can in turn benefit the schools and 
non-profits holding the rights to it, said Gray, of Dow Lohnes. "For 
folks who know what they're doing and are being well advised, they're 
doing well," Gray said.
For example, Clearwire has signed spectrum agreements with organizations 
such as the North American Catholic Educational Programming Foundation, 
or NACEPF, that involve payments in company stock.
Though terms of Clearwire's spectrum deals with NACEPF haven't been 
disclosed, NACEPF held $10.5 million worth of Clearwire stock as of 
September 2006, before the company's March IPO greatly increased the 
stock's value, according NACEPF's tax filings. NACEPF had total assets 
of $30.2 million as of September, according to tax filings.
In another example, the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications 
Network, a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based organization that has also leased 
spectrum to Clearwire, held over 11 million company shares after the 
IPO, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filings. That 
stake would be worth roughly $268 million today.
That's quite a payoff, at least on paper, for the obscure non-profit. 
According to tax filings, the organization had just $25.7 million in 
total assets at the end of 2005.
Some of Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network's most 
valuable spectrum has been the subject of a legal dispute involving 
Sprint and Clearwire. In February, a Sprint subsidiary sued the 
non-profit for breach of contract, after it opted to lease spectrum in 
Washington, D.C. formerly in the subsidiary's possession to Clearwire 
instead. A judge found in the non-profit's favor last month.
"You gain experience over the years in negotiations with these 
operators," said Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network 
Chairman Jose Luis Rodriguez. "There were a lot of people that really 
didn't pay much attention to this, but we always saw it as real estate." 
End of Story
/John Letzing is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco./

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Fri Oct  5 19:59:09 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 20:59:09 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] EBS 802.16 hidden money for schools
Message-ID: <4706F9FD.8000107@ideapete.com>

Just a neat twist in the licensing for Wi-Max 802.16

60% of the Wimax bandwidth is reserved for schools and non profits under 
the EBS or Educational Broadband System transition

Most schools do no have clue that they own the rights to these licenses 
and of course Qwest / Sprint / Clearwire are making a big push to take 
them from the districts at no cost

One non profit on the east coast has accumulated some $250m of these 
from unsuspecting school districts at very little cost

see below


*The Broadband Radio Service (BRS)*, formerly known as the Multipoint 
Distribution Service (MDS)/Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service 
(MMDS), is a commercial service. In the past, it was generally used for 
the transmission of data and video programming to subscribers using 
high-powered systems, also known as wireless cable. However, over the 
years, the uses have evolved to include digital two-way systems capable 
of providing high-speed, high-capacity broadband service, including 
two-way Internet service via cellularized communication systems. Such 
services provide consumers integrated access to voice, high-speed data, 
video-on-demand, and interactive delivery services from a wireless device.
*The Educational Broadband Service (EBS)*, formerly known as the 
Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS), is an educational service 
that has generally been used for the transmission of instructional 
material to accredited educational institutions and non-educational 
institutions such as hospitals, nursing homes, training centers, and 
rehabilitation centers using high-powered systems. Our recent revamping 
of the EBS spectrum will now make it possible for EBS users to continue 
their instructional services utilizing low-power broadband systems while 
also providing students with high-speed internet access.

-----------------------------------------

Sprint is placing a risky bet on the largely unproven technology to 
revive a wireless business that has lost ground to those of rivals 
Verizon and AT&T, analysts say. Upstart Clearwire, meanwhile, hopes 
WiMax can one day help the company become a major telecom player.
But laying the groundwork for WiMax has involved a messy endeavor to 
gather up access to necessary airwaves. Much of the spectrum is owned by 
non-profits and schools, such as those in Burke County, Ga. Many have 
held it for years, without assigning much value to it. Wrangling over 
rights to this spectrum has pitted Sprint against a number of the 
schools and non-profits, while underlining a rift with Clearwire, an 
important partner in dispatching WiMax in its early stages.
Decades ago, the Federal Communications Commission allocated to schools 
and non-profits much of the 2.5 gigahertz spectrum ideal for WiMax. 
Classified as "EBS," it can't be owned directly by businesses. The North 
American Catholic Educational Programming Foundation, for example, can 
use it to broadcast programming such as "Prayer Talk" and "Gift and 
Mystery."
Others, like the Burke County schools near Augusta, Ga., didn't even 
realize they had it until Sprint came calling.
General counsel for Burke County Public Schools, James Hyder, said 
Sprint made an unexpected offer early last year to lease one of the 
schools' two spectrum licenses.
"We woke up one day and saw we had these," Hyder said. After a call to a 
former superintendent to clear up what it was exactly Sprint was after, 
the schools agreed, Hyder said.
Seeing dollar signs
The relationship took an odd turn late last year, however, when the 
Burke County schools applied to the FCC to renew a second, expired 
spectrum license. Around 40 other organizations, ranging from Heartland 
Community College to Connecticut Public Broadcasting, had also applied 
for the renewal of expired EBS licenses which, thanks largely to WiMax, 
have dramatically increased in value.
The FCC granted those requests in January, inviting a flood of hundreds 
of subsequent late renewal requests. Sprint has called the development a 
mushrooming threat to its network plans. It filed a petition for the 
commission to reconsider the late renewals in February.
"These former licensees seek to hijack ... valuable spectrum," Sprint 
said in its petition, adding that the FCC "should not be mislead into 
granting new authorizations."
Clearwire, meanwhile, has sided with the schools and non-profits. The 
FCC hasn't yet issued a decision on the matter.
The EBS spectrum in question was long seen as having little value beyond 
broadcasting TV signals in one direction. That's changed as companies 
like Sprint and Clearwire have announced plans to use it for beaming 
data and voice communication among computers and phones on WiMax 
networks, and as the FCC has issued rules making it easier to lease for 
commercial purposes.
"These educational groups who didn't really care ... whether they had 
these [licenses] or not are now seeing dollar signs," said Tim Sanders, 
an analyst with research firm Maravedis Inc.
Indeed, some groups have seen handsome windfalls, thanks to the 
spectrum's increased value. But the grab for airwaves has also resulted 
in a series of lawsuits and a surplus of acrimony.
Pandora's box
WiMax can blast radio signals far more broadly than WiFi, thus requiring 
less network equipment to cover large areas, and some believe it also 
has certain technical advantages over cellular phone technology.
But the FCC's decision to grant renewals of expired EBS licenses could 
mar Sprint's WiMax rollout by cutting holes in carefully-planned network 
coverage areas, the company says. Sprint would either have to negotiate 
new deals for the reinstated licenses, or see them fall to competitors.
A number of educational groups with EBS licenses have also joined Sprint 
in complaining about the renewals, which they say threaten to impinge on 
existing coverage areas.
"You think you have a three-bedroom house, and then all of a sudden 
someone comes and says, 'hey, half the house is mine'," said Sprint 
spokesman Scott Sloat. "This has opened a whole Pandora's box."
So far, at least 188 expired EBS license renewal applications have now 
been filed with the FCC, Sloat said.
In a filing with the FCC posted Friday, Sprint, Clearwire and a number 
of license holders put forth a proposed settlement, under which 
late-renewed licenses would have slightly altered coverage areas.
The impetus for the schools' and non-profits' late renewals, Maravedis' 
Sanders said, is often "someone approaching them and saying, 'we'll 
lease your spectrum if you can get your license back'."
"I can't speak to their motivation other than to say spectrum is a 
valuable asset, and people aware of that may see that as an opportunity 
for a land grab," Sloat said.
Hyder, the Burke County schools' general counsel, said the decision to 
renew their second spectrum license and seek a suitor was an easy one. 
"It's the difference between getting nothing today, and something 
tomorrow," Hyder said, adding that whatever the schools are offered to 
lease the spectrum "doesn't have to be too significant" for a deal to 
make sense.
Sprint isn't solely dependent on EBS spectrum, as there are other 
varieties of 2.5 gigahertz airwaves that companies can own directly. So 
the flood of EBS license renewal applications doesn't pose a terminal 
threat, Sloat said.
"This isn't something we feel is going to threaten our rollout of what 
we announced as far as a WiMax network," he said, "but it can slow you 
down in spots."
Michael Thelander, an analyst with Signals Research Group in Oakland, 
Calif., said that EBS spectrum could be crucial to Sprint for filling in 
large coverage areas. "For what Sprint's trying to do, it's extremely 
important," he said.
Clearwire, however, is more dependent on EBS leases than Sprint, as 
Sprint owns more spectrum directly. That, analysts say, may be why 
Clearwire has sided against Sprint in the dispute over late renewals 
before the FCC, arguing that the schools and non-profits have the right 
to renew their expired licenses.
Gerard Salemme, an executive vice president at Clearwire, said the 
company only wants to uphold the rules. "We're a little nonplussed 
Sprint raised this issue," Salemme said. "This was us just reading the 
rules the way the FCC wrote them."
The more expired licenses are renewed, the more spectrum can be utilized 
quickly, Salemme argued. About two-thirds of Clearwire's 2.5 gigahertz 
spectrum is now leased through schools and non-profits, he said.
The split underlines the fact that while Sprint and Clearwire have 
agreed to partner on network rollout, they are still rivals, Thelander 
said.
"If you believe in what you're doing, you'd want to control the 
spectrum, and not your partner," he said.
Of the entire 2.5 gigahertz band, roughly two-thirds is EBS and must be 
leased through schools and non-profits, said Todd Gray, an attorney with 
law firm Dow Lohnes PLLC.
Such leasing arrangements thus underpin a technology carrying high 
expectations not only for Sprint and Clearwire, but other tech giants as 
well. Google Inc. (GOOG <http://www.marketwatch.com/quotes/goog>:
google inc cl
for example, has signed a deal whereby it will divvy up revenue with 
Sprint derived from mobile-phone advertising served over a WiMax network.

Cashing in
While it has sided with schools and non-profits before the FCC, 
Clearwire has had its own confrontations with the groups over spectrum 
rights.
Last year, Clearwire filed suit to prevent an Oakland, Calif.-based 
community college from wriggling out of a spectrum lease agreement and 
offering rights to a rival company. In court filings, Clearwire claimed 
the spectrum held by Peralta Community College District was the only 
batch of suitable airwaves available to it in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Peralta, meanwhile, complained it was not being properly compensated.
Earlier this year, following months of litigation, Peralta secured a 
more favorable agreement with Clearwire for the spectrum rights, 
according to a person familiar with the matter.
"I don't know the details on that," Salemme said of the settlement, 
adding that conflicts with schools and non-profits through which 
Clearwire leases spectrum are "more the anomaly."
While Clearwire hasn't yet offered service in San Francisco, it has 
begun advertising San Francisco-based jobs for network deployment 
managers on its Web site. Salemme declined to discuss the company's 
future rollout plans.
Clearwire's EBS spectrum holdings are a major plus in the eyes of Wall 
Street analysts. McAdams Wright Ragen initiated coverage of the company 
in August with a buy rating, noting that its "spectrum position" gives 
it a "significant advantage over its competitors."
The spectrum's importance can in turn benefit the schools and 
non-profits holding the rights to it, said Gray, of Dow Lohnes. "For 
folks who know what they're doing and are being well advised, they're 
doing well," Gray said.
For example, Clearwire has signed spectrum agreements with organizations 
such as the North American Catholic Educational Programming Foundation, 
or NACEPF, that involve payments in company stock.
Though terms of Clearwire's spectrum deals with NACEPF haven't been 
disclosed, NACEPF held $10.5 million worth of Clearwire stock as of 
September 2006, before the company's March IPO greatly increased the 
stock's value, according NACEPF's tax filings. NACEPF had total assets 
of $30.2 million as of September, according to tax filings.
In another example, the Hispanic Information and Telecommunications 
Network, a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based organization that has also leased 
spectrum to Clearwire, held over 11 million company shares after the 
IPO, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filings. That 
stake would be worth roughly $268 million today.
That's quite a payoff, at least on paper, for the obscure non-profit. 
According to tax filings, the organization had just $25.7 million in 
total assets at the end of 2005.
Some of Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network's most 
valuable spectrum has been the subject of a legal dispute involving 
Sprint and Clearwire. In February, a Sprint subsidiary sued the 
non-profit for breach of contract, after it opted to lease spectrum in 
Washington, D.C. formerly in the subsidiary's possession to Clearwire 
instead. A judge found in the non-profit's favor last month.
"You gain experience over the years in negotiations with these 
operators," said Hispanic Information and Telecommunications Network 
Chairman Jose Luis Rodriguez. "There were a lot of people that really 
didn't pay much attention to this, but we always saw it as real estate." 
End of Story
/John Letzing is a MarketWatch reporter based in San Francisco./

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From bob at bobknight.net  Fri Oct  5 22:30:02 2007
From: bob at bobknight.net (Bob Knight)
Date: Fri, 05 Oct 2007 23:30:02 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FTTH Stats
In-Reply-To: <e04090490710051112l38e4dbaej83244dcdddce65ca@mail.gmail.com>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>	<C85B2F49-48E6-44B6-A9A2-157A7CBC8864@backspaces.net>
	<e04090490710051112l38e4dbaej83244dcdddce65ca@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <47071D5A.6090007@bobknight.net>

Depends if you only need downstream speed. If you need upstream, then 
symmetric bandwidth is the ticket. Look at the speed test archive at 
dslreports.com to compare the ratios for various providers.

One thing Comcast is notorious for is its usage limits, which are not 
publicized. People have triggered the company's ire all over the US. 
However, that is the residential offering. The business offering is 
likely more appropriate for large users.

On the whole, though, I'd agree with Tom: T-1's are not financially 
viable considering the alternatives available. Interestingly, though, 
the DS-3 we just installed will cost us about the same as our four 
existing T-1's: $3k per month (we have some backhaul requirements that 
kick the price in our two rural locations). 30x bandwidth for a quarter 
the cost :).

Generally, we don't get bent about lots of usage. Downstream bandwidth 
is unregulated, with the caveat that we ask our members to be respectful 
during peak periods. One serious impact on our network, though, is 
sustained upstream usage such as can be caused by heavy P2P. It just 
kills our 802.11b links. Most of our backhauls are 802.11a and it's less 
of a problem for those, since they're usually point-to-point which 
avoids hidden node issues (mostly). 802.11 half-duplex 
point-to-multipoint just doesn't cut it for that sort of traffic. I'd 
like to see what 802.16 does in those situations, though. Real Soon Now, 
perhaps.

FWIW.

Bob





Tom Johnson wrote:
> Richard probably has a better answer than I, but you could buy a T1 
> for around $400 per month.  But I look at these companies and see that 
> they're talking about 1.5mbps download.  Hell, that's DSL speeds so 
> where's the advantage today for T1?  Even Comcast is delivering much 
> more for much less, apparently.
>
> But see http://t1links.com/nm/santa-fe-county.cfm
>
> -tom
>
>
> On 10/4/07, *Owen Densmore* <owen at backspaces.net 
> <mailto:owen at backspaces.net>> wrote:
>
>     Just out of curiosity, what is the best broadband to the home
>     possible in Santa Fe or all of NM for that matter?  .. regardless of
>     price?
>
>     Owen
>
>
>     On Oct 4, 2007, at 5:46 PM, Richard Lowenberg wrote:
>
>     > Just in from the Fiber to the Home Council.
>     >
>     > Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than doubled
>     from
>     > a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data released
>     > today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
>     >
>     >
>     <http://telephonyonline.com/home/news/ftth_homes_connections_100307/>
>     >
>     >
>     > FTTH Con: U.S. FTTH connections top 2 million
>     > By Ed Gubbins
>     > Oct 3, 2007 2:00 PM
>     >
>     > ORLANDO--Fiber-to-the-home connections in the U.S. have more than
>     > doubled
>     > from a year ago to surpass the 2 million mark, according to data
>     > released
>     > today from Render Vanderslice and Associates.
>     >
>     > As of September, 2.14 million U.S. homes were connected to
>     fiber, more
>     > than double the 1.01 million connected a year earlier, RVA said.
>     The
>     > current annual growth rate of 112% is up from the 99% seen in March
>     > and
>     > down from the 213% seen a year ago from a smaller base.
>     >
>     > Fiber now passes 9.55 million U.S. homes, up 56% from a year
>     earlier.
>     >
>     > And FTTH video subscribers are up 160% from a year earlier to 1.1
>     > million.
>     >
>     > Verizon Communications accounts for about two thirds of the
>     > countrys FTTH
>     > subscribers and more than two thirds of the homes passed by fiber.
>     >
>     > While overall FTTH take rates had been suppressed while Verizon was
>     > building its FTTH infrastructure faster than it was adding
>     > customers, the
>     > company is connecting customers more quickly now, said the FTTH
>     > Council,
>     > which released the results of RVAs research in conjunction with the
>     > Telecommunications Industry Association.
>     >
>     > However, Verizons take rates are low compared to the rest of the
>     > industry,
>     > RVA said. The average take rate for all FTTH services is nearly 27%
>     > (up
>     > from 22% six months ago). But while Verizon reports a 19% take rate
>     > for
>     > its fiber broadband service, for example, the average take rate
>     > among the
>     > rest of the FTTH sector is nearly 52%.
>     >
>     > Though Verizon has the lions share of the domestic FTTH business,
>     > analysts
>     > have been surprised by the growth rate of other FTTH providers.
>     > There are
>     > 369 FTTH providers in the U.S. today, 5% more than there were a
>     > year ago,
>     > RVA said.
>     >
>     > Bell companies account for 69% of the countrys FTTH subscribers,
>     > RVA said,
>     > while other incumbent telcos account for 16%. Competitive local
>     > exchange
>     > carriers hold 6% of FTTH subscribers, and those in partnership with
>     > developers hold another 5%. Municipalities hold more than 3%.
>     >
>     > RVAs numbers dont necessarily include multidwelling units, where
>     fiber
>     > often extends only to building basements, and subscribers are
>     > served more
>     > directly by advanced DSL over copper.
>     >
>     > Also this week, the FTTH Council pointed out that, as of the end of
>     > last
>     > year, the U.S. was dead last in a list of 11 countries with more
>     > than 1%
>     > FTTH and fiber-to-the-building market penetration. Topping the list
>     > was
>     > Hong Kong, with 21% penetration, South Korea with 20% and Japan
>     > with 16%.
>     > The U.S. had just 1% penetration.
>     >
>     > However, the FTTH Council suggested earlier this week that the new
>     > data
>     > could change the U.S. position in those rankings.
>     >
>     >
>     > ------------------------------------------------
>     > Richard Lowenberg
>     > P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
>     > 505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell
>     >
>     > New Mexico Broadband Initiative
>     > www.1st-mile.com/newmexico <http://www.1st-mile.com/newmexico>
>     > ------------------------------------------------
>     >
>     >
>     >
>     > _______________________________________________
>     > 1st-mile-nm mailing list
>     > 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org <mailto:1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org>
>     > http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>     <http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm>
>
>     _______________________________________________
>     1st-mile-nm mailing list
>     1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org <mailto:1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org>
>     http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>
>
>
>
> -- 
> ==========================================
> J. T. Johnson
> Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
> www.analyticjournalism.com <http://www.analyticjournalism.com>
> 505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
> http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.us 
> <mailto:tom at jtjohnson.us>
>
> "You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
> To change something, build a new model that makes the
> existing model obsolete."
>                                                    -- Buckminster Fuller
> ==========================================
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>   


From rl at radlab.com  Thu Oct 11 11:35:38 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 11:35:38 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] WiFi Detector t-Shirt
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710111130250.28926-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Here's news for those of you who care about keeping up with the latest in
1st-Mile fashions.   The WiFi Detector T-Shirt will let you know of signal
availability and strength, or will let you know where not to be, if
concerned about wireless radiation health effects.

	www.thinkgeek.com/tshirts/generic/991e/



------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Thu Oct 11 20:34:20 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 11 Oct 2007 20:34:20 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Sen. Durbin's Broadband Online Forum: Exerpts
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710112013430.11403-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

A while back, at the end of July, I posted a note to this list, that
Illinois Senator Dick Durbin was conducting a three day online forum, to
discuss this nation's broadband issues.   Most of the many postings on the
forum were surprisingly intelligent and substantive.   At the time, I
culled a few postings that in my biased opinion, were relevant to the
1st-Mile agenda.   Though a bit late and lengthy, they are worth taking
note of, and follow below.
rl
---------

Time to build 21st century Internet roads  (0.00 / 0)

A strong argument can be made that universal broadband connectivity is the
21st century "Information Age" equivalent of the public road network that
was built in the Industrial Age of the 20th century.  The latter provided
and was funded as a "public good," and contributed enormously to the
unprecedented mobility and economic growth characterized by the industrial
age (though, ultimately, also to global warming).

A single fiber-optic network can deliver virtually unlimited bandwidth
with relatively low-cost periodic upgrades of electronics.  As dannynyc
notes, the high fixed costs of access networks--especially wired
networks--suggests that the most efficient mode of competition is to
deploy one state-of-the-art future-proof network, operate it on a
cost-recovery basis (including revenue to support periodic upgrades) and
allow service providers to compete freely on a fiber- and standards-based
open-access IP network.

Trying to achieve competition via facilities-based competition cannot
really lead to market efficiency nor the potentially vast social
"externalities" that profit-focused network operators cannot readily
monetize.  This is evident in today's markets, which are dominated by two
networks in the wireline sector and four in the wireless sector.
Economics 101 tells us that duopolies are inherently
inefficient--especially so if they are allowed to vertically integrate
(which is where incumbents want to take the broadband market). This is
evident today in the wireline sector.  And because our current wireless
industry structure (as Tim Wu and others explain) has been allowed to
vertically integrate to a high degree, it is also inefficient relative to
its counterparts in other parts of the world, where there is not this
level of vertical integration.

The Internet model is so much more efficient and innovative (and also
hyper-competitive, for those who worship market competition) than either
of these "control-based" models.  Laying it on top of a single
publicly-financed fiber-wireless hybrid network is the ideal solution.

Given this, the public policy question becomes: do we want to accept the
cable/telco/wireless status quo as it is;  try to regulate its market
distortions and inefficiencies (e.g., via net neutrality rules);  try to
incrementally open it up (e.g., via open-access auction rules for part or
all of the 700 MHz spectrum);  or mobilize as a nation to build 21st
century "IP packet" roads open to all comers at cost and upgraded
regularly to support maximum capacity and connectivity at the lowest
per-bit and per-user cost?

We could potentially do more than one of these but, if we step back and
consider the power and social, political and economic benefits of
broadband connectivity, the last option sure looks best and ultimately
most cost-effective to me.

The question then becomes how do we get there?   That question is
addressed in another work I'd recommend to communication policymakers: a
book called "America at the Internet Crossroads: Choosing the Road to
Innovation, Wealth and a Supercharged Economy" by Mike Bookey
(http://www.amazon.co...).  Mike lays out a clear and compelling rationale
for fiber and wireless "Internet roads," along with some very practical
steps for getting them built and to mobilizing the necessary political
will and resources.

Thanks again Senator Durbin for inviting our input and engaging in an
expanded dialog.

by: mitchipd @ Sun Jul 22, 2007 at 22:22:52 PM CDT

-----

Separate the Pipe from the Applications  (4.00 / 1)

The single most useful way to make the vision you are talking about really
work is to separate the pipe from the applications that run on it.  Treat
the pipe as a regulated utility, just like a gas pipe.  Regulate the pipe.
Allow a the pipe provider to get a guaranteed rate of return on
investment.

Prohibit the pipe provider from providing applications on the pipe.
Require that any applications provider be able to provide his application
on an equal basis with all other applications providers.  All providers
can use whatever facilities the pipe provides.  App providers can be
largely unregulated (they will be subject to things like legal intercept
for example). This is like the gas that goes to the pipe, but it's
fundamentally different.  The actual gas that goes to your house may not
be provided by your supplier; all that happens if you use 1mcf, the gas
supplier puts 1mcf in the pipeline network.  Here, the application
provider actually provides the services you order over the pipe.

Applications include telephony services, video services, web sites, email,
instant messages, etc, etc.  The pipe provider can't provide ANY of them;
they are just in the bandwidth business.

This solves "net neutrality".  It's inherently neutral.  It fixes the
investment problem; we have a long history that regulated utilities work.
Don't let anyone tell you that it's impossible to make money on a dumb bit
pipe.  It's very possible to make money on it, and investments with a
guaranteed low rate of return will be funded.

Allow municipalities to be pipe providers if they want to.  Same rules: no
apps.

You can dance with unregulated subsidiaries of regulated pipe providers.
I'd prefer to not do that; make a clean differentiation between the pipe
provider and an app provider

by: brtech @ Mon Jul 23, 2007 at 18:00:19 PM CDT

-----

Horizontal Divestiture: Fully Separate Transport from Content  (0.00 / 0)

Allowing the Bells to reconstitute as an unregulated oligopoly has turned
back the clock of innovation and set the US from being the broadband
leader to being closer to a broadband Third World Nation run by crony
capitalists.

The 1983 Divestiture of AT&T was the right idea but it sliced AT&T the
wrong way. We need to slice them again, but this time horizontally.

Separate the Physical Plant (Rights of Way, trenches, conduit, utility
poles, copper, fiber and central offices) into a regulated entity or some
other entity with direct citizen control/oversight. The Physical Plant
entity would have to offer access to physical transport on an open access
simple cost basis.

Just like other physical transports necessary for the common good like
roads, sewers and water (power transport should be handled the same way as
well)

The upper parts of the divested Bells (and Cable Companies as well) should
then have to compete with all other commercial, and non-commercial
entities to deliver services on top of the open access physical plant.

This would guarantee that the service providers can't dictate what content
is available or leverage an artificial stranglehold on the last mile into
artificial scarcity of information flow.

Anything short of this allows the CableBellCos to manipulate the process
as we are seeing with "net neutrality" and the Spectrum Wars.

Note that Wireless can not count as a 3rd alternative. The amount of
spectrum (and thus bandwidth) available for a whole city is minute
compared to what can be carried in one optical fiber. Fiber is the way to
deliver broadband. Its the  real roadway of broadband and it needs to be
and open road, not a toll road.

by: Robert_J_Berger @ Tue Jul 24, 2007 at 01:29:01 AM CDT

-----

We need to understand "competition"  (4.00 / 1)

Competition only flourished in long distance and devices, and in some
areas of resale and applications to the extent there was some regulation
to limit local telco abuse of market power.  Regulation temporarily opened
up some competition in the local access market, but this was always
limited and, once the Bells won their regulatory battles in court and at
the FCC, the CLEC sector imploded.

Having more local access pipes is fine, but there are real economic limits
on the viability of too many competing pipes, due to their high fixed
costs.  More sensible is a strategy that leads to deployment of the
fattest and most universal wireline and wireless pipes, with an economic
and regulatory structure in place to insure these pipes support a healthy
and highly competitive market for applications and services.

That's the Internet "open network" model, but it's not the model preferred
by incumbent telco and cable pipe owners.  That doesn't make them bad
guys, but it means their business model is fundamentally inconsistent with
the Internet model, which is dramatically more conducive to innovation and
free market competition.

We need a migration path from a legacy-network duopoly on the verge of
squeezing the Internet into its business model (and therefore squeezing a
lot of life out of it) to a future in which we've got universal
high-capacity networks built around  the Internet model.  That needs to be
the priority.

by: mitchipd @ Tue Jul 24, 2007 at 19:23:36 PM CDT

-----

broadband policy  (0.00 / 0)
Let me suggest 3 general principles:

1. Define "broadband" as comparable to what is available in the office
environment - i.e. 100mbit/second to 1gbit/second.  Note that this is a
rapidly moving target.

2. Think of networking as fundamental infrastructure - which suggests that
municipalities are the most likely provider, and that cost-recovery
pricing is to be preferred (e.g., the way large organizations treat their
infrastructure - put it everywhere, make it last, build the costs into
overhead).  At the very least, eliminate all barriers to municipal
networks (clarify the "any entity" language in the 1996 telecom. act).

3. Establish hard barriers between "content" and "carriage."  Private
carriers should be treated as common carriers, and should not be in a
position where there are economic incentives to favor some
services/content (i.e., theirs) over other services/content.

by: mfidelman @ Tue Jul 24, 2007 at 06:55:54 AM CDT

-----







From pete at ideapete.com  Fri Oct 12 12:08:39 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 13:08:39 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Plan For Internet Service Fizzles
Message-ID: <470FC637.4030409@ideapete.com>

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Plan For Internet Service Fizzles

By Rosalie Rayburn <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>
Journal Staff Writer
    A bold initiative to use cutting edge technology to bring free 
wireless Internet service to Rio Rancho was once hailed as visionary.
    But the vision ended last month when city officials sent a letter to 
wireless company Azulstar, terminating its contract to provide the service.
    According to the letter, Azulstar failed to pay electricity charges, 
provide a satisfactory business plan and proof of its financial ability 
to offer continued service.
    Azulstar signed the 25-year contract with the city in October 2004 
to operate a wireless network on city property and rights of way. In 
return, it offered a limited-time free Internet service to residents of 
Rio Rancho.
    The termination followed months of negotiations and threats by the 
city to dump Azulstar over complaints of poor service, lack of customer 
support and unpaid electric bills.
    City officials initially championed the network's benefits, although 
the city didn't invest money in the project.
    But Azulstar's network never really got off the ground--- subscriber 
numbers were small, and the seeds of the problems that eventually ended 
Rio Rancho's municipal wi-fi experiment were there early on.
    A contract with Usurf, another company hired to build the wi-fi 
network ended abruptly after the corporation that bought Usurf said the 
project no longer fit its business model. City officials then chose 
Azulstar.
    Shortly after the city signed the deal, a communications expert 
warned them of severe technical and financial drawbacks in Azulstar's 
proposal for Rio Rancho.
    But the possible benefits of the project and its kudos value for 
making Rio Rancho one of the first cities to have a wi-fi network 
appeared to outweigh the warnings.
    "The way we crafted it, the city had nothing to lose," former City 
Manager Jim Palenick told the Journal in a phone interview on Friday.
    According to Palenick, Intel proposed the wireless project to city 
officials and helped find a wireless provider. They picked Azulstar 
because it had experience creating a municipal network in Grand Haven, 
Mich. He said the city didn't invest any money in the project and the 
contract simply allowed Azulstar to use city rights of way.
    Unlike the Sandoval County Broadband project, which is using public 
money to fund a countywide-wireless network, Azulstar built its network 
using about $1.5 million raised from private investors, he said.
    City officials and Intel touted the wi-fi network as a catalyst to 
spur economic development.
    A USA Today article in 2004 quoted Terry McDermott of Intel talking 
about the advantages of having a wi-fi network saying, "You could bring 
your company to Rio Rancho and you don't have to worry about the 
infrastructure needs that you normally would have by rewiring or going 
into an old building."
    Announcing the deal with Azulstar, then-Mayor Jim Owen, a former 
Intel site manager, said, "City-wide wi-fi will enhance the way people 
work, play and live in our rapidly growing city."
    For residential customers, Azulstar's plan offered one hour of free 
service daily. Monthly subscriptions started at $14.95. Company founder 
Tyler Van Houwelingen claimed he had 2,500 free service and paying 
customers when Rio Rancho terminated his contract.
    Soon after service began in 2005, city officials began hearing 
complaints from customers about inconsistent service.
    Communications consultant Peter Baston of Santa Fe-based Ideas Inc. 
told the Journal recently that he warned Palenick and city councilors 
that Azulstar's wi-fi Internet signals would not penetrate through the 
stucco-and-chicken wire materials used in most Rio Rancho homes.
    In a phone interview on Friday, Van Houwelingen admitted he 
underestimated the stucco-and-chicken wire problem. Azulstar's 
experience was with brick or frame and siding homes in Michigan, he said.
    Baston also warned about Internet service competition from Qwest and 
Cable One. He urged the city to invest in a fiber optic cable network.
    Palenick said in his interview that he didn't recall any 
communications with Baston.
    "Numbers at the beginning looked good," Palenick said.
    He said Azulstar believed it would get a private subscriber base 
that would make the service economically viable. Many other cities that 
have tried similar experiments have found they can't survive with 
residential subscribers only, Palenick said.
    Van Houwelingen said he proposed new technology to overcome the 
service quality problems, but the city declined. He is now building a 
system using that technology in Miami Beach, Fla. The Miami Beach police 
force is the primary customer, but residents will also be able to use 
part of the network, van Houwelingen said.
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Fri Oct 12 12:08:39 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Fri, 12 Oct 2007 13:08:39 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Plan For Internet Service Fizzles
Message-ID: <470FC637.4030409@ideapete.com>

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Plan For Internet Service Fizzles

By Rosalie Rayburn <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>
Journal Staff Writer
    A bold initiative to use cutting edge technology to bring free 
wireless Internet service to Rio Rancho was once hailed as visionary.
    But the vision ended last month when city officials sent a letter to 
wireless company Azulstar, terminating its contract to provide the service.
    According to the letter, Azulstar failed to pay electricity charges, 
provide a satisfactory business plan and proof of its financial ability 
to offer continued service.
    Azulstar signed the 25-year contract with the city in October 2004 
to operate a wireless network on city property and rights of way. In 
return, it offered a limited-time free Internet service to residents of 
Rio Rancho.
    The termination followed months of negotiations and threats by the 
city to dump Azulstar over complaints of poor service, lack of customer 
support and unpaid electric bills.
    City officials initially championed the network's benefits, although 
the city didn't invest money in the project.
    But Azulstar's network never really got off the ground--- subscriber 
numbers were small, and the seeds of the problems that eventually ended 
Rio Rancho's municipal wi-fi experiment were there early on.
    A contract with Usurf, another company hired to build the wi-fi 
network ended abruptly after the corporation that bought Usurf said the 
project no longer fit its business model. City officials then chose 
Azulstar.
    Shortly after the city signed the deal, a communications expert 
warned them of severe technical and financial drawbacks in Azulstar's 
proposal for Rio Rancho.
    But the possible benefits of the project and its kudos value for 
making Rio Rancho one of the first cities to have a wi-fi network 
appeared to outweigh the warnings.
    "The way we crafted it, the city had nothing to lose," former City 
Manager Jim Palenick told the Journal in a phone interview on Friday.
    According to Palenick, Intel proposed the wireless project to city 
officials and helped find a wireless provider. They picked Azulstar 
because it had experience creating a municipal network in Grand Haven, 
Mich. He said the city didn't invest any money in the project and the 
contract simply allowed Azulstar to use city rights of way.
    Unlike the Sandoval County Broadband project, which is using public 
money to fund a countywide-wireless network, Azulstar built its network 
using about $1.5 million raised from private investors, he said.
    City officials and Intel touted the wi-fi network as a catalyst to 
spur economic development.
    A USA Today article in 2004 quoted Terry McDermott of Intel talking 
about the advantages of having a wi-fi network saying, "You could bring 
your company to Rio Rancho and you don't have to worry about the 
infrastructure needs that you normally would have by rewiring or going 
into an old building."
    Announcing the deal with Azulstar, then-Mayor Jim Owen, a former 
Intel site manager, said, "City-wide wi-fi will enhance the way people 
work, play and live in our rapidly growing city."
    For residential customers, Azulstar's plan offered one hour of free 
service daily. Monthly subscriptions started at $14.95. Company founder 
Tyler Van Houwelingen claimed he had 2,500 free service and paying 
customers when Rio Rancho terminated his contract.
    Soon after service began in 2005, city officials began hearing 
complaints from customers about inconsistent service.
    Communications consultant Peter Baston of Santa Fe-based Ideas Inc. 
told the Journal recently that he warned Palenick and city councilors 
that Azulstar's wi-fi Internet signals would not penetrate through the 
stucco-and-chicken wire materials used in most Rio Rancho homes.
    In a phone interview on Friday, Van Houwelingen admitted he 
underestimated the stucco-and-chicken wire problem. Azulstar's 
experience was with brick or frame and siding homes in Michigan, he said.
    Baston also warned about Internet service competition from Qwest and 
Cable One. He urged the city to invest in a fiber optic cable network.
    Palenick said in his interview that he didn't recall any 
communications with Baston.
    "Numbers at the beginning looked good," Palenick said.
    He said Azulstar believed it would get a private subscriber base 
that would make the service economically viable. Many other cities that 
have tried similar experiments have found they can't survive with 
residential subscribers only, Palenick said.
    Van Houwelingen said he proposed new technology to overcome the 
service quality problems, but the city declined. He is now building a 
system using that technology in Miami Beach, Fla. The Miami Beach police 
force is the primary customer, but residents will also be able to use 
part of the network, van Houwelingen said.
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

-------------- next part --------------
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From granoff at zianet.com  Mon Oct 15 14:29:59 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2007 15:29:59 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: GigaLaw.com Daily News, October 15, 2007
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20071015152737.03468d80@mail.zianet.com>

FYI.  From another list.


>FCC Lifts Some Limits on AT&T's Broadband Pricing
>      The Federal Communications Commission voted to lift some regulations 
> on AT&T's broadband business. A divided FCC partially granted AT&T's 
> request to relax rules that govern what the company can charge business 
> customers and rivals for access to some of the its high-speed Internet lines.
>      Read more: 
> http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN1140974620071012



From rl at radlab.com  Mon Oct 15 16:00:47 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2007 16:00:47 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: GigaLaw.com Daily News, October 15, 2007
In-Reply-To: <6.1.2.0.2.20071015152737.03468d80@mail.zianet.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710151546300.3670-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Thanks for this posting, Marianne.
	Just wanted to add the obvious comment that this is one more
action on the part of our current administration's FCC, which in league
with the big incumbent telcos, is marginalizing competition and choice,
hiding the fees being charged and raising rates to end-users.  It is the
antithesis of our goals and efforts to realize open access, competitive
broadband for all.   Though AT&T is not the incumbent provider in NM,
Qwest has a similar request pending at the FCC.   Such greedy and corrupt
actions are undermining and eroding our nation's future from within.
Richard


On Mon, 15 Oct 2007, Marianne Granoff wrote:

> FYI.  From another list.
>
>
> >FCC Lifts Some Limits on AT&T's Broadband Pricing
> >      The Federal Communications Commission voted to lift some regulations
> > on AT&T's broadband business. A divided FCC partially granted AT&T's
> > request to relax rules that govern what the company can charge business
> > customers and rivals for access to some of the its high-speed Internet lines.
> >      Read more:
> > http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN1140974620071012
>
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
>

------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Oct 22 11:15:14 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 22 Oct 2007 11:15:14 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] ITIF Broadband Policy Paper and Forum
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710221112150.10278-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

A new paper from the ITIF's Rob Atkinson,
and a link to papers and presenters from their recent forum,
"Building the Broadband Economy and Society: A Forum"
----

"The Role of Competition in National Broadband Policy"
Rob Atkinson,
Information Technology & Innovation Foundation

www.itif.org/index.php?id=87

There is perhaps no issue more central to the debate about broadband
policy than the state of and role of competition. Indeed, the issue of
competition drives many of the debates over broadband, including net
neutrality, wireless spectrum auctions, municipal broadband, and
unbundling proposals. Although some advocates claim that the current state
of broadband competition is more than adequate, others decry market
conditions and seek proactive public policies to spur more competition.
Yet almost everyone involved in broadband policy in the United States
agrees that regardless of the current state of competition, more
competition is better. The stated reason is that more competition leads to
lower prices, higher speeds, broader deployment, more innovation, and
better customer service.

Yet, the Washington consensus in favor of more broadband competition
ignores the fact that broadband displays natural monopoly or duopoly
characteristics. Because of the nature of the broadband industry, there
are significant tradeoffs between more competition and goals of
efficiency, innovation, low prices, and higher speeds and broader
deployment. Thus, it's a mistake for policymakers to assume that if they
simply push the competition lever, all the problems with broadband policy
will be solved. Some problems will recede, but others are likely to
emerge. The bottom line is that if policymakers want to maximize not only
societal welfare but also consumer welfare, they must balance the push for
more competition with the need to maintain and create an efficient
broadband industry structure.

This paper starts by reviewing the affordability of broadband in the
United States. It then postulates two starkly different views toward
broadband competition: the engineers' view and the economists' view.
Finally, it reviews the four main policy options toward broadband
competition: 1) keep the same number of pipes; 2) spur the deployment of
more pipes; 3) force incumbents to open up existing pipes to competitors,
and 4) regulate duopoly pipes. Although each policy track will achieve
some benefits, each also brings with it costs and risks. Policymakers need
to balance the desire for more competition to enhance consumer welfare in
the broadband realm with the need for the most efficient broadband
industry structure.

Read the full text of this report (PDF)

Related Links:
"Building the Broadband Economy and Society: A Forum"
October 19, 2007

See video and other details from recent ITIF Forum.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Tue Oct 23 10:05:42 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2007 10:05:42 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Gov. Richardson on Broadband
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710231003390.15539-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following text is from the WCA's web site on presidential candidates'
broadband policy statements.   Excerpted here is the section on Governor
Bill Richardson.   More can be found at:
www.wcai.com/taskforce/politics/dem.php

In an August 2007 Podcast with New Hampshire Eagle Times reporter Sarwar
Kashmeri, Richardson was quoted as saying: " I would be a leader in
promoting Internet broadband access, because I think it's technology that
is needed...What I want to be sure of is that when we have broadband
access and Internet access that it goes to the community, that it goes to
schools, that it goes to the private sector, that it goes to businesses,
that it not just go to government offices, county and city governments -
that it be broadly based so that mainly schools can benefit from full
Internet and broadband access."

Governor Richardson supports rural broadband efforts, demonstrated by his
2007 budget which included a section on expanding broadband
infrastructure, noting the importance of providing state agencies with an
efficient network to support public safety, schools and Telehealth. An
April 2006 White Paper on What Governor's Are Planning for Information
Technology pointed to Richardson's support of Telehealth initiatives via
his March 2004 Healthcare Bill 581 which proposed expansion of rural
broadband networks to make health services such as electronic prescription
monitoring available to rural New Mexicans.

Gov. Richardson is invested in broadband as a tool to improve local
schools, and in 2006 reached a settlement with Quest that lead Quest to
invest $265 million in new technology [and] $15 million for computer
literacy programs for disadvantaged schools.

In 2005, Richardson held three technology planning summits, including a
Telecommunications Infrastructure Conference.  The Governor commented:
Technology-based economic development has been, and continues to be, a
priority for my administration, and these three events will showcase the
potential for growing sustainable, high-wage jobs and business -- building
on New Mexico's unparalleled technology resources."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From cohill at designnine.com  Tue Oct 23 14:08:31 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:08:31 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FTTH Stats
In-Reply-To: <e04090490710051112l38e4dbaej83244dcdddce65ca@mail.gmail.com>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710041642540.22653-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
	<C85B2F49-48E6-44B6-A9A2-157A7CBC8864@backspaces.net>
	<e04090490710051112l38e4dbaej83244dcdddce65ca@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <269E929B-D40A-4BB4-9A3E-723D6705C3AD@designnine.com>

> On 10/4/07, Owen Densmore <owen at backspaces.net> wrote: Just out of  
> curiosity, what is the best broadband to the home
> possible in Santa Fe or all of NM for that matter?  .. regardless of
> price?
>

If you are asking about what is possible, other communities are now  
installing open fiber networks with 100 megabit capacity and the  
ability to upgrade to GigE, using off the shelf, affordable systems.

But you may mean, "what is available?" and I think some other people  
have responded to that.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400







From rl at radlab.com  Thu Oct 25 11:27:23 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:27:23 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Top 50 Trends in Municipal Wireless: 10-1
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0710251125220.23380-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Top 50 Trends in Municipal Wireless: 10-1

www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/6566/1/23/

>From MuniWireless, here are the Top 10 Trends in Municipal Broadband.
See the web posting for all 50.

10. Maturing Ecosystem: The municipal broadband ecosystem still has a few
holes -- including a need for more qualified and trained integrators. But
the pieces for a comprehensive ecosystem are beginning to fall into place.
Wireless mesh equipment has matured; traditional applications like CRM and
ERP are moving onto municipal broadband (example Granbury, Texas);
equipment providers like BelAir Networks continue to expand their partner
programs; and service providers continue to evolve their business models
around paid, advertising and anchor tenant models.

9. One Size Doesn't Fit All: Most speakers and attendees focused on
applications for municipal broadband networks. But Joanne Hovis, president
of Columbia Telecommunications Corp., provided a timely reminder. We must
guard against hyping applications, she noted, otherwise this new chapter
of the municipal broadband movement could suffer from another round of
missed expectations.

8. Youth Movement: What applications will move onto your municipal
broadband network over the next few years? Several speakers pointed to
Generation Y for answers, noting its penchant for sharing, publishing and
reformatting information. To Gen Y, noted Intel's Chris Thomas, online
collaboration is the norm and software truly is a service -- rather than a
closed source, monolithic program.

7. Mobile Masses: The iPhone is the rare device that lives up to its hype.
In some regions, 6 percent to 12 percent of the devices connecting to
municipal broadband networks are iPhones, according to various estimates
from Google, JiWire, MetroFI and other organizations. When consumers load
up on more WiFi-enabled handhelds this holiday season, demand for
anywhere, anytime WiFi access will surely rise.

6. Think Locally: Chris Thomas, chief strategist for Intel's World Ahead
Initiative, noted that municipal broadband networks don't necessarily need
a big pipe out to the Internet. Instead, think of municipal broadband like
a local area network -- where local businesses, residents and
entrepreneurs can share ideas and content that stir economic development.

5. Small Cities Are On the Map: Throughout the event, we heard about
successful deployments in Armory, Mississippi; Granbury, Texas and other
small municipalities that had targeted needs.

4. Big Cities Move Forward: Yes, there were some big, painful setbacks
this year. But Chicago is now embracing public safety applications,
Houston has deployed automated meter reading; Tucson has mobile
tele-medicine applications in its ambulances and other cities are coming
online regularly.

3. Digital Inclusion: While "free" city-wide WiFi isn't a realistic goal
for most municipalities, we often forget that hundreds -- perhaps
thousands -- of digital inclusion initiatives continue to move forward.
One prime example: Houston has set aside $3.5 million for potential DI
efforts. The money is part of a $5 million settlement that EarthLink paid
to Houston after the ISP pulled back from the municipal broadband market.

2. Applications: This was the number one word repeated over and over at
the conference. Speakers and attendees discussed a range of real-world
applications that are now running on municipal broadband networks.
Automated meter reading in Burbank, Calif., tele-medicine in Tucson,
Ariz., and video surveillance in Granbury, Texas, were among the
highlights.

1. Growing Market: The days of irrational Muni WiFi exuberance are over.
But the municipal broadband market is growing. Real networks are now live
(checkout our deployment HotList), and US spending on municipal broadband
systems will rise 35 percent this year, according to the 2007 MuniWireless
State of the Market research report. Some pundits think 802.11n, the next
WiFi standard, will further accelerate spending on municipal broadband
networks.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From granoff at zianet.com  Fri Oct 26 12:07:30 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:07:30 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 10.25.7
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20071026125950.04a2cd00@mail.zianet.com>

Edited for interest.  FYI.

Marianne


>250Mbps Over Copper? - Australian PhD claims
>significant advancement
, DSLreports, 10/26/2007
>The Melbourne Herald Sun says that an Australian PhD
>student has devised a way of getting extra bandwidth
>out of copper. Dr John Papandriopoulos, who is waiting
>for patents to get processed on his technology, says
>it could provide speeds up to 250Mbps over traditional
>copper lines. The article, which offers scant
>technical specifics, says the technology "uses
>mathematic modeling to reduce the interference that
>slows down downloading."
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/250Mbps-Over-Copper-88751
>
>
>Senate OKs 7 more years of tax-free Net access,
>e-mail, CNET, 10/26/2007
>But it's not going to the president's desk yet, as the
>House still has to approve the changes. The current
>ban is scheduled to expire next week.
> 
>http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9805069-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20



From ggomes at soundviewnet.com  Fri Oct 26 12:54:24 2007
From: ggomes at soundviewnet.com (Gary Gomes)
Date: Fri, 26 Oct 2007 13:54:24 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 10.25.7
In-Reply-To: <6.1.2.0.2.20071026125950.04a2cd00@mail.zianet.com>
References: <6.1.2.0.2.20071026125950.04a2cd00@mail.zianet.com>
Message-ID: <004101c8180a$03e889d0$0201a8c0@GARY>

It's unfortunate that New Mexico is exempted.

-----Original Message-----
From: 1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org
[mailto:1st-mile-nm-bounces at mailman.dcn.org] On Behalf Of Marianne Granoff
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2007 1:08 PM
To: nmisp at nmisp.net; uswisp at lists.nm.org; nmipa at nmipa.org;
aww-discuss at egroups.com; open-net-working-group at lists.bway.net;
1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 10.25.7

Edited for interest.  FYI.

Marianne


>250Mbps Over Copper? - Australian PhD claims
>significant advancement., DSLreports, 10/26/2007
>The Melbourne Herald Sun says that an Australian PhD
>student has devised a way of getting extra bandwidth
>out of copper. Dr John Papandriopoulos, who is waiting
>for patents to get processed on his technology, says
>it could provide speeds up to 250Mbps over traditional
>copper lines. The article, which offers scant
>technical specifics, says the technology "uses
>mathematic modeling to reduce the interference that
>slows down downloading."
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/250Mbps-Over-Copper-88751
>
>
>Senate OKs 7 more years of tax-free Net access,
>e-mail, CNET, 10/26/2007
>But it's not going to the president's desk yet, as the
>House still has to approve the changes. The current
>ban is scheduled to expire next week.
> 
>http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9805069-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547
-1_3-0-20

_______________________________________________
1st-mile-nm mailing list
1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm





From pete at ideapete.com  Mon Oct 29 19:39:15 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:39:15 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Juicing the system - How NM could save $750m a year
	with first mile
Message-ID: <47269953.5000807@ideapete.com>

http://members.forbes.com/forbes/2007/1112/154.html

( : ( : pete
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Mon Oct 29 19:39:15 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:39:15 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Juicing the system - How NM could save $750m a year
	with first mile
Message-ID: <47269953.5000807@ideapete.com>

http://members.forbes.com/forbes/2007/1112/154.html

( : ( : pete
-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Oct 30 11:51:37 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:51:37 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] A novel Wi Fi that worked
Message-ID: <47277D39.8060503@ideapete.com>

Governing Magazine/October 2007

TECHNOLOGY BRIEFING

FASTRACK

PASSING THE TEST
 Minneapolis' new and not fully implemented Wi-Fi network was put to
the test during the I-35 bridge collapse in August. Immediately after
the collapse, network builder and service provider USI Wireless sprung
into action, opening up the system to all users, including non-
subscribers. This allowed emergency responders to communicate with the
command center--at times receiving area maps and vital information on
wireless devices. The public was able to log on and link to news and
information about hospitals and road closures, although the hope had
been to drive residents to use VOIP or smart phones to call each other
instead of overloading the cellular network. In addition to the rapid-
access deployment, cameras were installed near the river bank,
wirelessly broadcasting a live feed of river rescue activity to the
command center.

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Oct 30 11:51:37 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:51:37 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] A novel Wi Fi that worked
Message-ID: <47277D39.8060503@ideapete.com>

Governing Magazine/October 2007

TECHNOLOGY BRIEFING

FASTRACK

PASSING THE TEST
 Minneapolis' new and not fully implemented Wi-Fi network was put to
the test during the I-35 bridge collapse in August. Immediately after
the collapse, network builder and service provider USI Wireless sprung
into action, opening up the system to all users, including non-
subscribers. This allowed emergency responders to communicate with the
command center--at times receiving area maps and vital information on
wireless devices. The public was able to log on and link to news and
information about hospitals and road closures, although the hope had
been to drive residents to use VOIP or smart phones to call each other
instead of overloading the cellular network. In addition to the rapid-
access deployment, cameras were installed near the river bank,
wirelessly broadcasting a live feed of river rescue activity to the
command center.

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Oct 31 13:11:03 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 14:11:03 -0600
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 10.31.07
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20071031140200.04865330@mail.zianet.com>

Edited for interest.  FYI.


>FCC To Ban Exclusive Broadband Deals - New rules to be
>handed down on Wednesday
, DSLreports, 10/31/2007
>For months, AT&T and Verizon have been asking the FCC
>to ban cable operators from maintaining exclusive
>service contracts with the owners of apartment
>buildings, developments and MDUs (multiple dwelling
>units). When the phone company asks for something, the
>FCC delivers:
> 
>http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/FCC-To-Ban-Exclusive-Broadband-Deals-88914
>
>Commerce Committee Approves Bill to Make Broadband
>Access More Affordable, Senate, 10/31/2007
>No description
> 
>http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=248976
>
>
>Billions of Reasons Not to Grant Forbearance, PK,
>10/31/2007
>How many reasons are there for the Federal
>Communications Commission (FCC) to reject the
>deregulation petitions Verizon filed for six cities in
>the Northeast? How about 2.4 billion? That?s not a
>number pulled from the air. A new study, sponsored by
>XO, Covad and other of the hardy band of surviving
>competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs), found
>that if the petitions are granted, consumers and
>businesses will pay $2.4 billion more for local phone
>service, high-speed Internet service and business
>connections.
>  http://feeds.publicknowledge.org/~r/publicknowledge-main/~3/176867550/1250
>
>
>Net Neutrality?s Second Coming, Save the Internet,
>10/31/2007
>Don?t always believe the purveyors of conventional
>wisdom in Washington. Some of these DC pundits are so
>steeped in their own ?knowledge? that they get stuck
>spinning their wheels when faced with evidence to the
>contrary.
> 
>http://www.savetheinternet.com/blog/2007/10/29/net-neutralitys-second-coming/
>
>
>
>Ban on Net access taxes extended until 2014, CNET,
>10/31/2007
>House of Representatives approval means most American
>consumers will continue seeing tax-free Internet
>connection bills. President Bush is expected to sign
>off before current law expires this week.
> 
>http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9807418-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
>
>Covad Bought By Platinum Equity - $304 million deal,
>or $1.02 per share
, DSLreports, 10/31/2007
>Earlier this month, a Covad insider tipped us off to
>the fact that the CLEC was shopping itself around to
>potential sugar daddies, with names like AT&T, Sprint
>and even Best Buy being tossed around as acquisition
>partners. In the end, however, it appears that Covad
>got the best deal from Platinum Equity, who will pay
>$304 million (or $1.02 per share) for the CLEC. Covad
>CEO Charles Hoffman waxes optimistic in the company
>press release:
>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Covad-Bought-By-Platinum-Equity-88909
>
>Verizon profit drops one-third, Globe and Mail,
>10/31/2007
>Taxes take a bite, while revenue rises
>  http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TheGlobeAndMail-Technology/~3/176653624/



From editorsteve at gmail.com  Wed Oct 31 14:22:18 2007
From: editorsteve at gmail.com (Steve Ross)
Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 17:22:18 -0400
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: 10.31.07
In-Reply-To: <6.1.2.0.2.20071031140200.04865330@mail.zianet.com>
References: <6.1.2.0.2.20071031140200.04865330@mail.zianet.com>
Message-ID: <4728F20A.4040500@gmail.com>


It is unclear exactly what the FCC will do on exclusive 
contracts. The line among FCC staff members is that the 
agency considers telcos good, MSOs (franchise cable 
operators) bad, and PCOs (private cable operators) innocent 
children.

The column is an exceptionally idiotic one, gratuitously 
noting that PCOs have no incentive to clean up their acts, 
and that they cost more. There's NO FCC data to support the 
idea PCO fee schedules are high -- the FCC did study MSOs 
that had no competition versus those that did -- including 
competition from DBS and PCOs -- and of course found that 
competition lowers prices. PCOs also tend to offer better, 
localized and ethnically tuned channel lineups.

PCOs also have plenty of incentive. PCOs can, of course, be 
kicked off the property for not maintaining proper service 
-- SLAs are normally included in PCO contracts -- and the 
contracts themselves are usually for 8 or 10 years. 
Landlords hate to lose a tenant because of poor cable service.

what's more, property owners cannot ban individual satellite 
dishes unless they are unsafe -- that's federal law. So they 
have incentive to provide good alternatives.

I live in Massachusetts, which has long banned exclusive 
contracts. As a member of my condo board, I'd love to get a 
PCO into the building -- Comcast, the MSO, provides rotten 
service. With no chance for at least short-term exclusivity, 
there's no way a PCO would come in. Verizon gets here in 
about 18 months, so we'll have to wait. Our building is not 
safe for DBS dishes, thank goodness.

In greenfields, much of the fiber is being laid in by 
"amenity providers" (sorta CLECs rather than the PCO 
corporate form, but not always) who need guarantees in the 
form of an agreement with the HOA or MDU building owner to 
attract capital. FCC does not want to cut that off. "Amenity 
providers" may not be subject to FCC overview (no case law yet).

One thing is clear (and the column got it right): THE FCC 
has murky authority in this area, guaranteeing a long court 
process and a long delay -- but not long enough to keep 
investment flowing to overbuilding CLECs and PCOs. Hence, 
the ruling will probably weaken competition.

Steven S. Ross
Editor-in-Chief
Broadband Properties
steve at broadbandproperties.com
www.bbpmag.com, www.killerapp.com
SKYPE: editorsteve
+1 781-284-8810
+1 646-216-8030 fax
+1 201-456-5933 mobile

Marianne Granoff wrote:
> Edited for interest.  FYI.
> 
> 
>> FCC To Ban Exclusive Broadband Deals - New rules to be
>> handed down on Wednesday?, DSLreports, 10/31/2007
>> For months, AT&T and Verizon have been asking the FCC
>> to ban cable operators from maintaining exclusive
>> service contracts with the owners of apartment
>> buildings, developments and MDUs (multiple dwelling
>> units). When the phone company asks for something, the
>> FCC delivers:
>>
>> http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/FCC-To-Ban-Exclusive-Broadband-Deals-88914
>>
>> Commerce Committee Approves Bill to Make Broadband
>> Access More Affordable, Senate, 10/31/2007
>> No description
>>
>> http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=248976
>>
>>
>> Billions of Reasons Not to Grant Forbearance, PK,
>> 10/31/2007
>> How many reasons are there for the Federal
>> Communications Commission (FCC) to reject the
>> deregulation petitions Verizon filed for six cities in
>> the Northeast? How about 2.4 billion? That?s not a
>> number pulled from the air. A new study, sponsored by
>> XO, Covad and other of the hardy band of surviving
>> competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs), found
>> that if the petitions are granted, consumers and
>> businesses will pay $2.4 billion more for local phone
>> service, high-speed Internet service and business
>> connections.
>>  http://feeds.publicknowledge.org/~r/publicknowledge-main/~3/176867550/1250
>>
>>
>> Net Neutrality?s Second Coming, Save the Internet,
>> 10/31/2007
>> Don?t always believe the purveyors of conventional
>> wisdom in Washington. Some of these DC pundits are so
>> steeped in their own ?knowledge? that they get stuck
>> spinning their wheels when faced with evidence to the
>> contrary.
>>
>> http://www.savetheinternet.com/blog/2007/10/29/net-neutralitys-second-coming/
>>
>>
>>
>> Ban on Net access taxes extended until 2014, CNET,
>> 10/31/2007
>> House of Representatives approval means most American
>> consumers will continue seeing tax-free Internet
>> connection bills. President Bush is expected to sign
>> off before current law expires this week.
>>
>> http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9807418-7.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
>>
>> Covad Bought By Platinum Equity - $304 million deal,
>> or $1.02 per share?, DSLreports, 10/31/2007
>> Earlier this month, a Covad insider tipped us off to
>> the fact that the CLEC was shopping itself around to
>> potential sugar daddies, with names like AT&T, Sprint
>> and even Best Buy being tossed around as acquisition
>> partners. In the end, however, it appears that Covad
>> got the best deal from Platinum Equity, who will pay
>> $304 million (or $1.02 per share) for the CLEC. Covad
>> CEO Charles Hoffman waxes optimistic in the company
>> press release:
>>  http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Covad-Bought-By-Platinum-Equity-88909
>>
>> Verizon profit drops one-third, Globe and Mail,
>> 10/31/2007
>> Taxes take a bite, while revenue rises
>>  http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/TheGlobeAndMail-Technology/~3/176653624/
> 
> _______________________________________________
> 1st-mile-nm mailing list
> 1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org
> http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm
> 


From rl at radlab.com  Thu Nov  1 22:04:25 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 1 Nov 2007 22:04:25 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Paris Fiber Network
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711012159430.27197-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Paris Fiber

Like some of you, I pay attention to new 'open' fiber projects as they
manifest in the U.S. and elsewhere.   Paris and Amsterdam are beginning to
deploy extensive, urban, 'open' fiber systems and services.   Here's an
update on Paris.   It's not New Mexico, but lots of lessons to be learned.
rl
-----

www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=137586&f_src=lightreading_gnews

Iliad Tempers Its FTTH Target

Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading
OCTOBER 29, 2007

Iliad (Euronext: ILD - message board) is aiming to pass 241,000 Parisian
homes with its FTTH (fiber-to-the-home) offer by the end of this year,
about 30 percent fewer than originally planned, the French competitive
operator said today.

Iliad, which provides triple-play services under its Free brand, announced
in March this year that it planned to pass 350,000 homes in Paris and a
further 150,000 homes in Montpellier, Lyon, Valenciennes, and some Paris
suburbs, by the end of this year at a cost of 150 million (US$216
million). [Ed. note: Free actually charges money for its services. Go
figure.] In total, Iliad aims to pass 4 million French homes by the end of
2012, a rollout that will cost around 1 billion ($1.44 billion). (See
Iliad Updates on FTTH, 3G and Iliad Plans 1B FTTH Build.)

Now, though, the company has cut back its year-end Paris target by 109,000
homes. Iliad's new target is to have eight fiber access nodes operational
by the end of the year capable of serving 241,000 homes with a triple-play
service that promises up to 100 Mbit/s downstream and 50 Mbit/s upstream,
free in-country VOIP calls, and more than 100 channels of IPTV for 29.99
($43.25) per month, the same price as its current ADSL2+ package.

Rollout also appears to be a few months behind the original schedule
outside Paris, too. For example, Iliad says it has begun the civil works
in Valenciennes, a town of more than 400,000 residents in northeast
France, but that service will not be available until the second quarter of
next year.

In terms of FTTH capex for this year, the company says only that it had
committed more than 100 million ($144 million) by the end of August.

Iliad, one of a number of carriers building out fiber access networks in
France, is also being less bullish about the number of actual FTTH
subscribers it believes it can sign up by the end of the year.

Each quarter, the operator publishes a set of year-end operating goals,
which has in the past included having 30,000 fiber access customers by the
end of 2007. That target no longer features in the company's stated goals:
Iliad had not responded to questions about that particular target as this
article was published.

While the operator didn't respond to questions about a slower initial
rollout, it's believed that Iliad has faced some slight delays in finding
premises in which to house the active Ethernet access equipment that will
provide a dedicated fiber link to each subscriber. Another industry
executive suggests that mainland Europe's FTTH pioneers may also be
struggling to find enough experienced staff to deploy the new access
equipment.

Those factors seem to be short-term issues, though. Iliad has been an
aggressive rival to incumbent France Telecom SA (NYSE: FTE - message
board) for more than four years now and has built itself, and maintained,
a fixed broadband share of around 20 percent by planning and executing a
succession of service rollouts, of which fiber access is the latest, while
keeping its prices and costs low. As a result, the operator looks likely
to be a significant contributor to Europe's growing FTTH user base.

(snip)



------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Nov  2 16:19:06 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 2 Nov 2007 16:19:06 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NM Supercomputing Announcement
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711021614110.16766-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Following are two news reports on the just announced New Mexico
supercomputing contract with SGI.
rl
-----

Friday, November 2, 2007 - 4:18 PM MDT
Supercomputer to be housed at Intel
New Mexico Business Weekly

A California company will build a supercomputer here that will be housed
at Intel Corp. in Rio Rancho.

SGI of California has been awarded an $11 million state contract to build
the computer. Businesses, governments and schools will be able to use the
facility, to be called the New Mexico Computing Applications Center, to
model complex problems, according to Gov. Bill Richardson's office. These
range from creating new products to modeling scenarios for New Mexico's
future water supply.

"This is part of my effort to strengthen New Mexico's economy," Richardson
said in a prepared statement. "We will recruit companies to partner with
us and move their research, development and manufacturing operations to
the state, creating more high-wage jobs in New Mexico."

The supercomputer is projected to operate at 172 teraflops per second. One
teraflop represents one trillion calculations per second. It will be
powered by 14,336 Intel Xeon processor cores and as much memory as 28,000
office computers.

The New Mexico Department of Information Technology will manage the
project. Formal partnerships have been established with Los Alamos
National Laboratory and Sandia National Laboratories, the University of
New Mexico, New Mexico State University and the New Mexico Institute of
Mining and Technology. SGI has formed a separate partnership to keep the
computer at the Rio Rancho plant owned by Intel (NASDAQ: INTC).

"By seizing this opportunity, the governor has, in a single act, ensured
that New Mexico will become a region of unbridled innovation and
opportunity," said Bo Ewald, chief executive officer of SGI (NASDAQ:
SGIC).

----

New Mexico Announces Supercomputer Project

Nov 2, 2007, Government Technology News Report

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson today announced that New Mexico will soon
host one of the most powerful supercomputers in the world.

"This is a major part of my effort to strengthen New Mexico's economy,"
Richardson said. "This project proves New Mexico is serious about
developing its high-tech economy, and represents a crucial investment in
our state's future. Our supercomputing center will be a world-class
research facility. We will recruit companies to partner with us and move
their research, development and manufacturing operations to the state,
creating more high-wage jobs for New Mexicans."

SGI, a California company, has been awarded an $11 million state contract
to build the supercomputer, which will be housed at Intel Corp. in Rio
Rancho. Businesses, governments and schools will be able use the New
Mexico Computing Applications Center to model complex problems --
everything from creating new products to modeling scenarios for New
Mexico's future water supply.

The supercomputer is projected to operate at 172 teraflops per second. One
teraflop represents 1 trillion calculations per second. It's powered by
14,336 Intel Xenon processor cores, and has enough memory for 28,000
office computers.

Supercomputers are often used for modeling, or quickly calculating how
difficult problems play out. For example, companies could use the
supercomputer to develop new airplane designs, simulate crash tests for
new cars and design life-saving drugs. They're also used to model
hurricanes and global warming.

"Supercomputing has just now reached the point where we can simulate the
world so well that we can find the best answers to complex problems before
we spend time and money," said Tom Bowles, chief science advisor for
Richardson. "This project will attract international interest to New
Mexico."

The New Mexico Department of Information Technology will manage the
supercomputer project. Formal partnerships have been established with Los
Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories, and the University of New Mexico,
New Mexico State University and New Mexico Tech. SGI has formed a separate
partnership to keep the computer at Intel's Rio Rancho plant.

Governor Richardson and the New Mexico Legislature created the New Mexico
Department of Information Technology in 2007 to provide leadership,
efficiency and accountability for state government technology needs. The
department approves computer and technology purchases, manages state
communications, and oversees construction of new technology infrastructure
for the state.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Sat Nov  3 10:54:27 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2007 10:54:27 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] In India,
	Poverty Inspires Technology Workers to Altruism - New York Times
Message-ID: <e04090490711031054h2145178dx2718bc70746739bd@mail.gmail.com>

In case you missed this, I encourage you to take a look at this
article in last week's NYTimes.  It illustrates how -- if there is a
rich network available -- wonderful creativity can be spawned.  Yes,
New Mexico's population and economy is far different from that of
India, but I suspect our employment levels are somewhat seasonal.
Perhaps a state-wide network could help to minimize those
fluctuations.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/30/technology/30poor.html ---

-- Tom

==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                   -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================


From rl at radlab.com  Sat Nov  3 14:18:41 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 3 Nov 2007 14:18:41 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] IPv6 Fact Sheet (fwd)
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711031414180.19056-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


ICANN has released a factsheet covering Internet Protocol 6, or IPv6.
The factsheet is intended to provide an explanation of the protocol
upgrade for a non-technical audience in the hope of enlarging public
understanding surrounding this and related issues.

The factsheet briefly reviews the technology behind IPv6, explains why it
is needed, why uptake has been slow, and outlines why a move to the
protocol should be considered soon by many organisations and governments.

 A link to the announcement is here:

 	http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-26oct07.htm

 and the actual fact sheet, in PDF format, is here:

 	http://www.icann.org/announcements/factsheet-ipv6-26oct07.pdf


rl








From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Sun Nov  4 10:23:18 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Sun, 4 Nov 2007 11:23:18 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Sandoval Broadband --  next steps
Message-ID: <033101c81f0f$c6f4c680$6401a8c0@yourfsyly0jtwn>

 

  Sandoval Tries Again 

on Broadband Project 

 

 

 

Albuquerque Journal

Saturday, November 3, 2007 





By <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>  Amanda Stevens 
Journal Staff Writer
    The Sandoval County Commission has selected a national wireless
consulting firm to get the county's beleaguered broadband project back on
track.
    The company, NetLogix, will take over as project manager, succeeding
Dewayne Hendricks and his company, Dandin Group, which abandoned the project
in May.
    A contract with NetLogix is being reviewed by the county attorney.
    In addition to authorizing the project management contract, the
commission approved CH2M Hill to provide design, engineering and
implementation services.
    The broadband project, which began almost three years ago, aims to
provide cheap ultra high-speed wireless Internet access to service providers
across the county.
    But the venture has been plagued with problems. The county has already
spent $1.2 million on a network that doesn't work and is awaiting the
results of an investigation by the state auditor concerning the project's
finances.
    In July, the county decided to put out a request for proposals for a
contractor to complete the project. It also decided to appoint a five-member
oversight committee to rank and recommend a bid from any of the proposals
submitted. There were six respondents.

The Broadband Oversight Commitee on Thursday recommended NetLogix and CH2M
Hill.
    Committee member Moria Gerety, director of Computing Services at the
University of New Mexico, also presented the committee's suggestions on how
the county should pursue the project from here:
    

*  Sign non-disclosure agreements and conflict-of-interest statements to
make sure everything is "above board."
    

*  Make sure the county adequately staffs purchasing, financial planning and
legal expertise.
    

*  Consider a performance bonding approach, a bond to guarantee satisfactory
completion of the project
    

*  Don't underestimate the time required for the project.
    "It's not time, necessarily, for technology," Gerety said. "Technology
is the easy part, it's the other stuff that's hard... It may take time, so
allow time for that. I know we all want to get things done- but we're going
to get them done right."
    

*  Provide status reports to the commission every month, including budget
and actuals, the schedule and "where we're at in that schedule and
delivery," Gerety said.

    "The Hawthorne Effect is important," County Commissioner David Bency
said. "If somebody knows they are being watched, they act differently. So
this commission needed somebody to watch somebody else and I think we all
feel comfortable that (the oversight committee) is doing that job as they
should.
    "The way (the committee) is reporting back to us as far as budget to
actual and time line is very critical."

    

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From rl at radlab.com  Tue Nov  6 14:36:55 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 6 Nov 2007 14:36:55 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NM Supercomputer
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711061426290.2283-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

>From Saturday's Alb. Journal, more news on the State's Supercomputer
project.   As a 'free' resource for NM users, it will rely on LambdaRail
connections to educational and other sites.   I'm especially interested in
how this will be accomplished, given the current difficulties in getting
LambdaRail connection to Santa Fe and other cities.
rl
--------

(Albuquerque Journal (NM) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Nov. 3

On Order: $11 Million Supercomputer: N.M. communities, businesses and
schools will use system

New Mexico is about to enter the era of tera.

For a cool $11 million, the state will soon get a supercomputer that will
provide serious number-crunching capability to high-tech businesses,
schools and communities.

It will, for a short time at least, be among the top five most powerful
supercomputers in the world.

The system will be capable of 172 trillion calculations per second -- 172
teraflops in computer-speak. About 30,000 times more powerful than a
common personal laptop, it will be the centerpiece of the New Mexico
Computing Applications Center.

Officials say the new center could help clients engineer new products,
model environmental patterns or solve problems like energy shortfalls.

"This will be the largest nonfederally funded, high-performance computing
platform in the nation," said Stephen Wheat, director of High Performance
Computing for Intel Corp., which will house the state's system in vacant
space at its Rio Rancho plant.

In-state businesses, schools or communities will not be charged to send
problems or projects to the center. Out-ofstate users will be charged,
said Tom Bowles, a former chief science officer at Los Alamos National
Laboratory who is on loan as a science adviser to Richardson. State
officials will seek agreements with those entities to move some of their
work here, Bowles said.

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based computer firm SGI has an $11 million contract to
build and install the supercomputer, expected to be operational by next
summer. Using existing high-speed data connections, like LambdaRail, it
will connect to local communities through "gateways" at local colleges.

It will be managed by the state's Department of Information Technology and
have its own staff, which will interact with users from science, business
and educational realms.

"Our supercomputing center will be a world-class research facility," Gov.
Bill Richardson said in a news release. "We will recruit companies to
partner with us and move their research, development and manufacturing
operations to the state, creating more highwage jobs for New Mexicans."

When complete, the SGI Altix ICE system will be powered by about 3,500
quad-core Intel Xeon chips, and have 28 terabytes of memory -- equivalent
to about 28,000 typical desktop computers.

SGI CEO Bo Ewald, in a statement, said the supercomputer would make the
state "a region of unbridled innovation and opportunity."

Bowles, who helped spearhead the project, said businesses are using
computer modeling to get products to market earlier.

"With the power of supercomputing, they can model and test on a computer
in a short time what would have taken months or years to build and test in
real life," he said.

The government has used supercomputers since the 1960s to test the effects
of simulated nuclear bomb blasts and other research, and New Mexico's
federal labs have played host over the years to some of the world's most
powerful computers.

Bowles said the state decided to get its own supercomputer because
impending federal budget cuts could end some of those government programs.

"This provides a means to retain these talented people as they're pushed
out of federal programs," he said.

Furthermore, unlike federally funded supercomputers at labs, a state-owned
system will be open to anyone.

The cost is covered by $14 million in capital outlay passed during the
2007 Legislature. Of that money, $11 million went to SGI, which will work
with Intel to install the system, beginning next month. The rest will be
used to begin designs for a planned central office for the project and to
buy equipment for the gateways on college campuses.

Temporary staff is on loan from the University of New Mexico, New Mexico
Tech, New Mexico State University, and Sandia and Los Alamos National
Laboratories.

Bowles said backers plan to ask the Legislature for $11 million more in
2008 to fund the creation of a permanent office, build more college
gateways, and hire staff.

Though Intel will house the roughly 600-square-foot computer, the center's
office will be at an as-yet undecided location and will access the
computer remotely.

The group expects to seek a total of $42 million in state funding before
the project is sustained by member companies and government agencies and
royalties from intellectual property developed at the center.

Intel's Wheat, who was the architect for the recently decommissioned ASCII
Red supercomputer at Sandia National Laboratories, said such a machine
would have a useful life of about eight years.

N.M.'s own supercomputer

WHAT: A state-funded $11 million supercomputer that can assist businesses,
schools and others.

WHEN: Fully operational by summer.

INITIAL COST: $11 million for computer plus $3 million for staff and
"gateways."

TOTAL COST: $42 million for staff, offices, etc., before the program is
expected to support itself.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From pete at ideapete.com  Wed Nov  7 12:38:48 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:38:48 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] County Sues Wi-Fi Contractors $1.2M Spent On Network
Message-ID: <47322258.90609@ideapete.com>

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

County Sues Wi-Fi Contractors $1.2M Spent On Network

By Rosalie Rayburn <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>
Journal Staff Writer
    Sandoval County is suing the two individuals it hired to oversee the 
county's broadband project.
    The lawsuit alleges Dewayne Hendricks and Jonathan Mann 
intentionally deceived the county about their ability to complete the 
project and that they took county money without providing the services 
they promised.
    The lawsuit names Hendricks and his California-based company, the 
Dandin Group, Mann and his company, AQV Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah, 
and Sandoval Broadband Inc., the company which the two men oversaw.
    The county, represented by the Albuquerque law firm of Sutin, Thayer 
& Browne, seeks punitive damages, costs and attorneys fees and whatever 
further relief the court deems proper.
    Hendricks declined to comment on the lawsuit.
    "It's just allegations," he said in a phone interview on Tuesday.
    A Journal phone message left on Mann's cell phone was not returned.
    Sandoval Broadband, originally called Olla Grande, was supposed to 
design and build a countywide broadband network that would provide 
low-cost Internet access to Internet service providers throughout the 
county.
    The county has already paid $1.2 million for the network--- which 
doesn't work.
    The lawsuit was filed last month in 13th Judicial District Court in 
Bernalillo.
    "There were certain deliverables that were not met by the contractor 
and we had to move forward legally," said Sandoval County Commission 
Chairman Don Leonard, in a phone interview on Tuesday.
    The county's allegations against Hendricks and Mann include breach 
of trust, violation of the unfair trade practices act, fraud and unjust 
enrichment.
    Sandoval County hired Mann's company AQV in December 2004 to develop 
a broadband plan for the county. The County Commission approved the plan 
in July 2005, based on Mann's recommendations, according to the lawsuit.
    Low-cost broadband access was supposed to benefit schools, health 
care services and residents throughout the county.
    Mann created Olla Grande, later called Sandoval Broadband, to do the 
work. Olla Grande then hired Hendricks to help Mann.
    Hendricks' job was to design, engineer, purchase and install all 
necessary equipment for the deployment of the broadband network.
    According to court documents, Hendricks and Mann intentionally made 
false and misleading oral and written representations to the county 
about their credentials and their ability to provide an operational 
broadband network.
    They, or one of their companies, billed the county for goods and 
services they didn't provide, the lawsuit alleges. In some cases, it 
contends, they billed the county for new equipment and installed used 
equipment instead.
    The county relied in good faith on the "false and misleading" oral 
and written statements and representations by Hendricks and Mann to hire 
them and pay invoices for goods and services they submitted.
    "Defendants used exaggeration, innuendo or ambiguity as to material 
facts regarding the goods to be provided and the services to be 
performed under the Contracts with the intent to deceive the County, and 
in did in fact deceive the County," the lawsuit alleges.
    The county maintains its reliance was "justifiable and reasonable 
under the circumstances."
    Despite a demand by the county, Hendricks and Mann or their 
companies have refused to complete the broadband network, according to 
the lawsuit.
    It also alleges that they have not returned any of the county's 
money or property purchased for the network, which the county paid for.
    The defendants' breach of good faith was done "willfully and 
maliciously", resulting in harm to the county and its citizens, the 
lawsuit alleges.
    As of Tuesday, the defendants had not filed a response.
    Independent communications experts raised serious questions about 
the ability of Hendricks and Mann to deliver on their promises more than 
a year ago, according to published news reports.
    The reports say Sandoval County officials steadfastly defended the 
project and their hiring choices.
    Mann left the project in August 2006. Hendricks quit in May this year.
    The state auditor launched an investigation into the broadband 
project in February.
    The County Commission recently selected NetLogix, a national 
wireless consulting firm, to take over the project.
    The commission also approved hiring CH2M Hill to provide design, 
engineering and implementation services for the project.
-- 

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Wed Nov  7 12:38:48 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:38:48 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] County Sues Wi-Fi Contractors $1.2M Spent On Network
Message-ID: <47322258.90609@ideapete.com>

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

County Sues Wi-Fi Contractors $1.2M Spent On Network

By Rosalie Rayburn <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>
Journal Staff Writer
    Sandoval County is suing the two individuals it hired to oversee the 
county's broadband project.
    The lawsuit alleges Dewayne Hendricks and Jonathan Mann 
intentionally deceived the county about their ability to complete the 
project and that they took county money without providing the services 
they promised.
    The lawsuit names Hendricks and his California-based company, the 
Dandin Group, Mann and his company, AQV Inc. of Salt Lake City, Utah, 
and Sandoval Broadband Inc., the company which the two men oversaw.
    The county, represented by the Albuquerque law firm of Sutin, Thayer 
& Browne, seeks punitive damages, costs and attorneys fees and whatever 
further relief the court deems proper.
    Hendricks declined to comment on the lawsuit.
    "It's just allegations," he said in a phone interview on Tuesday.
    A Journal phone message left on Mann's cell phone was not returned.
    Sandoval Broadband, originally called Olla Grande, was supposed to 
design and build a countywide broadband network that would provide 
low-cost Internet access to Internet service providers throughout the 
county.
    The county has already paid $1.2 million for the network--- which 
doesn't work.
    The lawsuit was filed last month in 13th Judicial District Court in 
Bernalillo.
    "There were certain deliverables that were not met by the contractor 
and we had to move forward legally," said Sandoval County Commission 
Chairman Don Leonard, in a phone interview on Tuesday.
    The county's allegations against Hendricks and Mann include breach 
of trust, violation of the unfair trade practices act, fraud and unjust 
enrichment.
    Sandoval County hired Mann's company AQV in December 2004 to develop 
a broadband plan for the county. The County Commission approved the plan 
in July 2005, based on Mann's recommendations, according to the lawsuit.
    Low-cost broadband access was supposed to benefit schools, health 
care services and residents throughout the county.
    Mann created Olla Grande, later called Sandoval Broadband, to do the 
work. Olla Grande then hired Hendricks to help Mann.
    Hendricks' job was to design, engineer, purchase and install all 
necessary equipment for the deployment of the broadband network.
    According to court documents, Hendricks and Mann intentionally made 
false and misleading oral and written representations to the county 
about their credentials and their ability to provide an operational 
broadband network.
    They, or one of their companies, billed the county for goods and 
services they didn't provide, the lawsuit alleges. In some cases, it 
contends, they billed the county for new equipment and installed used 
equipment instead.
    The county relied in good faith on the "false and misleading" oral 
and written statements and representations by Hendricks and Mann to hire 
them and pay invoices for goods and services they submitted.
    "Defendants used exaggeration, innuendo or ambiguity as to material 
facts regarding the goods to be provided and the services to be 
performed under the Contracts with the intent to deceive the County, and 
in did in fact deceive the County," the lawsuit alleges.
    The county maintains its reliance was "justifiable and reasonable 
under the circumstances."
    Despite a demand by the county, Hendricks and Mann or their 
companies have refused to complete the broadband network, according to 
the lawsuit.
    It also alleges that they have not returned any of the county's 
money or property purchased for the network, which the county paid for.
    The defendants' breach of good faith was done "willfully and 
maliciously", resulting in harm to the county and its citizens, the 
lawsuit alleges.
    As of Tuesday, the defendants had not filed a response.
    Independent communications experts raised serious questions about 
the ability of Hendricks and Mann to deliver on their promises more than 
a year ago, according to published news reports.
    The reports say Sandoval County officials steadfastly defended the 
project and their hiring choices.
    Mann left the project in August 2006. Hendricks quit in May this year.
    The state auditor launched an investigation into the broadband 
project in February.
    The County Commission recently selected NetLogix, a national 
wireless consulting firm, to take over the project.
    The commission also approved hiring CH2M Hill to provide design, 
engineering and implementation services for the project.
-- 

 

 

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From tom at jtjohnson.com  Fri Nov  9 16:21:21 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2007 17:21:21 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Comments on rural broadband in the Midwest
Message-ID: <e04090490711091621g46a1defej97907be2b9ca262c@mail.gmail.com>

An interesting page of commentary from Minnesota related to rural broadband:
http://tinyurl.com/yqxvla

-tj

-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                  -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From tom at jtjohnson.com  Sat Nov 10 05:08:29 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2007 06:08:29 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Center for Digital Democracy
Message-ID: <e04090490711100508s1cab3361g25dbc72f6842fa9b@mail.gmail.com>

Another resource for us.



 *Center for Digital Democracy [pdf]*

 http://www.democraticmedia.org/

How is the Internet organized? Is it a democracy? Or is it increasingly
controlled by large media corporations bent on limiting what people can do
or see on various websites? These are valid questions, and the Center for
Digital Democracy (CDD) is intimately involved with such matters. Founded in
2001, the CDD has worked on developing the campaign for an open broadband
Internet, along with leading efforts at the Federal Trade Commission "to
promote new polices governing online privacy and responsible interactive
marketing practices." Visitors can learn about these initiatives and others
through sections on the site that include "Current Projects", "Resources",
and "Issues". Actually, the "Issues" section is probably the best place to
start as it contains brief overviews about key issues such as broadband
access, journalistic integrity in a new media environment, and so on. Moving
on, their series of up-to-the minute news coverage on their homepage is also
very good and inspired guests should also look over the "Get Involved"
section. [KMG]<http://?ui=2&view=bsp&ver=ymdfwq781tpu#116250ca8f232ae2_team>


--tj

==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                  -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Mon Nov 12 10:33:11 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 10:33:11 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Reno SuperComputing Conference: Big Fiber
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711121028040.25919-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


All this week, Reno, NV is hosting the annual Supercomputing Conference.
Attendees include UNM and New Mexico .gov representatives, in part to
announce and work to further the New Mexico SuperComputer initiative.
The article below takes special notice of the big fiber optic networking
effort, that will connect the Convention Center.   Though Reno is along a
major national backbone path, this article made me wonder about the new
Conference Center being built in Santa Fe, and its potential fiber
bandwidth readiness for future event needs.   Another missed opportunity?
rl
-------

November 12, 2007 -- Reno, NV -- For the next five days, the Reno-Sparks
Convention Center in Reno, NV will host some of the world's most
cutting-edge network-based experiments and demonstrations as part of this
year's SuperComputing conference, SC07.  The conference has built a
reputation for revolutionary demonstrations and challenges as well as a
top-flight technical program, bringing together the best and brightest
researchers and exhibitors in the world of high-performance computing,
networking, storage, and analysis.

 In order to make all this possible, a network that pushes beyond the
boundaries of what's possible and yet performs with rock-solid reliability
must be constructed  the all-volunteer effort creating what is known as
SCinet.  Over a hundred volunteers from industry, government, and the
research and education community have created a network at the Reno-Sparks
Convention center composed of multiple 1, 10, and 40 Gb/s connections and
currently delivering more than 200 Gb/s to the show floor.  When SC07
departs, the fiber infrastructure supporting the SCinet network will be
left intact in the convention center for future uses.

 A significant part of the effort to build the SCinet network has been
spearheaded by the SCinet Wide-Area Network Transport Group (WTG),
responsible for the 27 circuits worth of WAN connectivity that make up the
bandwidth being used by the presenters and attendees.  The WTG itself is
composed of volunteers from Florida LambdaRail, Internet2, National
LambdaRail (NLR), the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), Texas A&M
University, the University of Wisconsin, Ciena, Cisco Systems, Infinera,
Level 3, and Nortel, and is led by CENIC, the nonprofit corporation that
owns, operated, maintains, and deploys the leading-edge,
ultra-high-bandwidth California Research & Education Network (CalREN).
All of the state's K-20 public educational institutions and the vast
majority of its most prestigious independent universities,  including
California's K-12 system, the California Community Colleges, California
State University, the University of California, Caltech, Stanford, and
USC, among others connect to one another and the world via CalREN.

"Locations are picked three to five years in advance, so the SCinet
committee can start planning immediately for the next SC conference when
each one is over."

(Costa's) job began almost immediately after being tapped for the position
when he along with other members of the WTG visited the Reno-Sparks
Convention Center to determine what would be needed to transform the
building's networking and enable it to deliver a fifth of a Terabit per
second to some of the world's most advanced researchers and vendors, who
would not be shy about using ever single drop.  "We had to examine the
building in detail, literally every square inch of it," Costa explains.
"Then, the contract was signed with American Fiber Systems to begin the
fiber build into the convention center.  Extensive testing followed, and
then the final phase of show staging.  It's been exhausting to bring a
network like this into being, but exciting as well."

Equipment to provide eleven optical waves have also been contributed from
a partnership between CENIC, National LambdaRail (NLR), the NSHE, and
Cisco Systems; ten of these are 10Gb/s circuits which have been deployed
over the CalREN optical backbone to provide a 100 Gb/s of bandwidth to the
convention center show floor.  CENIC, as the NLR Layer one engineering
group, also deployed and reengineered10GE waves from Seattle to Sunnyvale
and from Los Angeles to Sunnyvale in order to support NLR's PacketNet and
FrameNet connections to the SCinet network.

 The Pacific Wave international peering facility is also playing a major
part in providing bandwidth to SCinet.  A joint project between CENIC and
the Pacific Northwest Gigapop in collaboration with the University of
Southern California and the University of Washington, Pacific Wave is
designed to serve research and education networks throughout the Pacific
Rim and the world and provides network interconnect facilities in Seattle,
the San Francisco Bay area, and Los Angeles.  To support the interests of
Pacific Wave members' participation inSC07, dedicated 10 Gb/s capacity was
deployed across the Pacific Wave exchange from Seattle to Sunnyvale and
from Los Angeles to Sunnyvale, and the exchange was extended via 10
Gigabit Ethernet from the Sunnyvale POP in order to reach the convention
center. Caltech, the NASA Research and Education Network (NREN), the
Korean research and education network KREONet, the Asia-Pacific network
TransPAC2, and the University of Washington/Research Channel will all be
participating in SC07 via the international high-performance connectivity
made possible by Pacific Wave.

Exerpted from a CENIC email list news release:
http://lists.cenic.org/pipermail/cenic-announce/2007-November/000048.html)


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Nov 12 11:26:44 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 11:26:44 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Heather Wilson supports Broadband Mapping Legislation
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711121110230.6402-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

>From a few weeks ago:
The Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee of the House Energy and
Commerce Committee unanimously approved October 10 the Broadband Census of
America Act of 2007, which promotes the further development of nationwide
broadband services by improving collection of data and mapping. Under the
bill, the Federal Communications Commission would use a consumer survey to
gather pricing and service information rather than rely on telecom.
companies for data.   The bill also aims to assist underserved communities
in taking concrete steps to improve broadband deployment in their areas.

The 1st-Mile Initiative has recommended a detailed statewide broadband
mapping project, as part of a proposed "Integrated Strategic Broadband
Plan for New Mexico", to aid in decisionmaking, new deployments,
partnerships creation and determination of unserved areas.
 rl
-----

Wilson Co-sponsors Broadband Mapping Legislation  	October 23, 2007

>From Congresswoman Heather Wilson's web site:
http://wilson.house.gov/Releases.aspx?ID=1536

The Broadband Census Act of 2007 will improve collection of Broadband data

Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Heather Wilson has co-sponsored the
Broadband Census Act of 2007, legislation marked up on October 10, 2007,
in the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.

The Broadband Census Act of 2007 provides for a detailed and comprehensive
census of broadband availability across the nation. The bill also directs
the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to
establish a grant program to assist local communities in assessing their
broadband capabilities.

It has become increasingly evident that current data collection methods
used by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are inadequate and
highly flawed, and for most of the past decade, the FCC has failed to
correctly track broadband penetration levels in the United States.

The GAO has issued several reports that found fault with the FCC's
methods.

In addition to considering a 200kbps connection broadband, the FCC has
consistently stated that if a zip code has just one home or business with
broadband service, that zip code is wired for broadband. This method has
made broadband penetration look better than it is - particularly in rural
markets.

The Broadband Census Act of 2007 will improve the quality and quantity of
the data the Government collects concerning broadband deployment, as well
as facilitate the construction of a nationwide inventory map of broadband
facilities. The bill will direct the FCC to conduct periodic consumer
surveys concerning broadband adoption and usage and assist local
communities in increasing broadband usage and deployment in their areas.

There is a growing concern that the FCC inadequately collects data on
broadband penetration. This legislation will allow the U.S. Government to
better gather quality information on broadband services that are being
provided, said Wilson.

Local and rural communities in New Mexico will benefit from this
legislation by providing them with grants to increase broadband usage and
deployment.

There is concern that the United States is falling behind internationally
in providing high speed internet. At the end of 2006, the Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development said that the United States fell to
15th in the world in providing broadband penetration, a measure of the
number of broadband subscribers for every 100 inhabitants.

I support efforts to map the availability of broadband services. Such an
exercise may help determine whether there is a lack of supply that is
limiting broadband availability in a particular geographic area, said
Congressman Fred Upton, ranking member of the Subcommittee on
Telecommunications and the Internet, in his opening statement. That
information is far more important, and more useful, than competitively
sensitive subscriber data.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Mon Nov 12 14:56:03 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 12 Nov 2007 14:56:03 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] World Community Grid
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711121445080.26193-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

I've been posting about the State's SuperComputer project, because it's
need for high bandwidth connectivity is relevant to this list.   Here's a
different, de-centralized, lower bandwidth approach to working on massive
processer-dependent problems in the sciences.   See the World Community
Grid web site to find out about many other project applications.
rl
-----

Canadian Cancer Researchers Take Work to World Community Grid

TORONTO, Nov. 6 -- Canadian researchers expect to accelerate the war on
cancer by tapping into a global network of hundreds of thousands of people
who volunteer their idle computer time to tackle some of the world's most
complex problems.

The research team, led by Dr. Igor Jurisica at the Ontario Cancer
Institute (OCI), and scientists at Princess Margaret Hospital and
University Health Network, are the first from Canada to use the World
Community Grid, a network of PCs and laptops with the power equivalent to
one of the globe's top five fastest supercomputers.

The team will use World Community Grid to analyze the results of
experiments on proteins using data collected by scientists at the
Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute in Buffalo, N.Y. This
analysis would take conventional computer systems 162 years to complete.
However, using World Community Grid, Jurisica anticipates the analysis
could be finished in one to two years, and will provide researchers with a
better way to study how proteins function, insight that could lead to the
development of more effective cancer-fighting drugs.

"We know that most cancers are caused by defective proteins in our bodies,
but we need to better understand the specific function of those proteins
and how they interact in the body," said Jurisica. "We also have to find
proteins that will enable us to diagnose cancer earlier, before symptoms
appear, to have the best chance of treating the disease -- or potentially
stopping it completely."

The research team now has more than 86 million images of 9,400 unique
proteins that could be linked to cancer, captured in the course of more
than 14.5 million experiments by colleagues at Hauptman-Woodward.

This comprises the most comprehensive database on the chemistry of a large
number of proteins, a resource that will help researchers around the world
unlock the mystery of how many cancers, such as breast, prostate or
childhood leukemia, grow.

Approximately 150,000 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer and more
than 70,000 will die of the disease in 2007 alone.

World Community Grid, sponsored by the IBM Corp., uses grid technology to
establish a permanent, flexible infrastructure that provides researchers
around the world with a readily available pool of free computational power
that can be used to solve problems plaguing humanity.

Individuals can donate their computers for this project by registering on
www.worldcommunitygrid.org, and installing a free, secure, small software
program on their computers. The computer requests data from World
Community Grid's server when it is idle, for example a user is at lunch,
and performs the cancer-related protein computations. A screen saver will
tell individuals when their computers are being used.

World Community Grid, the largest public humanitarian grid with more than
333,000-plus members and links to more than 780,000 computers. However,
it's estimated that there are one billion computers worldwide,
underscoring the potential for the grid and its computational power to
significantly expand.

Eight projects have been run on World Community Grid to date, including
protein folding and FightAIDS at Home, which completed five years of
HIV/AIDS research in just six months. Additional projects are in the
pipeline.

For more information on IBM, visit www.ibm.com

For more information on World Community Grid, visit
www.worldcommunitygrid.org

For more information on Hauptman-Woodward, visit www.hwi.edu

-----

Source: IBM


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Nov 16 11:31:03 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2007 11:31:03 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NM Contest Winner: Broadband Changed My Life
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711161129150.9585-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


Alliance for Public Technology: Broadband Changed My Life - Contest Winner

www.apt.org/events/broadbandevent110707.html

Sorraine Hot, the winner of APT's "Broadband Changed My Life! Contest,"
then gave a deeply moving account of the impact broadband has made in her
family and in her New Mexico community.

Hot was hired as the sole trainer in a community technology center that
opened in February 2007. Sacred Wind Communications Community Connect, a
non-profit arm of Sacred Wind Communication, Inc., manages the training
center with funding from the USDA-RUS Broadband Community Connect Program.
In such an isolated community, where residents often lack electricity and
there is only a single telephone, broadband has provided a critical
connection to the outside world.

Since February over 3,000 Navajos have signed in to use the computers and
44 have completed a training course, despite having to travel long
distances to reach the technology center. Upon completion of the program
graduates receive a refurbished computer for their personal use. Hot
powerfully described relatives being able to send digital photos and
communicate with loved ones serving in Iraq because of broadband. "it is
very rewarding and emotional to see people use this type of communication
for the first time." Navajos have used the technology center for job
training and resume building as well. Hot misses seeing them, but she is
pleased that they are now working.

Most importantly Hot saw her own four children, who lived for three years
with no telephone or Internet connection, reconnect with their father's
family in St. Louis.  Her experience working in the technology center has
also helped Hot grow, and as she explains "without this broadband I don't
think I would have helped a lot of these people."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Nov 16 11:33:29 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2007 11:33:29 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NM is near last in residential broadband
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711161131300.9585-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


November 12, 2007 - Leichtman Research Group, Inc. (LRG)

The bottom five states in residential broadband penetration were
Mississippi, West Virginia, Alabama, Arkansas and New Mexico

www.leichtmanresearch.com/press/111207release.html


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Thu Nov 22 09:50:46 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Thu, 22 Nov 2007 10:50:46 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] =?windows-1252?q?Statistics=3A_Why_We_Don=92t_Know_?=
	=?windows-1252?q?Enough_About_Broadband_in_the_U=2ES=3F=3B_Measuri?=
	=?windows-1252?q?ng_Broadband?=
Message-ID: <e04090490711220950t2cffdc18k221e8fc4c7759cda@mail.gmail.com>

>From ResourceShelf at http://tinyurl.com/3cvz4y

Statistics: Why We Don't Know Enough About Broadband in the U.S?; Measuring
Broadband<http://www.resourceshelf.com/2007/11/16/statistics-why-we-dont-know-enough-about-broadband-in-the-us-measuring-broadband/>

November 16, 2007 at 12:11 am ? Filed under Source
File<http://www.resourceshelf.com/category/source-file/>,
Business and Economics<http://www.resourceshelf.com/category/source-file/resources/business-and-economics/>,
Technology and Internet<http://www.resourceshelf.com/category/search-news/technology-news/>,
Statistics<http://www.resourceshelf.com/category/source-file/resources/statistics/>

+ Why We Don't Know Enough About Broadband in the
U.S?<http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/276/report_display.asp>
by John Horrigan

Half of all Americans now have broadband at home, according to the Pew
Internet Project's September 2007 survey, marking the first time that as
many as 50% of respondents say they have high-speed internet connections at
home. This milestone in broadband adoption occurs at a time of close
scrutiny of the data gathered by government agencies on broadband
deployment. This article puts the rate of home broadband adoption in
historical context before discussing in detail the issues surrounding
broadband data collection and current legislation that seeks to make
improvements.

+ Measuring Broadband<http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/227/report_display.asp>
by Kenneth Flamm, Amy Friedlander, John Horrigan, William Lehr

Imperfect or absent data are rarely mentioned in policy discussions. Yet the
communications policy debate in the United States today is inseparable from
debates about the data used to make claims about policy propositions.
Policymakers are beginning to see the need for better data, and this report
contains recommendations on the principles that should guide efforts to
improve data collection on the deployment and use of communications
infrastructure. The report is based on a workshop convened last year by the
Pew Internet & American Life Project, the University of Texas at Austin, and
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project

See Also: OECD Broadband Portal Launched with Plenty of
Stats<http://www.resourceshelf.com/2007/11/05/oecd-broadband-portal-launched-with-plenty-of-stats/>

--tj
-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                  -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Fri Nov 23 09:16:06 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 23 Nov 2007 09:16:06 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC: Southwest Telehealth Grant
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711230909380.16588-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The FCC has announced the awardees of telehealth grants across the nation.
Congratulations to those in New Mexico and neighboring states that will
participate in the funded initiative noted below.   Stay tuned for more
detailed information on this.   The complete list of awarded projects is
posted on the FCC web site: www.fcc.gov
rl
----

Southwest Telehealth Access Grid (Arizona, New Mexico, Texas,
Colorado) - Network will distribute telemedicine clinical services,
educational and training programs to approximately 60 facilities within
the states and the Southwest Indian Services consortium.  Speeds will
range between 1 Gbps and 10 Gbps, with connections to Internet2 and
National LambdaRail.  Maximum support: $15,561,181.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From DAlverson at salud.unm.edu  Fri Nov 23 12:50:02 2007
From: DAlverson at salud.unm.edu (Dale Alverson)
Date: Fri, 23 Nov 2007 13:50:02 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] FCC: Southwest Telehealth Grant
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711230909380.16588-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711230909380.16588-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <4746DA7C.7261.0068.0@salud.unm.edu>

The South West Telehealth Access Grid is funded at our full 2 year budget request of $15,561,181 from FCC (plus matching of $4,022,508 = total budget for project = $19,583,689)!   The announcement  has some errors in that it states that our proposal includes Texas and Colorado and 60 sites, whereas our  proposal actually includes mainly Arizona and the Southwest IHS Telehealth Consortium along with New Mexico and over 500 sites. Texas, Colorado have some sites listed within the Albuquerque Area IHS network and Nevada, California and Utah have some sites within the Phoenix Area IHS network as part of our proposal. Therefore our proposal actually includes 7 states; NM, AZ, CO, NV, CA, TX, UT! The announcement contains the exact Title of our proposal and the exact budget requested. We''ll contact FCC  to correct and clarify the announcement. The most important part of this announcement is that we'll receive our full budget exactly as requested. We have not received any other official notification, such as start up date etc. Overall this should be a very significant boost to enhancing the telehealth network infrastructure in our region. Congratulations to everyone.

The FCC just announced that it has dedicated $417 million over three years
for the construction of 69 statewide or regional broadband telehealth
networks in 42 states and three U.S. territories under the Rural Health Care
Pilot Program.  
 
The organizations that have been deemed eligible for the pilot program must
still go through formal application process through the Universal Services
Administrative Corporation which will be administering the program.
Participants are eligible for universal service funding to support up to 85
percent of the costs associated with the design, engineering and
construction of their broadband health care networks.  In order to ensure
quality and efficiency, all projects must be competitively bid, and are
subject to quarterly reviews, and stringent oversight and audits.  

--Dale

Dale C. Alverson, MD
Professor of Pediatrics and Regents' Professor
Medical Director, Center for Telehealth and Cybermedicine Research
University of New Mexico
Health Sciences Center
1005 Columbia, NE
Albuquerque, NM 87106
Office: (505) 272-8633
Fax: (505) 272-0800
e-mail: dalverson at salud.unm.edu
Web: http://hsc.unm.edu/som/telehealth
 


>>> Richard Lowenberg <rl at radlab.com> 11/23/2007 10:16 AM >>>
The FCC has announced the awardees of telehealth grants across the nation.
Congratulations to those in New Mexico and neighboring states that will
participate in the funded initiative noted below.   Stay tuned for more
detailed information on this.   The complete list of awarded projects is
posted on the FCC web site: www.fcc.gov 
rl
----

Southwest Telehealth Access Grid (Arizona, New Mexico, Texas,
Colorado) - Network will distribute telemedicine clinical services,
educational and training programs to approximately 60 facilities within
the states and the Southwest Indian Services consortium.  Speeds will
range between 1 Gbps and 10 Gbps, with connections to Internet2 and
National LambdaRail.  Maximum support: $15,561,181.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico 
------------------------------------------------


_______________________________________________
1st-mile-nm mailing list
1st-mile-nm at mailman.dcn.org 
http://www2.dcn.org/mailman/listinfo/1st-mile-nm



From rl at radlab.com  Sun Nov 25 16:56:23 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 25 Nov 2007 16:56:23 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Portland, OR: Fiber Report
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711251649220.4178-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>


Portland, OR City Council receives FTTP report

http://tinyurl.com/2jcace

Friday, November 16, 2007
City moves forward with broadband considerations
Portland Business Journal

Portland's City Council continues to mull whether the city should
participate in a system that would bring high-speed Internet services to
more residents.

However the commission must resolve whether the city should effectively
fund the system through bonds or other means, enter a public-private
partnership with a service provider or work to bring in a private firm to
build the system.

"We're still looking at what it would take to do this with city
involvement," said Brendan Finn, chief of staff for City Commissioner Dan
Saltzman, whose office is leading the fiber network charge. "We think
we've demonstrated the need for this."

A report delivered to commissioners yesterday by researchers studying
Portland's fiber prospects recommended that the city gauge private sector
interest in helping build a broadband fiber network.

The network would deliver data speeds of up to 100 megabytes per second to
homes and businesses; the city believes the system would compete with
those offered by such incumbent broadband providers as Qwest
Communications International Inc. (NYSE: Q) and Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA).

The report contained several ideas on ways to reduce system costs and
infrastructure questions. One idea is to tie West Coast cities together
with fiber, which could result in lower build-out prices thanks to the
potential economies of scale.

City staff could also explore the idea of installing fiber as it works on
other infrastructure projects, such as road and sewer work.

Qwest and Comcast officials have blasted the idea, arguing that
jurisdictions have no place in the communications business.

Commissioners generally agree though that residents would realize benefits
from the system, called fiber-to-the-premises. They say customers would
enjoy speeds ranging from four times to more than 12 times faster and 20
percent less expensive that those offered by commercial providers, which
charge up to $100 per month for cable and Internet.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Sun Nov 25 19:45:25 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 25 Nov 2007 19:45:25 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] New Hampshire Gov. Supports Broadband for Economic
	Development
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711251937120.25423-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Governor of New Hampshire has provided funding for a statewide
strategic broadband plan, to support broadband for economic development.
Though I think it is too biased toward wireless solutions, the basic
concept and support is what this 1st-Mile initiative is advocating for NM.
rl
-----

www.citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071119/GJNEWS02/711190036/-1/CITIZEN

North Country broadband gets a push

By BOB MARTIN
Staff Writer
Article Date: Monday, November 19, 2007

Gov. John Lynch and the Executive Council recently approved a contract to
assist the state Division of Economic Development in its efforts to
bolster the expansion of affordable, advanced broadband technology
throughout the state.

"This contract is one more step in our efforts to expand broadband access
throughout New Hampshire, particularly to underserved areas in northern
and western New Hampshire," Lynch said. "To attract new jobs to New
Hampshire, we must make sure we have a 21st century infrastructure,
broadband access is a key component of that infrastructure. As governor, I
am committed to ensuring companies have the business-friendly environment
they need to grow their business and create jobs."

The governor and council approved a contract with Berry, Dunn, McNeil &
Parker of Portland, Maine, to assist the Division of Economic Development
in creating a strategic broadband plan.

State Sen. Deb Reynolds explained that the contract approval makes it
possible to come up with a strategic plan for what she calls one of the
more important issues many parts of the state are facing. Reynolds has
been instrumental in the process and, since becoming senator last year,
has expressed the importance of making broadband and telecommunication
readily available throughout the state.

> snip

------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------




From tom at jtjohnson.com  Mon Nov 26 14:41:23 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Mon, 26 Nov 2007 15:41:23 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Specify. Then Build. Seeking round two Knight
	News Challenge in-kind University partners - From E-Democracy.Org
In-Reply-To: <474B0F07.6090704@publicus.net>
References: <474B0F07.6090704@publicus.net>
Message-ID: <e04090490711261441m880953clac47e2f19613d9fd@mail.gmail.com>

Friends:

Note below the need/demand for big-pipe broadband as a requirement to
participate in this grant-getting effort.  I suspect we will only be seeing
more of this sort of thing.  Are we prepared to meet the challenge?

-tj

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Steven Clift <slc at publicus.net>
Date: Nov 26, 2007 11:23 AM
Subject: Specify. Then Build. Seeking round two Knight News Challenge
in-kind University partners - From E-Democracy.Org
To: JOURNET at cmich.edu


E-Democracy.Org is into round two for the Knight News Challenge -
http://blog.e-democracy.org/posts/127 .

With our round two "Specify. Then Build." proposal we are looking for
universities interested in partnering to host (in-kind) citizen media
and engagement open source programming sprints. The partner would agree
to provide space, bandwidth, and *use of high speed (Internet 2) IP video
conferencing equipment* on a in-kind basis likely over a long weekend. We
will likely be connecting a site in the U.S. to a U.K. site for virtual
developer teams (typically 4 to 6 teams with 4 or 5 programmers at each
site). We would also need discounted or in-kind on-campus lodging within
reason for up to 20 to 30 people. We will be providing transportation to
the site for the selected participants. If we win the grant, we expect
to hold at least four programming sprints - two in 2009 and two in 2010.
I want be up front and note that the tight $500,000 US proposal does not
allow us to share funding to cover the physical space for hosting the
sprints assuming we find appropriate in-kind offers.

Also, we are interested in learning about existing or proposed research
that might be connected to this initiative.

Prior to the programming, sprints, we will be hosting very public
citizen media and engagement module/plug-in software specification
efforts. Instead of developing stand alone modules or modules/plug-ins
for one open source tools used for locally-oriented citizen media/online
engagement efforts, we are proposing an open specification process that
will lead to the competitive build out of modules for key open source
content management platforms (Drupal, Plone, etc.).

Finally, we may be able to leverage our evaluation budget to support
some research based on this rather experimental initiative.

If this effort matches your project's existing mission or goals we might
have a match and your endorsement will increase our chances of winning
the News Challenge.

For a copy the draft application, drop me an e-mail ASAP -
clift at publicus.net - because the final deadline for submission is Nov. 30.

Cheers,
Steven Clift
E-Democracy.Org

P.S. For a short description of our round one proposal see -
http://blog.e-democracy.org/posts/127 and below is information about the
scope of the Knight News Challenge:


THE KNIGHT NEWS CHALLENGE INITIATIVE SEEKS

? New ways for people to communicate interactively to help people better
understand one another in geographic communities, share know-how and
generate passion in solving local problems;
? New ways for people to use information, news and journalism in
geographic communities to imagine their collective possibilities as
communities, and to set and reach common community goals;

? New ways to dig for news and act on it in geographic communities,
including new ways to collect, prepare and distribute information, news
and journalism that reveals hard-to-know facts, identifies common
problems, clarifies community issues or points out practical courses of
action.

Keep in mind the purpose of the contest is to develop digital
communication projects that will help better connect people in physical
space, in the communities in which they work, live and vote.
In the words of Jack Knight: Thus we seek to bestir the people into an
awareness of their own condition, provide inspiration for their thoughts
and rouse them to pursue their true interests.






-- 
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                  -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Mon Nov 26 19:10:22 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 26 Nov 2007 19:10:22 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Qwest-watchers wait for vision
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0711261903380.15081-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

A rather long posting here, on the awaited year-end 'grand vision' from
Qwest.   All the more reason to promote competition and local initiatives.
rl
----

http://tinyurl.com/2gb4y3

Qwest-watchers wait for vision
No details yet, Mueller says, but here are some things to expect.

By Andy Vuong
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 11/24/2007 12:39:34 PM MST

By year's end, Qwest chief executive Ed Mueller will unveil his grand
vision for the Denver-based telecommunications company he took over in
mid-August.

Don't expect drastic change.

Though specifics are still in the works, Mueller shed light on some moves
Qwest will or will not make during a recent interview with The Denver
Post:

The company is not looking to buy a cellphone company, even though the
wireless business is generating plenty of cash for its much larger peers,
AT&T and Verizon Communications. "We don't have wireless assets, and we're
not going to go acquire wireless assets," Mueller said.

Qwest is not going to pursue a broad video play, either. "We're not
committing to a Verizon or AT&T whole video rollout," Mueller said. "We're
not becoming a TV provider."

Qwest will detail its expected returns for the additional $200 million the
company plans to spend next year to boost broadband speeds. Those details
may include which markets will see the investments, with denser cities
likely to be at the top of the list.

Down the road, Qwest may look to partner with third-party companies to
offer high-bandwidth applications and content, such as video-on-demand, to
leverage the faster speeds.

"We're just taking the whole company and looking at every part of it,"
Mueller said of his strategic review. "A lot of it is just getting me up
to speed."

For some, the review is taking longer than expected.

"What are you attempting to bring to the table that's so significant that
it's worth taking this six-month period of not talking to the market and
going into a review mode and really reassessing everything that the
business is doing?" Bank of America analyst David Barden said during
Qwest's third-quarter earnings call in October, according to a transcript.

Since Dick Notebaert announced his retirement as Qwest's CEO in June, the
company's future plans have been murky.

Qwest operates a nationwide fiber-optic communications network and is the
primary local phone service provider in 14 states, including Colorado. It
is facing heated competition for residential customers from cable
operators, such as Comcast.

Analysts pressed Mueller for more details during the call in October, as
Qwest's landlines continued their ongoing decline to 8.9 million, down 7
percent from a year ago.

Barden noted that Mueller is the only member of top management who is new
to Qwest.

Mueller held firm, saying it was "prudent" for him to take until the end
of the year to establish a plan.

The market hasn't reacted kindly to that approach. Qwest shares are
trading at 52-week lows amid the uncertainty about the company's
direction. The stock closed Friday at $6.58, up 12 cents.

Todd Rosenbluth, an analyst with Standard & Poor's, defended Mueller's
decision.

"You've got a new CEO who has a different energy and a different
philosophy on how to run a business than his predecessor," Rosenbluth said
in an interview. "We never expected quick decisions when he came in."

It was widely viewed that Notebaert, during his five-year tenure, tried to
dress Qwest up for a sale, or as one analyst put it, "put lipstick on a
pig." Without any buyers, Mueller's job is to take the lipstick off and
get the pig to perform.

And while the charismatic Notebaert is a salesman by nature, Mueller
appears to be a numbers-crunching executive.

Driven by statistics

He is a champion of the so-called multivariable testing, which uses
statistical analyses and quantitative models to gauge the effectiveness of
ideas and plans. It is a tool he used as head of San Francisco retailer
Williams-Sonoma and Chicago phone company Ameritech.

Though not directly tied to the strategic review, Mueller has implemented
multivariable testing into some divisions at Qwest.

"It's very disciplined," said Stephanie Comfort, whom Mueller promoted
from an investor relations position to the top strategy role in September.
"It's very statistically based, so people in the organization can measure
and see the effectiveness of their ideas in black and white."

Analysts aren't expecting a groundbreaking plan when it's finally
announced. The company will continue to resell Sprint Nextel wireless
service and DirecTV satellite service as part of its residential bundle,
which limits revenue growth.

"We don't expect much on the revenue side, and we don't expect much more
on the cost side," Rosenbluth said.

Qwest returned to profitability under Notebaert's direction, mostly
through cost cuts and high-speed Internet growth.

"What I expect is for him to paint the broad outlines of a strategy," said
Donna Jaegers, an analyst with Janco Partners. "But probably not to
announce an acquisition right away."

Though Mueller said a cellular acquisition is not in the works, he didn't
completely shoot down the possibility of purchasing a company to boost the
enterprise business. The only acquisition Qwest has made recently is its
roughly $100 million deal last year for OnFiber, a metro fiber company.

Jaegers said it could "make a lot of sense for Qwest" to purchase a
regional license when the Federal Communications Commission auctions in
January the 700-megahertz airwave spectrum - considered to be prime real
estate for wireless applications.

She said Qwest could use the license for WiMax, a ubiquitous
wireless-broadband technology that offers faster download speeds than
traditional wireless fidelity, or WiFi, networks.

Though Mueller declined to comment about the auction, it is clear
high-speed Internet will be a key part of the company's future.

Qwest plans to spend up to an additional $200 million on top of the $70
million to $100 million it had already earmarked for its fiber-to-the-node
deployment, where the company runs fiber-optic cables to a neighborhood
and uses copper loops to link homes to the node.

The project, which will cover about 1.5 million homes, will give customers
speeds of up to 20 megabits per second. Mueller said some homes may hit 40
mbps through parabonding, where the company runs two copper loops instead
of one to double the speed.

Qwest's high-speed Internet speeds currently range from 1.5 mbps to about
7 mbps.

The company is reviewing which markets it will target with the fiber
project.

Mueller said whether the company has a cable-TV franchise in a certain
market, such as Portland, will not factor into the decision. The company
will look at deploying into areas where it can also reach businesses.

"We'll obviously look at density, where we can get the most bang for our
dollar," Mueller said.

Andy Vuong: 303-954-1209 or avuong at denverpost.com


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com/newmexico
------------------------------------------------





From carroll at cagleandassociates.com  Thu Nov 29 07:55:13 2007
From: carroll at cagleandassociates.com (Carroll Cagle)
Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2007 08:55:13 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Albuquerque and Qwest quarreling over franchise
Message-ID: <046501c832a0$3b5f8110$6401a8c0@yourfsyly0jtwn>

 

 

 

 

  City says Qwest is stalling at table 

 

Albuquerque Journal - Business Outlook

Thursday, November 29, 2007 





By <http://www.abqjournal.com/cgi-bin/email_reporter.pl>  Jack King 
Copyright C 2007 Albuquerque Journal; Journal Staff Writer
    City of Albuquerque attorneys are threatening to ask the City Council to
seek the eviction of Qwest Communications from the rights of way the company
uses to provide telephone service in the city.
    They say Qwest keeps stalling about renegotiating a franchise agreement
with the city that ended in 2000.
    Under state statute, a city may pass an ordinance giving a franchise to
any entity for the operation of a public utility. Qwest's franchise
agreement allows it to use city rights of way for its wires and other
equipment. Since the agreement ended, the company has been on a
month-to-month contract with the city.
    Qwest pays a franchise fee to the city equal to 3 percent of its local
gross revenue.
    The company paid the city about $3.2 million in fiscal year 2006, when
the city's general fund revenue totalled $447 million, according to City
Economist Jacques Blair.
    But city attorneys said keeping a franchise agreement current is about
more than money.
    City Attorney Robert White said a new agreement would cover issues like
relocating equipment when rights of way are closed and the use of rights of
way for new technologies. It also would ensure that Qwest and any new phone
companies that come to Albuquerque are on an equal footing.
    Assistant City Attorney Carolyn Fudge said the city wants access to
Qwest's books to ensure it is paying enough money.
    Albuquerque is only one of 36 municipalities in the state where Qwest is
operating with an expired franchise agreement, according to the New Mexico
Municipal League.
    Qwest's New Mexico attorney, Tim Goodwin, denied the company is stalling
in its negotiations with the city. He said he has communicated with city
attorneys twice since March about the franchise agreement. Fudge told the
Journal she does not recall those communications.
    "I can remember one phone call about something else, railroad rights of
way, during which I said, 'Oh, by the way, why aren't we talking about the
franchise?' And there was no response to that remark," Fudge said.
    White and Fudge said they are currently negotiating a telephone
franchise agreement with Time Warner and plan to send a new master ordinance
governing telephone franchises to the council in early December.
    Last week, they sent a letter to both Qwest and Verizon Business, which
also has approached the city about a franchise, offering the companies a
last chance to comment on the new ordinance, White said.
    Fudge said City Chief Administrative Officer Bruce J. Perlman sent Qwest
a letter in January stating that unless the company reached a new franchise
agreement with the city in 90 days he would stop accepting its
month-to-month franchise payments and ask the City Council for a motion
asking attorneys to seek a writ of ejectment.
    After receiving the letter, Qwest officials contacted Perlman saying
they wanted to enter negotiations. He notified them in May that he would
suspend the 90-day deadline for a reasonable period to allow good-faith
negotiations, but has not heard back from the company since, Fudge said.
    In May, the city sent Qwest, Verizon Business and Time Warner the draft
of a proposed master ordinance governing franchise agreements. Since then
there have been good-faith negotiations with Time Warner, but not with Qwest
or Verizon Business, Fudge said.
    "If we reach a fair and reasonable agreement with Time Warner, and pass
that ordinance, the next step would be to take Qwest to court," Fudge said.
    She said she couldn't tell when the Time Warner agreement would be
reached.
    William Fulginiti, executive director of the New Mexico Municipal
League, said companies have developed a number of new products and services
in the last several years. Qwest may not want to renegotiate its franchise
agreements because it doesn't want to give municipalities the chance to add
the revenue from its new services to its payments, he said.
    Goodwin agreed that he objects to Qwest's having to pay a percentage of
its gross receipts for a franchise. He said federal law requires that the
city collect a franchise fee based on the city's cost of administering its
right of way. But he denied this was the reason for not negotiating with New
Mexico cities.
    Where Qwest and the cities have failed to begin negotiating new
franchise agreements, "sometimes it's just inertia and both parties agreeing
that it operates to the mutual benefit of both," he said.
    In fact, city officials in Clovis, Farmington, Grants and Las Cruces,
all of which are on the Municipal League's list, said that even though their
franchises with Qwest have expired, they continue to receive franchise fee
payments, based on those agreements, from Qwest and currently are satisfied
with that arrangement.

 

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From rl at radlab.com  Sun Dec  2 11:38:47 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 2 Dec 2007 11:38:47 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] MuniWireless Articles
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712021128110.9007-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following exerpt from the featured essay in the current issue of the
MuniWireless newsletter, and another article from the issue.
rl
-----

www.muniwireless.com

It is time for us to view broadband - wired and wireless - not as a
service or an application but as infrastructure. The services that run on
top of that infrastructure - voice, Internet access, video, wireless
camera surveillance, automated meter reading - can be provided by any
company (or by the city itself). Approaching broadband as infrastructure
requires the city or region to invest in deploying and maintaining the
infrastructure, which it can open to all service providers and
applications developers. When individuals and businesses have a choice of
providers, there's meaningful competition. This does not mean cities are
competing unfairly with telcos and cable cos. It means that telcos and
cable cos now have to compete with other private enterprises who may be
more nimble and innovative in delivering the services that people want at
the appropriate price.

------

www.muniwireless.com/article/articleview/6629/1/23/

Posted by Carol Ellison at 3:42 PM on November 21, 2007

Guest commentary: Building state-wide wireless networks

Bob Panoff, who has been a consultant on a number of state-wide wireless
network initiatives, including Rhode Island's boarder-to-border network,
has produced a valuable whitepaper, An Approach to Statewide Wireless
Networks, that lays out the imperative and identifies successful
strategies for state-wide deployments.

In it, he takes a look at the market and discusses strategies for
successful implementations, including cost-effective, well-coordinated
business models that deliver real value to communities, network designs,
and key actions that can be taken early to help assure successful
deployments.

Successful networks and network business models are based upon
applications and services that solve real problems and deliver real value
to people and organizations in the community, Bob observes.

He recommends a central statewide organization to establish standards and
key processes. Such a resource can guide communities in the planning and
development of local networks, as well as providing a central location for
resources to help network implementation and operations.

Regarding technology, he makes no one recommendation but observes that the
size, complexity and diversity of statewide, community-based wireless
networks make it unlikely that any single network design or technology
will be appropriate for all requirements. A hybrid design that includes
multiple wireless technologies in combination with a high-capacity fiber
optic backbone for transport - within and beyond state borders - is more
likely.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Thu Dec  6 10:25:01 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 6 Dec 2007 10:25:01 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Albuquerque Wireless Update
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712061018430.4395-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

During this past Summer (July?), this list posted an announcement about
the City of Albuquerque issuing an RFP for a citywide wireless broadband
network.

Earlier this Fall, the City cancelled the RFP, with the following reasons:
	Cost proposals exceeded available funds.
	Original scope of services is outdated.

Back to the drawing boards.

rl

------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Fri Dec  7 15:41:57 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 7 Dec 2007 15:41:57 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NY State Broadband Speech
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712071535540.15144-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The State of New Mexico would do well to look at and learn from the New
York State example.   One of our illustrius subscribers, in phone
conversation this afternoon, recommended that the NM Legislature ought to
allocate funding for a 'community broadband opportunities loan fund'.
rl
------

Gov. Eliot Spitzer's speech on introducing NY's statewide broadband
initiative

www.thealbanyproject.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=1697

"Our inadequate broadband infrastructure is not an abstract problem. It
holds back our businesses, and our people, in real ways."

(exerpt)

"We will begin by setting real goals.

One goal, of course, is to increase speed. The speed of a network is
measured in megabits per second. Currently, the median download speed in
the United States is 1.97 megabits per second, and in areas without
broadband, it is often far less. Our goals are-by the year 2015-for every
citizen of New York to have access to at least 20 megabits per second in
each direction, and 100 megabits per second in major metropolitan areas.

There are other goals that we must set-for example, goals for broadband
penetration and affordability. But the unfortunate fact is that we can't
even set those goals yet because we know so little about the broadband
landscape.

Our first action, therefore, will be to form the New York State Council
for Universal Broadband, which will include key legislative leaders who
have championed this idea; local government officials; and experts from
academia. This Council will not just sit in a room and debate; it will
break into teams, get on the ground and address this issue on every front.

For example, one problem we have is that we know very little about what
our Internet infrastructure even looks like. Incredibly, in the
Information Age, there is no map of New York's broadband infrastructure-so
we don't even know where the existing gaps are. A team from the Council
will undertake that huge task. Only when we have this map can we
understand where the gaps are and how they must be filled. Another action
team will study innovative programs to increase the level of digital
literacy in underserved urban and rural areas, because what good is
high-speed Internet access if one doesn't know how to use a computer? A
third team will determine how we will advance our vision for universal
broadband coverage in collaboration with the academic, not-for profit and
private sectors-because collaboration will help us maximize our investment
of state funds.

Our second action will be to immediately begin issuing grants to provide
seed money for research, design and implementation of affordable broadband
networks for underserved urban and rural communities. Together with the
Legislature, we have provided $5 million for this purpose, and we will
build upon this financial commitment in the coming years.

One element of New York's strategy that is so innovative is that state
government will not be the one constructing these networks. Instead, state
money will be used to leverage matching funds from the private and
not-for-profit sectors. In the end, it is New York's vibrant
telecommunications sector-together with their tireless and invaluable
workers-who will implement this vision in partnership with government.
Furthermore, as part of this approach, our initiative will also advance
the participation of minority- and women-owned businesses. New York is the
first state to use this innovative public-private approach, and it will
allow us to increase broadband access faster and cheaper as a result.

(snip)


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------




From rl at radlab.com  Sat Dec  8 12:00:06 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 8 Dec 2007 12:00:06 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NM to Receive PSIC Grant Funds
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712081146200.16813-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

New Mexico and all other States have just submitted applications for
specific projects to be funded by the US Dep't of Commerce, NTIA.
Below is an abbreviated NTIA awards announcement, followed by a more
detailed note from one of our subscribers, on New Mexico's submitted
projects and allocations.   Stay tuned for updates on this.
Richard
-------

Public Safety Interoperable Communications Grant Awards

www.ntia.doc.gov/psic/awards.html

On September 30, 2007, the PSIC Grant Program awarded $968,385,000 to fund
interoperable communications projects from the 56 States and Territories.
These grants will provide public safety agencies with critical funding to
contribute to meaningful and measurable improvements in public safety
communications interoperability through the full and efficient use of all
telecommunications resources. The program presents a unique opportunity
for communities to leverage innovative technologies and solutions. The
Department of Commerce is committed to improving communications
interoperability among our nation's first responders.

The State of New Mexico has been awarded $8,288,725.

In August, the States and Territories submitted applications for PSIC
funds, which included a brief narrative on the process for choosing
proposals for public safety organizations. By December 3, 2007, each State
and Territory must identify projects to be funded under the award, and
they must submit an Investment Justification (IJ) for those projects along
with the Statewide Communications Interoperability Plan. Each IJ will
include up to 10 Investments (projects) that strongly align with the
goals. All public safety organization interested in PSIC funding will be
able to seek funding through their State Administrative Agency.

Funding will become available in early 2008, as NTIA approves each
Investment. All grant projects will be completed by September 30, 2010.

--------

The award once authorized will come to the NM Department of Homeland
Security which will administer that grant.   The distribution will be
$1,657,745 available to go to state agencies such as the Department of
Public Safety, Department of Health, DOIT and DHSEM for project planning.
The remaining balance will go to local jurisdictions.   Beyond the plan
that was submitted on December 3rd, the NM DHS is beginning the program
with creating an Interoperable Communications Architecture plan that will
include training and exercises.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------






From rl at radlab.com  Sat Dec  8 12:13:30 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 8 Dec 2007 12:13:30 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Colorado (Broadband) Innovation Initiative
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712081209580.20833-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Here's recent news on broadband and related 'innovation' initiatives in
our neighboring state of Colorado.
rl
-------

www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?c=Page&childpagename=GovRitter/GOVRLayout&cid=1192091651316&p=1192091651316&pagename=GOVRWrapper

OFFICE OF GOV. BILL RITTER, JR.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, OCT. 11, 2007

CONTACT:  Evan Dreyer, 720.350.8370

GOV. RITTER CONSOLIDATES, REFORMS IT OPERATIONS AND LAUNCHES NEW
INNOVATION COUNCIL

Gov. Bill Ritter today launched a comprehensive high-tech initiative that
will consolidate and reform state government's fractured Information
Technology operations and establish the state's first Innovation Council
to spur advances in Colorado's technology sector.

"In state government and in the private sector, the Digital Age of the
21st Century means Colorado must be ambitious, innovative and effective
when it comes to maximizing the use of technology," Gov. Ritter announced
Thursday. He unveiled the new high-tech package to hundreds of technology
industry professionals at the third annual Colorado Software and Internet
Association (CSIA) DEMOgala in Denver.

"We can vault Colorado into the nation's technology elite," Gov. Ritter
declared, "and we'll do it by using technology to save taxpayers millions
of dollars and more effectively deliver services to people all across
Colorado. We also will utilize the Innovation Council to expand and grow
opportunities for the 3,800 high-tech businesses and 175,000 IT/software
employees in this state."

Gov. Ritter issued an "Improving State Information Technology Management"
executive order in May, elevating the state's Chief Information Officer to
a Cabinet-level position as the first phase in the reform plan.

The second-phase initiatives announced today call for a multi-year IT
consolidation that folds state government's decentralized operations into
the Governor's Office of Information Technology. This will allow for
centralized technology purchasing, spending, planning and asset
management. It also will create a statewide enterprise structure, compared
with today's ineffective department-by-department model.

An "IT Consolidation Bill" will be introduced in the 2008 legislative
session by sponsors Reps. Andy Kerr, Bernie Buescher and Bill Cadman and
Sens. Ron May and John Morse to enact the reforms.

"Because of a decentralized information technology structure, Colorado
state government uses information technology systems inefficiently," Gov.
Ritter said. "This approach has led to redundant purchases, failed or
under-performing IT applications, and an inefficient operating
environment. Not only does the failure to pool purchases of IT goods and
services create significant inefficiencies and unnecessary costs, it leads
to greater risks related to security and reliable project performance."

Among the IT redundancies: state government has 38 data centers, while
many states have just two or three, the Governor noted.

"Currently within the state's many information technology groups we have a
wealth of talented employees who are ready to rise to the challenge,"
Chief Information Officer Michael Locatis said. "As we undergo a
significant change from a highly decentralized and fractured IT
environment to a consolidated enterprise model, our goal is to restore and
improve basic operations and project performance. I look forward to
carrying out Gov. Ritter's vision of transforming state IT into to a
highly agile and innovative delivery organization."

Gov. Ritter today also established the state's first Innovation Council,
bringing together 34 leaders from around Colorado. The Council is composed
of experts from large, small, urban and rural technology businesses, as
well as leaders in the venture capital, government, academic and nonprofit
sectors. The council will have three primary subcommittees that will:

    * Assist the state as it reforms and improve its use of information
technology;
    * Develop a strategy for spurring broadband deployment throughout the
state, and;
    * Support state government's economic development efforts for the
technology sector.

The council will be co-chaired by venture capitalist Brad Feld, managing
director of the Foundry Group; entrepreneur Juan Rodriguez, who founded
StorageTek and Exabyte; and national telecommunications policy expert Phil
Weiser, who teaches law and telecommunications at the University of
Colorado at Boulder and is executive director of the Silicon Flatirons
Program.

In addition to Feld, Rodriguez and Weiser, three other tech-industry
leaders also will serve on the Council's executive committee: Cathy Fogler
of Charter Communications; Su Hawk, president of CSIA; and Lee Kennedy,
founder of TriCalyx.

"Our state must develop a robust and ubiquitous broadband infrastructure
to support an array of applications that will transform how the people of
Colorado work, learn and play," Weiser said. "Deploying broadband to
unserved areas of Colorado is a make-or-break issue for the state. We
cannot afford to leave Colorado citizens or businesses behind as other
states and countries adopt broadband connections and applications that
catapult them ahead in the 21st Century economy."

"Technology infrastructure is key for rural Colorado and will affect how
we provide education, health care and business opportunities for decades
to come," said Council member Audrey Danner, executive director of the
Yampa Valley Partners in northwest Colorado. "I am honored Gov. Ritter has
invited me to join a group that offers such a broad range of statewide
expertise to tackle one of the most important economic-development
opportunities facing rural Colorado."

The Innovation Council is expected to hold its first meeting this fall,
with periodic recommendations submitted to Gov. Ritter beginning in 2008.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Sat Dec  8 19:37:46 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 8 Dec 2007 19:37:46 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 1st-Mile-NM: Year One Update
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712081928260.18680-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Year end greetings.

The 1st-Mile email list and web site were initiated approximately one year
ago.   These efforts grew out of my personal concerns, interests and
motivation, spurred on by a number of you now subscribed to this list.
Thanks to all of you who have subscribed, especially those of you who have
also posted to the list.    I hope it has been informative and of small
help in our shared dedication to understanding, participating in and
improving our broadband future here in New Mexico.

There are about 60 of us now subscribed to this list, mostly New Mexico
based, with a few participants from elsewhere around the country.   Most
postings to date, have been re-posted articles, reports, briefs and
comments about New Mexico broadband matters, or items of relevance
locally, nationally or globally.

Some of us are directly involved in broadband networking efforts.
However, much of what we are personally doing has not been reported on
this list.   Some of it is sensitive, contracted or job related.   Some is
premature, yet uncertain, or proprietary.   Yet, greater shared exchange,
where possible, may help to make 1st-Mile online exchanges more actively
and effectively move broadband initiatives forward for this state, and for
its communities.

A few of you know that in addition to managing the 1st-Mile web site and
email list, I recently began a process to create the 1st-Mile Institute, a
nonprofit 'think and do tank', to carry out some long term work associated
with networked society development in New Mexico and beyond, through
contracted research, consulting, conferences and publishing.

The Institute will, in part, focus on substantiating demand-side economic
and investment models for 'open' broadband initiatives.   I've been
working (behind the scenes) with a few of you, to also advocate for the
development of an Integrated Strategic Broadband Plan for New Mexico,
while promoting economic understandings and benefits for regional and
municipal 'open access' broadband projects.  A New Mexico broadband
conference and regional workshops are also being proposed.

Almost all cities and towns are now looking for higher bandwidth, lower
cost infrastructure and services to meet growing needs for business
attraction, jobs creation and economic development; K-12 schools, higher
education and life-long learning; film and media production, provision of
healthcare, libraries, civic, government and emergency services;
entertainment and much more.

While our national and state broadband future seems constrained by a
number of factors, it is becoming evermore clear to communities, that with
proper planning and investment, they can now take responsibility for local
broadband needs, while paying for deployments and generating substantial
income and social benefits at the same time.   This latter understanding
is the prime motivation for 1st-Mile initiatives.

I'd very much like to hear your thoughts, suggestions, constructive
criticisms and other offerings, on how to take more effective next steps
here in New Mexico.   The many complex issues and opportunities
include:
-	the evolving role of ISPs and CLECs;
-	the State's high speed computing and education initiatives;
-	the near future of LambdaRail deployment and partnerships;
-	potential for an Integrated Strategic Broadband Plan for NM;
-	municipal needs and initiatives;
-	state legislative actions and financing;
-	public-private partnership possibilities;
-	formation of the 1st-Mile Institute;
-	ways to work together more effectively on New Mexico's
	broadband future.

The 1st-Mile Institute is currently a sponsored project of Ars Publica, a
501(c)3 nonprofit .org.   If you are interested in learning more about the
Institute, or want to help, please be in touch.   If you'd like to make a
donation, or know someone or some company that may, please contact me.

Useful links:
-  1st-Mile web site:   www.1st-mile.com
-  1st-Mile Institute:	www.1st-mile.com/Institute/view
-  1st-Mile email list archives:  www2.dcn.org/pipermail/1st-mile-nm

Here's to a very good new year for all of you, and to a productive second
year for 1st-Mile initiatives in New Mexico.

Richard


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From cohill at designnine.com  Mon Dec 10 05:52:36 2007
From: cohill at designnine.com (Andrew Cohill)
Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2007 08:52:36 -0500
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Colorado (Broadband) Innovation Initiative
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712081209580.20833-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712081209580.20833-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <4DA6407B-2328-4303-A84F-34069509ED25@designnine.com>

> Gov. Bill Ritter today launched a comprehensive high-tech  
> initiative that
> will consolidate and reform state government's fractured Information
> Technology operations and establish the state's first Innovation  
> Council
> to spur advances in Colorado's technology sector.
>


The Governor's Innovation Council seems to lack any community or  
regional representation, and most members seem to represent incumbent  
providers.  Certainly they should be involved (the incumbents), but  
without community representation, some "innovative" public/private  
partnership opportunities are likely to be missed.

Community broadband is fundamentally a different beast from  
traditional networks.  Different equipment is needed, different  
architectures are needed, and different business models are needed.

Andrew

-------------------------------------------------
Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
President
Design Nine, Inc.

Design Nine provides visionary broadband architecture and engineering  
services, telecommunications and broadband master planning, and  
broadband project management.

Visit the Technology Futures blog for frequently updated news and  
commentary on technology issues.
  http://www.designnine.com/news/

http://www.designnine.com/
Blacksburg, Virginia
540.951.4400







From rl at radlab.com  Mon Dec 10 08:05:07 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2007 08:05:07 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Colorado (Broadband) Innovation Initiative
In-Reply-To: <4DA6407B-2328-4303-A84F-34069509ED25@designnine.com>
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712100748230.1857-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

	A brief response to Andrew's posting.
Agreed.   Statewide broadband 'innovation' initiatives, such as Colorado's
or any other, should be as inclusive of interests and participation as
possible.   There are many ways to facilitate and manage such processes to
be highly effective, with results that will have broadly representing
benefits.   Such efforts are about building vital networked societies, not
just technical infrastructure.
	In looking at announcements of the CO initiative, I find that
there are 32 named 'members', representing telecom. and tech. industries,
university research, and local government and community interests.   One
of the 'members', who I've been in contact with, is Bernie Zurbriggen,
mayor of Frisco, broadband activist and member of the CO Rural Telecom.
Program, in the '90s.
	Of course they can do better.   'Community champions' are needed.
Their working process is just beginning, and I'll try to keep this list
posted on progress.
Richard


On Mon, 10 Dec 2007, Andrew Cohill wrote:

> > Gov. Bill Ritter today launched a comprehensive high-tech
> > initiative that
> > will consolidate and reform state government's fractured Information
> > Technology operations and establish the state's first Innovation
> > Council
> > to spur advances in Colorado's technology sector.
> >
>
> The Governor's Innovation Council seems to lack any community or
> regional representation, and most members seem to represent incumbent
> providers.  Certainly they should be involved (the incumbents), but
> without community representation, some "innovative" public/private
> partnership opportunities are likely to be missed.
>
> Community broadband is fundamentally a different beast from
> traditional networks.  Different equipment is needed, different
> architectures are needed, and different business models are needed.
>
> Andrew
>
> -------------------------------------------------
> Andrew Michael Cohill, Ph.D.
> President
> Design Nine, Inc.



From rl at radlab.com  Mon Dec 10 10:18:11 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2007 10:18:11 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] UNM HSC: Grant Award Announcement
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712101004150.8464-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The UNM HSC Center for Telehealth and Cybermedicine Research Awarded
$15,561,181.

(See the web site for the complete announcement, and a diagramatic map
indicating networked service and partner clouds.)  rl

http://hsc.unm.edu/som/telehealth

The Center for Telehealth and Cybermedicine Research at the University of
New Mexicos Health Sciences Center has been awarded $15,561,181 for The
Southwest Telehealth Access Grid (SW TAG) Project. Funding comes through
the Federal Communications Commission. Dale Alverson, MD, Medical Director
of CfTH is the Principal Investigator, Arthur B. Maccabe, UNM, CIO is the
Co-Principal Investigator. The funding, over three years, will provide
support for the costs of hardware and software, design, development,
implementation, operations, maintenance, and evaluation of a telemedicine
access grid. An additional $4,022,508 of matching funds will be provided
by the SW TAG members, bringing the total funding for the project to
$19,583,689.

Lead by the University of New Mexico, the SW TAG is a partnership between
New Mexico, the Arizona Telemedicine Network and the Southwest Indian
Health Service Telehealth Consortium and associated tribes. The funds will
support the build out of a telehealth access grid, providing the platform
for the sharing, distribution and coordination of telemedicine clinical
services, educational and training programs for 500 health related
facilities across the rural southwest. The SW TAG network will also
support UNM Clinical and Translational Science Center community-based
research. In addition to the grids support of day-to-day telemedicine
transactions among participating agencies, it will also provide a system
that can be quickly transitioned to support telehealth and other high
priority traffic in the event of a natural or man-made disaster.

The telecommunications stakeholders in this proposal will play a critical
role in bridging serious healthcare gaps through the development of
adequate and affordable broadband infrastructure to communities in their
territory. The project leverages, to a large extent, existing statewide
and regional network infrastructure and investments already in place. The
grid will provide for the integration of the high-speed Internet backbones
offered by Internet 2 and National Lambda Rail.

Unique features of SW TAG are the network design studies and modeling
components. These will allow iterative improvement through ongoing
simulation, testing, evaluation, development and utilization throughout
the project. Security, improved reliability, quality of service, and
appropriate redundancy that can support disaster recovery are incorporated
as part of the modeling and design.

The consortium of 12 stakeholders includes the Center for Disaster
Medicine, Carrie Tingley Hospital, Center for High Performance Computing,
Electrical & Computer Engineering, NM Institute of Mining & Technology, NM
State University, NM Department of Health, Los Alamos National Laboratory,
Southwest Indian Health Service including Albuquerque Area IHS, Navajo
IHS, Phoenix Area IHS, Tucson Area IHS, Arizona Telemedicine Program, Holy
Cross Hospital, Presbyterian Medical Services and Sangre de Cristo
Community Health Partnership.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------






From rl at radlab.com  Mon Dec 10 14:58:38 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 10 Dec 2007 14:58:38 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] 700Mhz Spectrum Wireless Devices: Background Paper
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712101454130.22942-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Here's the link to the New America Foundation's very good policy
background paper, on new wireless applications and devices, and the vacant
TV spectrum they will utilize, which is to be auctioned off to providers
by the FCC in January.
rl
-----

www.newamerica.net/publications/policy/unlicensed_broadband_device_technologies

Policy Backgrounder: Unlicensed Broadband Device Technologies

'White Space Device' Operations on the TV Band and the Myth of Harmful
Interference

By Michael Calabrese, Sascha Meinrath, New America Foundation
Dec. 2007

"Smart" wireless devices can use the unassigned frequencies between
broadcast TV channels to offer wireless broadband and other innovative
services. A rulemaking is pending at the FCC (docket 04-186) to permit
unlicensed access to this currently wasted spectrum, subject to technical
requirements that will protect television reception from interference.
Access to the vacant TV channels in each market has been the subject of
intense lobbying, yet far too many of the arguments against "white space"
devices rely upon misinformation about the technologies and the FCC
process that will prevent harmful interference to DTV reception and other
incumbent services.

This policy backgrounder offers a summary analysis, and is an effort to
help policymakers strike the appropriate balance between protecting
existing services from interference while making the benefits of mobile
broadband services available and affordable for all consumers. It provides
policymakers with:

   1. a brief historical background to the current FCC proceedings;
   2. a description of White Space Device (WSD) technologies;
   3. a Myths vs. Facts section addressing the key concerns raised about
WSDs;
   4. an overview of the public benefits of WSDs; and
   5. a concise summary of where we are in the multi-phase process of
adopting WSD technologies for consumer use.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Tue Dec 11 18:38:56 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Tue, 11 Dec 2007 18:38:56 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Sandoval County Broadband: Auditor's Findings
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712111833090.11905-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

I missed this when it was reported a few weeks ago.   rl
--------

November 21, 2007]

Auditor Faults Project 'Waste': Sandoval County broadband effort
mismanaged, official says.

(Albuquerque Journal (NM)

Sandoval County's ill-fated broadband project was plagued by
"mismanagement, waste and abuse," according to State Auditor Hector
Balderas.

After two years, the county had spent more than $2.6 million on its plan
to deliver cheap high-speed wireless Internet access to service providers
across the county.

What it had to show for that was no network and a host of problems.

"It is clear that the county failed to institute the appropriate practices
and oversight to ensure proper management of public funds," Balderas told
the Journal on Tuesday. "... Their lack of accountability hurt the
taxpayers of Sandoval County."

Balderas' office released Sandoval County's fiscal 2006 audit Tuesday with
findings that outline four alleged violations of state regulations and one
admonishment about poor procurement practices relating to the project.

He said an investigation by his office continues, focusing on "particular
transactions and persons."

County officials said Tuesday they would have no comment until they get a
final copy of the audit. They have only seen a draft.

County Manager Debbie Hays didn't return a Journal message Tuesday
evening.

Management responses were included in the audit and challenge some of
the findings.

Violations alleged:

Failure to report $2.2 million in expenditures -- including $1.3 million
for broadband construction -- to the state Department of Finance for the
audit. The nondisclosure would have affected county bond ratings and
"exposes the county ... to possible fraudulent activity."

Amending a planning contract for $300,000 to include the plan's
implementation, avoiding proper procurement regulations. The amendment
more than quadrupled the contract's worth.

Not checking that goods and services paid for were actually received.

Sending official e-mails regarding the audit to the offices of the
governor and attorney general in violation of the State Audit Act. The
audit states the e-mails could be "misconstrued as an attempt by the
county to impair the independence of the independent public accountant or
the Office of the State Auditor."

Giving the original contract for the broadband project to Utah company
AQV, which also wrote the request for proposals. That is admonished as a
poor practice.

"Had the county followed more prudent practices, much of this loss in
taxpayer dollars could have been prevented," Balderas said Tuesday.

The county lost about $1.3 million in taxpayer dollars after two
contractors allegedly breached their project contracts and walked away
without delivering a working broadband network.

County officials were forced to start over on the network and are
currently suing the contractors. The county maintains it did acquire
valuable programs with some of the money.

There are no penalties for the violations, but the findings do affect the
county's financial rating.

The county disputes that it violated any procurement procedures when
contracting for the project. The scope of AQV's contract was not changed
significantly, the county states.

The county also claims the violation of not verifying receipt of services
was erroneous because it could not find anyone at the state Department of
Finance who had heard of the regulation and that the state agency
indicated the provision was impossible for counties to meet.

Commissioners have approved a new contractor to build the network at an
estimated additional cost of $950,000.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Thu Dec 13 10:25:55 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Thu, 13 Dec 2007 10:25:55 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Singapore Broadband Vision
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712131023370.6203-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Singapore Broadband

Singapore is far from New Mexico, geographically and with regard to
broadband deployment.   But, the following article on their broadband
vision (with structural separation diagram) adds to the growing number of
examples and movement towards 'open' fiber strategies for the 1st-mile.
rl
--------

www.convergedigest.com/Bandwidth/newnetworksarticle.asp?ID=23307&ctgy=

Singapore Outlines Vision for Open Access Broadband 2015

The government of Singapore outlined its vision for an open access Next
Generation National Broadband Network (Next Gen NBN) offering pervasive
ultra-high speed connectivity by 2015. The plan calls for a minimum speed
of 100 Mbps in the downlink and 50 Mbps in the uplink per end-user
connection and scalability to 1 Gbps and above. Singapore is also calling
for a separation between network layer operations (the Layer 1 physical
network), the bandwidth service operators (Layer 2 and Layer 3
connectivity), and the retail services that ride on top.

The Next Gen NBN is expected to be available nationwide by 2015, although
the first services, such as high-definition video conferencing,
telemedicine, Grid Computing-on-Demand, security and immersive learning
applications, should be running on the Next Gen NBN from about 2010.

Singapore's Infocomm Development Authority is issuing a
Request-For-Proposal (RFP) open to all interested parties to submit their
bid to design, build and operate the passive infrastructure layer of the
Next Gen NBN.

Under this RFP, a Network Company, or NetCo, will be selected to design,
build and operate this passive infrastructure that will carry the traffic
for Next Generation Services. The deployment of active electronics such as
switches and routers to manage the flow of traffic on the passive
infrastructure will be done by what is called the Operating Company or
OpCo, which will also be the entity that offers wholesale broadband access
to downstream Retail Service Providers, or RSPs. The latter are the
companies that provide Next Generation Services to end-users.

"A Next Generation Broadband Network will contribute to Singapore's
continued economic success. It is also critical for the Next Gen NBN to
provide effective open access to downstream operators. This will create a
more vibrant and competitive broadband market. As a policy, we have
therefore decided to adopt separation between the different levels of the
Next Gen NBN to achieve effective open access. The RFP to construct the
network will therefore provide for structural separation of the passive
network operator from the downstream operators. If necessary, the
Government is also prepared to consider legislation to achieve such
effective open access for downstream operators in the next generation
broadband market," said Dr Lee Boon Yang.

------

The Singapore IDA site includes the above news release, as well as slide
show presentations, other documents and info. on their wireless
initiative.

www.ida.gov.sg/News%20and%20Events/20071211184512.aspx?getPagetype=20


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Fri Dec 14 11:00:06 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:00:06 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Terry Yates
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712141055160.16078-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The following from Tom West, National LambdaRail President & CEO, is
reposted from one of our subscribers' lists; with a link below it, to a
UNM online press release.
rl
---------

From: Tom West <tom.west at nlr.net>
Date: December 14, 2007 10:19:36 AM PST
Subject: Sad News about Terry Yates

I am sad to report that Terry Yates, who until recently served as New
Mexico's NLR board representative, passed away this week. Terry, a
University of New Mexico administrator known for helping solve the mystery
of hantavirus, died of complications from brain cancer.  He was 57.

Earlier this year, the NLR board passed the following resolution to honor
Terry and his service to the entire research community. I wanted to take a
minute of your time to remember his contributions.

Be It Resolved, that the NLR Board extends its sincere thanks to you Terry
Yates for your dedicated service and significant contributions as a
founding board member, as the NMLR appointee between July 1, 2004 and July
27, 2007. We are appreciative of your leadership roles: as a member of the
Finance Committee serving between July 1 2004 and July 27, 2007 and as a
member of the Executive Committee between July 1, 2006 and July 27, 2007.
Most importantly, we very much appreciated your energy, enthusiasm,
insights, and thought leadership as we confronted the many opportunities
and challenges involved in developing NLR.

We will miss him.

Sincerely,
Tom West
---------

Dec. 12, UNM Today: Press Release
www.unm.edu/~market/cgi-bin/archives/002487.html


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Fri Dec 14 15:57:34 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Fri, 14 Dec 2007 15:57:34 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Could broadband help the environment?
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712141555500.27199-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Pew Internet Posts page provides a link to the rather lengthy (51
pages) .pdf report: "Broadband Services: Economic and Environmental
Benefits" (released Oct. 31, 2007), by the American Consumer Institute
(ACI).
rl
-----

www.pewinternet.org/PPF/p/1228/pipcomments.asp

Could broadband help the environment?

Wednesday, December 12, 2007 | Pew Internet Posts

According to two recently released reports, the answer might be as simple
as switching to a high-speed internet connection.   In "Broadband
Services: Economic and Environmental Benefits" (released Oct. 31, 2007),
the American Consumer Institute (ACI) suggests that if broadband adoption
became widespread, there could be a significant reduction in greenhouse
gas emissions, equaling 1 billion tons over the course of 10 years.
Australian telecommunications company Telstra also released a recent
report suggesting that its country could reduce emissions by nearly 5% by
the year 2015 if it takes advantage of new telecommunication technologies.

The reports propose simple answers to saving energy through faster
internet connections.   The ACI study breaks down its 1 billion tons saved
into the categories such as e-commerce, telecommuting, teleconferencing,
and downloading music and videos online, all of which can save gas
mileage, office space, and paper waste.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Sat Dec 15 12:16:15 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2007 12:16:15 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Open Fiber Projects in VA
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712151211520.12194-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Design Nine, Inc., Andrew Cohill's Blacksburg, VA based broadband planning
firm, is stewarding two community broadband projects in Virginia, that are
early, example-setting works-in-progress for the 'open access' systems and
services model, advocated for by the 1st-Mile initiative.
rl

(Note:  I am a senior broadband planner with Design Nine, Inc.,
www.designnine.com)
--------

The Wired Road Project is a regional open access, multi-service
telecommunications network that has been started by the governments of
Carroll and Grayson Counties, the City of Galax, and the Crossroads
Institute.   When Phase Three is completed in 2012, the network will offer
integrated fiber and wireless services with fiber connections to more than
80% of the homes and businesses in the region.   The Wired Road will be
operated as a digital road system - local governments will build and
maintain the digital road system, but private businesses will use the
digital road to deliver goods and services to customers. Local government
will NOT sell services to businesses and residents.
	www.thewiredroad.net

The City of Danville's Connecting Danville to the Future project will
use high performance fiber and wireless technologies to provide a
broadband connection to every home and business in Danville' electric
service area over the next five to seven years. Broadband connections to
households and businesses will provide access to educational resources,
open economic development opportunities, improve utility resiliency and
reliability, and involve the community in energy management and
conservation.
	www.ndanville.net


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Dec 18 11:31:21 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2007 12:31:21 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Small Biz Wi-Fi Strategies bMighty
Message-ID: <47682009.7080703@ideapete.com>

Forbes.com


bMighty
*Small Biz Wi-Fi Strategies*
Carmen Nobel 10.22.07, 6:00 AM ET

In the world of computer networking, Selina Lo is an entrepreneurial 
whiz. She co-founded Centillion Networks, a switching technology 
start-up that Bay Networks bought in 1994 for $100 million. In 1996, she 
joined Alteon WebSystems, a Web switch company that Nortel Networks 
bought in 2000 for a cool $7.8 billion.

These days, Lo is CEO of Ruckus Wireless, formerly Video54 Technologies. 
The company was founded in 2004 with a focus on wireless video. Last 
May, it decided to enter the small and midsize business market with a 
wi-fi product line of access points and controllers called ZoneFlex. Lo 
recently talked to bMighty about Ruckus' brief history, its product 
plans and its exit strategy.

*bMighty: So what's in a name? Why "Ruckus?"*

*Selina Lo:* It represents our spirit. We tend to be loud and a little 
bold in the promises we make. And when we deliver, we let everyone know 
about it. Video54 was a name that was endearing to the engineers. It had 
the "Studio 54" hint, and the reference to 54 megabits [per second] and 
it was focused on video. But we realized that video wasn't our only 
gate. And we knew that [data rates] were going beyond 54 megabits. And 
we knew the name Video54 pegged us as a consumer electronics company, 
solely. And we didn't want that. So we became Ruckus.

*When the company was founded, you /were/ focused solely on video over 
**wi-fi* *, and your customers were primarily telecommunications 
companies who wanted to offer wi-fi to consumers. What made you decide 
to enter the small and midsize business market as well? *

A lot of [service providers] started using our products for multi-tenant 
buildings, and they started calling us to ask for centralized 
management. We'd get calls from a lot of systems integrators and service 
providers who were offering managed services to condos and vacation 
properties. They wanted to manage [the access points] all together. We 
were getting feedback that, given how good our product was, if we would 
add centralized management, our product would be a lot more extensible. 
At the same time, we ran into a small company [called AirSpider], which 
had built a really good SMB management solution. We felt that it would 
be easily integrated with our RF technology, and we acquired that 
company and started the integration process at the end of last year.

*What are the specific wi-fi needs of small and midsize businesses? 
Explain your company's assertion that before you launched ZoneFlex, none 
of the wi-fi equipment makers were serving the niche between the home 
office and the larger enterprise. *

Well, when we say small and midsize businesses, we tend to think of 
offices, but the category also includes hotels, vacation resorts and 
vacation properties that are run by a franchise. These places have a lot 
of remote chains, and each of them needs a smallish network of 10 to 30 
access points. Consumer-level products aren't scalable; they might be 
fine for supporting fewer than 20 people, but beyond that you can't 
scale and control them independently. But buying something big from 
Aruba [Networks] or Cisco won't work, either, because it's so expensive 
and you need an IT team to manage it. A lot of times with the Cisco and 
Aruba solutions, you have to deal with costs and licenses that make the 
hardware much more expensive.

These customers still need a reliable wireless solution, but they don't 
need all the bells and whistles like firewalls and VPN concentrators. We 
like to say that [other companies] are addressing the Fortune 500, and 
we are addressing the unfortunate 50,000.

*If wi-fi is so hot, and if small and midsize businesses are the 
fastest-growing market segment, then why aren't more wi-fi start-ups 
focusing on that market? *

First of all, I think the total market potential for wi-fi is beyond 
belief. There are still a lot of big companies that need to install 
wi-fi networks, and there's a lot of money in big companies. SMB is not 
for everyone. It's not the traditional model for start-ups.

*And you're not traditional. *

We always do things that other people think is difficult. Ruckus is in a 
unique position to leverage our past three years of work. Our first 
focus was the consumer, so price was a big issue and ease of use was a 
big issue. So it's not like we don't already know how to make things 
cheap and simple for SMB customers. We do.

*It's common for a company to target multiple types of customers and 
businesses. Cisco, for example, sells everything from cable equipment 
for cable operators to network-security software. But Ruckus is small, 
and you haven't been around for that long. How do you justify the 
decision to enter a new market as such a young company--to your 
customers, your investors and your partners? Are you shifting away from 
your original market focus? *

We definitely are very much still in the IPTV market, too. The thing 
that allows us to participate in all these markets is that we have 
developed a technology that is both scalable and unique. This RF 
advantage that we have is something that can be leveraged easily to 
different price points and different sizes. For us, the challenge is 
distribution.

*Because you have to go through channel partners in the SMB market? *

Selling in Europe and selling in Asia, even when [the customer] is an 
operator, we still have to go through a distributor. So for the 
distributors in Europe and Asia, our [entering the SMB market] is really 
not that much of a change. The distribution challenge is really a North 
American thing. Fortunately, we hire people who have experience in that. 
People all know the market is going to explode. A lot of distributors 
and channels are looking to get in. We have [deals] lined up.

*What do you think is missing from your product line, and from the wi-fi 
industry in general? *

Basically, our belief is that wi-fi is going to be ubiquitous. Look at 
devices like the iPhone and the BlackBerry. But to be successfully 
pervasive, wi-fi networks need to be more reliable and predictable. The 
market needs something that can turn wi-fi from a high-tech, 
leading-edge, complicated technology into something that is a lot 
simpler to deploy and a lot more reliable. Anything that can make RF 
more reliable and manageable is good for the business.

*Speaking of which, what are your product plans for 802.11n?* /[Editor's 
Note: The 802.11n wi-fi protocol boasts data rates of up to 248 
Mbits/second. While 802.11n isn't due for final standard ratification 
until March 2009, many vendors are shipping "pre-N" products, or 
products based on draft versions of the standard. 802.11n uses multiple 
antennas to achieve a vast increase in data throughput over current 
standards.] /

We definitely will be shipping our 802.11n product this year, based on 
draft two of the standard. In the consumer space, 802.11n has been 
available for a while, but in the enterprise, it is still [under] a lot 
of speculation. The enterprise will want it because of the higher 
capacity, as well as the better range. But we believe that 802.11n by 
itself will pose more problems for the enterprise, particularly in the 
area of interference. Making sure that all these radios do not interfere 
with the neighboring AP is going to be a challenge. We think that 
BeamFlex technology is particularly well-suited to manage the large 
number of radios, and we have designed our controllers to be very scalable.

*What's the grand plan for the company? Are you planning to be bought or 
are you planning to go public?*

I can't say whether we're going to get bought because it takes two to 
tango, but I can tell you we are not /trying/ to get bought. I've done 
three companies; this is my third one. I know you have to build a 
company that can stand on its own two feet, and along the way you get 
offers. I don't build companies just to get bought, because if you do 
that then your value is automatically lower. Or investors are bullish on 
us. People have offered more money than we want to take.

/Carmen Nobel/ /is a journalist with an interest in mobile computing and 
wireless networking. //She lives in Watertown, Mass./

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From pete at ideapete.com  Tue Dec 18 11:31:21 2007
From: pete at ideapete.com (peter)
Date: Tue, 18 Dec 2007 12:31:21 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Small Biz Wi-Fi Strategies bMighty
Message-ID: <47682009.7080703@ideapete.com>

Forbes.com


bMighty
*Small Biz Wi-Fi Strategies*
Carmen Nobel 10.22.07, 6:00 AM ET

In the world of computer networking, Selina Lo is an entrepreneurial 
whiz. She co-founded Centillion Networks, a switching technology 
start-up that Bay Networks bought in 1994 for $100 million. In 1996, she 
joined Alteon WebSystems, a Web switch company that Nortel Networks 
bought in 2000 for a cool $7.8 billion.

These days, Lo is CEO of Ruckus Wireless, formerly Video54 Technologies. 
The company was founded in 2004 with a focus on wireless video. Last 
May, it decided to enter the small and midsize business market with a 
wi-fi product line of access points and controllers called ZoneFlex. Lo 
recently talked to bMighty about Ruckus' brief history, its product 
plans and its exit strategy.

*bMighty: So what's in a name? Why "Ruckus?"*

*Selina Lo:* It represents our spirit. We tend to be loud and a little 
bold in the promises we make. And when we deliver, we let everyone know 
about it. Video54 was a name that was endearing to the engineers. It had 
the "Studio 54" hint, and the reference to 54 megabits [per second] and 
it was focused on video. But we realized that video wasn't our only 
gate. And we knew that [data rates] were going beyond 54 megabits. And 
we knew the name Video54 pegged us as a consumer electronics company, 
solely. And we didn't want that. So we became Ruckus.

*When the company was founded, you /were/ focused solely on video over 
**wi-fi* *, and your customers were primarily telecommunications 
companies who wanted to offer wi-fi to consumers. What made you decide 
to enter the small and midsize business market as well? *

A lot of [service providers] started using our products for multi-tenant 
buildings, and they started calling us to ask for centralized 
management. We'd get calls from a lot of systems integrators and service 
providers who were offering managed services to condos and vacation 
properties. They wanted to manage [the access points] all together. We 
were getting feedback that, given how good our product was, if we would 
add centralized management, our product would be a lot more extensible. 
At the same time, we ran into a small company [called AirSpider], which 
had built a really good SMB management solution. We felt that it would 
be easily integrated with our RF technology, and we acquired that 
company and started the integration process at the end of last year.

*What are the specific wi-fi needs of small and midsize businesses? 
Explain your company's assertion that before you launched ZoneFlex, none 
of the wi-fi equipment makers were serving the niche between the home 
office and the larger enterprise. *

Well, when we say small and midsize businesses, we tend to think of 
offices, but the category also includes hotels, vacation resorts and 
vacation properties that are run by a franchise. These places have a lot 
of remote chains, and each of them needs a smallish network of 10 to 30 
access points. Consumer-level products aren't scalable; they might be 
fine for supporting fewer than 20 people, but beyond that you can't 
scale and control them independently. But buying something big from 
Aruba [Networks] or Cisco won't work, either, because it's so expensive 
and you need an IT team to manage it. A lot of times with the Cisco and 
Aruba solutions, you have to deal with costs and licenses that make the 
hardware much more expensive.

These customers still need a reliable wireless solution, but they don't 
need all the bells and whistles like firewalls and VPN concentrators. We 
like to say that [other companies] are addressing the Fortune 500, and 
we are addressing the unfortunate 50,000.

*If wi-fi is so hot, and if small and midsize businesses are the 
fastest-growing market segment, then why aren't more wi-fi start-ups 
focusing on that market? *

First of all, I think the total market potential for wi-fi is beyond 
belief. There are still a lot of big companies that need to install 
wi-fi networks, and there's a lot of money in big companies. SMB is not 
for everyone. It's not the traditional model for start-ups.

*And you're not traditional. *

We always do things that other people think is difficult. Ruckus is in a 
unique position to leverage our past three years of work. Our first 
focus was the consumer, so price was a big issue and ease of use was a 
big issue. So it's not like we don't already know how to make things 
cheap and simple for SMB customers. We do.

*It's common for a company to target multiple types of customers and 
businesses. Cisco, for example, sells everything from cable equipment 
for cable operators to network-security software. But Ruckus is small, 
and you haven't been around for that long. How do you justify the 
decision to enter a new market as such a young company--to your 
customers, your investors and your partners? Are you shifting away from 
your original market focus? *

We definitely are very much still in the IPTV market, too. The thing 
that allows us to participate in all these markets is that we have 
developed a technology that is both scalable and unique. This RF 
advantage that we have is something that can be leveraged easily to 
different price points and different sizes. For us, the challenge is 
distribution.

*Because you have to go through channel partners in the SMB market? *

Selling in Europe and selling in Asia, even when [the customer] is an 
operator, we still have to go through a distributor. So for the 
distributors in Europe and Asia, our [entering the SMB market] is really 
not that much of a change. The distribution challenge is really a North 
American thing. Fortunately, we hire people who have experience in that. 
People all know the market is going to explode. A lot of distributors 
and channels are looking to get in. We have [deals] lined up.

*What do you think is missing from your product line, and from the wi-fi 
industry in general? *

Basically, our belief is that wi-fi is going to be ubiquitous. Look at 
devices like the iPhone and the BlackBerry. But to be successfully 
pervasive, wi-fi networks need to be more reliable and predictable. The 
market needs something that can turn wi-fi from a high-tech, 
leading-edge, complicated technology into something that is a lot 
simpler to deploy and a lot more reliable. Anything that can make RF 
more reliable and manageable is good for the business.

*Speaking of which, what are your product plans for 802.11n?* /[Editor's 
Note: The 802.11n wi-fi protocol boasts data rates of up to 248 
Mbits/second. While 802.11n isn't due for final standard ratification 
until March 2009, many vendors are shipping "pre-N" products, or 
products based on draft versions of the standard. 802.11n uses multiple 
antennas to achieve a vast increase in data throughput over current 
standards.] /

We definitely will be shipping our 802.11n product this year, based on 
draft two of the standard. In the consumer space, 802.11n has been 
available for a while, but in the enterprise, it is still [under] a lot 
of speculation. The enterprise will want it because of the higher 
capacity, as well as the better range. But we believe that 802.11n by 
itself will pose more problems for the enterprise, particularly in the 
area of interference. Making sure that all these radios do not interfere 
with the neighboring AP is going to be a challenge. We think that 
BeamFlex technology is particularly well-suited to manage the large 
number of radios, and we have designed our controllers to be very scalable.

*What's the grand plan for the company? Are you planning to be bought or 
are you planning to go public?*

I can't say whether we're going to get bought because it takes two to 
tango, but I can tell you we are not /trying/ to get bought. I've done 
three companies; this is my third one. I know you have to build a 
company that can stand on its own two feet, and along the way you get 
offers. I don't build companies just to get bought, because if you do 
that then your value is automatically lower. Or investors are bullish on 
us. People have offered more money than we want to take.

/Carmen Nobel/ /is a journalist with an interest in mobile computing and 
wireless networking. //She lives in Watertown, Mass./

-- 

Peter Baston

*IDEAS*

/www.ideapete.com/ <http://www.ideapete.com/>

3210 La Paz Lane

Santa Fe, NM 87507

/Albuquerque// Office: 505-890-9649/

/Santa Fe// Office: 505-629-4227/

/Cell: 505-690-3627/

/Fax: 866-642-8918/

/_Mailto:pete at ideapete.com <mailto:pete at ideapete.com>_/

 

 

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From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Dec 19 08:27:41 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 19 Dec 2007 09:27:41 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Fwd: Lawmakers May Seek Overhaul At FCC
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20071219092708.0cfdf130@mail.zianet.com>

 From another list - FYI.


>http://www.njtelecomupdate.com/2007/12/lawmakers_may_seek_overhaul_at.html
>
>During an oversight hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee, Sen. 
>John (Jay) Rockefeller, D-W.Va., recommended that the panel develop 
>legislation next year to overhaul the agency from top to bottom.
>
>"The FCC appears to be more concerned about making sure the policies they 
>advocate serve the needs of the companies they regulate and their bottom 
>lines rather than the public interest," Rockefeller said. "Congress cannot 
>allow that to happen."



From granoff at zianet.com  Wed Dec 19 08:51:45 2007
From: granoff at zianet.com (Marianne Granoff)
Date: Wed, 19 Dec 2007 09:51:45 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Flawed FCC Forbearance
Message-ID: <6.1.2.0.2.20071219093022.0cfdbeb0@mail.zianet.com>

Edited for interest.  FYI.

>Inouye Introduces Bill to Correct Flawed FCC
>Forbearance Process, Senate
>
>http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=249019
>
>
>
>Qwest To Expand 20 Mbps Option, Steer Clear of IPTV
>Qwest Communications held a strategy update call (webcast
>here) this morning and revealed that it will expand its
>fiber-to-the-node initiative to boost the number of homes
>in its territory that are capable of buying higher speed
>broadband service.
> 
>http://www.ipdemocracy.com/archives/002813qwest_to_expand_20_mbps_option_steer_clear_of_iptv.php
>
>
>Senators to Block FCC Funding if Martin Won't
>Delay Vote - Martin says he's going forward anyway,
>DSLreports
>FCC Chief Kevin Martin had a lot of questions to
>answer this week when he faced a Senate committee in a
>three hour hearing. Issues that were brought up
>included the FCC s failure to educate the public about
>the digital TV transition to which Martin responded
>that the FCC was doing a terrific job considering that
>it had received no funding from the Senate to assist
>with the education.
> 
>http://www.dslreports.com/shownews/Senators-to-Block-FCC-Funding-if-Martin-Wont-Delay-Vote-90242
>
>
>Study: 95 percent of all e-mail sent in 2007 was spam,
>CNET
>We're being inundated by spam. How could
>community-based approaches help?
>http://blogs.cnet.com/8301-13505_1-9831556-16.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20



From rl at radlab.com  Sun Dec 23 18:49:36 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 23 Dec 2007 18:49:36 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] NH-VT Wireless Network
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712231832220.3481-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The states of New Hampshire and Vermont are proceeding to deploy their two
state, multi-county wireless network.   A regional example to watch.
rl
------

http://nhbr.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071221/INDUSTRY06/474526417/-1/EVENTS

Promise of wireless broadband being fulfilled in North Country

By Elizabeth Penney
Friday, December 21, 2007

After years of waiting, residents and businesses in remote areas of Coos
County will soon have access to wireless broadband Internet service.

This will bring us out of the Third World up here, Dalton Selectman Brian
Hardy said of the service, which is being made possible by a nonprofit
open access system called Wireless LINC of NH and VT. It will put us on an
equal footing with the rest of the state.

Hardy, a seven-year selectman, has personal experience with the lack of
broadband access. His home environmental consulting business is located on
the Littleton-Dalton line. We don't have cable or DSL service out here.
It's very frustrating. I can't download files over dial-up. I have to
travel or use snail mail.

Dalton joins Lancaster, Whitefield, Jefferson and Groveton as part of
Wireless LINC's 2008 pilot project, which will encompass 400 square miles.

The system currently is being readied for testing over the winter.
Originating from Lyndon State College in Lyndonville, Vt., a signal will
be broadcast to Burke Mountain and then to Lancaster's Mt. Orne cell
tower. Some 30 private and municipal sites throughout the area will be
equipped to receive and re-broadcast the signal to selected neighborhoods.

We have a lot of testing to do, project manager Tom Joyce said. In this
area, we have issues of topography, extreme weather and foliage. Testing
won't be completed until the leaves come out next May.

Different configurations will be assessed, including high- and
low-frequency signals and line-of-sight and non-line-of-site technologies.
>From this data, the remaining build-out can be designed.

The next phase of service will be offered in Littleton and Stratford.
Eventually, all of Grafton, Coos and Carroll counties will be covered.

Peter Riviere, executive director of the Coos County Economic Development
Corp., has for the past seven years been touting the importance of
broadband access in the region. The factors that make delivery difficult
have made it economically unfeasible for private providers to offer
services, he said.

Most of the North Country's economic centers, such as Littleton, Conway
and Berlin, have a selection of technologies, but outlying neighborhoods
and rural towns frequently have little choice but dial-up. Broadband
options are unavailable or very expensive.

We needed to find public money to build a parallel network that would be
affordable, said Riviere.

In 2001, Riviere had a business aggregation solution lined up with Global
Crossing, which had provided service in the Berkshires of Massachusetts.
But 10 days before rollout, the dot bomb, as he calls the technology stock
crash, killed the project. It fell apart, said Riviere.

But, along with other regional leaders, Riviere continued to champion the
need for broadband for economic development, public safety, education and
medical applications. In 2004, the New Hampshire Rural Development Council
took the issue on as a priority and produced a series of reports resulting
in The Northern New Hampshire Technology and Telecommunications Master
Plan, which mapped existing infrastructure and identified gaps, as well as
made recommendations for possible solutions.

The last mile

Out of this process grew Wireless LINC, a partnership between Northern
Community Investment Corp. (NCIC) and Littleton Area Development Corp.
(LIDC).

Its plan is to build a six-county, 6,000-square-mile, open-access system
across northern New Hampshire and Vermont.

Wireless LINC currently is in discussion with vendors to act as wireless
Internet service providers, which will act as resellers of the signal to
end-users.

Customers will be able to choose who they get their service from, Riviere
said. We believe this competition will drive better service and lower
prices.

Our goal is not to compete with existing providers, Joyce added. We want
to reach the last mile - people who receive only dial-up.

The $12 million project will be funded through a combination of grants,
federal earmarks and tax credits. To date, $2 million has been received
for the New Hampshire portion, which has a total price tag of $4.7
million. The tax credits, issued through the Community Development Finance
Authority, are available to any business that wants to buy them, Riviere
said. Wireless LINC has $212,000 left to sell in 2007 and may receive
another $500,000 in 2008.

Jon Freeman, executive director of NCIC, called the system a transforming
infrastructure, because it will profoundly impact opportunities for
business growth, education, health care, first responders and those who
live and visit the region.

Veronica Francis, vice president of LIDC and owner of Notchnet, a Web
design and hosting company, is excited about the implications of the
project as well.

Small businesses need broadband to operate, Francis said. We would see
more high-tech businesses in the North Country if we had affordable,
available broadband.

Bruce Houghton, owner of the Skyline Music booking agency in Whitefield,
echoed Francis's thoughts.

He moved his business from Jefferson because he was paying $800 per month
for a T-1 line. It was cheaper to buy another building and move my
business, he said. Skyline uses broadband to move contracts and
promotional materials and to answer phones in distant offices in Portland,
Maine, and Atlanta, Ga. All told, some 90 percent of Skyline's European
and Asian bookings are done via the Internet.

With four employees in Whitefield and six in other locations, Houghton
said he sees opportunity for rural areas in access to technology.
Broadband is key to creating the jobs of the future, he said.

For more information about the system, visit www.ncic.org


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------






From rl at radlab.com  Sun Dec 23 18:50:33 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 23 Dec 2007 18:50:33 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Glenwood, CO Fiber Network
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712231827580.3481-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The City of Glenwood Springs, CO is looking to expand its municipal fiber
optic network and services.
rl
--------

www.postindependent.com/article/20071221/VALLEYNEWS/448683357

Glenwood city council looks into expanding broadband

By Pete Fowler
December 21, 2007

GLENWOOD SPRINGS - The city of Glenwood Springs is looking at expanding
its broadband network with fiber-optic cables to every home.

"You can send the Library of Congress coast to coast in just seconds over
one fiber strand," said Bryan Wassom, senior account director with Alcatel
Lucent.

Get a phone call that shows up on television, pause the video on demand,
then decide whether or not to send it to voicemail or take it on a video
call over the television.

That would be an option for someone with voice-over Internet protocol
taking advantage of what a direct fiber-optic has to offer, Wassom said.

On Thursday, UTI Inc., of Georgia, and Alcatel Lucent presented a business
model to expand Glenwood's fiber-optic network requiring around $10
million in capitol expenses and $12 million in bond issues.

Glenwood Springs installed municipal fiber-optic infrastructure in 2002
when it created the Community Broadband Network. The city had contacted
UTI to explore the possibilities of expanding the network and its
services.

The presentation emphasized that expanding fiber-optics would lead to
higher bandwidths and increased services that would eventually pay for
themselves.

"You can quickly realize that approximately $10 million a year is going
out of this community to pay for video, data, voice," said J. Allen Davis,
president of UTI.

Wassom and Davis said expanding the network and its offerings would lower
the cost of services by increasing competition. It would also benefit the
city in less tangible ways and build a strong infrastructure for the
future.

For example, Wassom said, Yahoo! Chose to locate server facilities in
Chelan County, Wash., in large part because it has its own fiber-optic
network.

Wassom played a video in which a hospital CEO says the fiber-optic network
has literally saved lives by allowing for quicker consultations and
diagnoses.

Mayor Bruce Christensen said Glenwood had no broadband services available
until just months after the city installed the Community Broadband Network
and service providers eagerly jumped in.

Wassom said by taking an increased role in providing voice, data and video
with fiber-optic infrastructure, the city can better control its own
destiny. He said it would allow Glenwood to do things traditional service
providers never would: allowing free or discounted access for hospitals,
schools or even households of certain incomes.

"It strikes me as odd when the telecommunications industry steps up and
says you shouldn't do this," Wassom said.

Christensen said the difference he's noticed between a wireless connection
to the city's network and a fiber-optic connection is phenomenal.

"All of these technologies discussed are not available to our citizens
right now," he said. "We do provide fiber to a number of businesses in
town, but there's really no affordable way for people to get that
technology and that bandwidth to their homes. If we do that, as we're
seeing, there's this huge variety of services that are available."


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------






From rl at radlab.com  Sun Dec 23 18:51:19 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 23 Dec 2007 18:51:19 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Powell, WY Fiber Network
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712231838310.3481-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Powell, Wyoming is proceeding with buildout of a fiber network.
rl
-----

www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/12/21/news/wyoming/28-powell.txt

Powell council OKs financing fiber optic network

By RUFFIN PREVOST
Gazette Wyoming Bureau
Friday, December 21, 2007

POWELL - The Powell City Council voted unanimously during a special
meeting Thursday to authorize $6.5 million in private revenue bond
financing for a citywide fiber optic telecommunications network.

The council also approved documents outlining the structure and operation
of the network, which will be run for six years by anchor service provider
TCT of Basin and will be owned by the city after 20 years.

The network would bring ultra-high-speed data connections to every home in
Powell and allow customers to receive Internet, phone and television
services over a single line.

Consultants U.S. MetroNets of Utah, underwriters Seattle-Northwest
Securities and investment firm Global Leveraged Capital of New York City
are expected to sign final closing documents sometime over the next few
weeks, said Ernie Bray, founder of U.S. MetroNets.

Anchor service provider TCT will review the deal before it is finalized,
but Bray and attorneys involved with the process said Thursday that all
parties had agreed on terms and that only closing and due diligence
documents remained to be signed.

If the system is a success, the deal would cost Powell no money and could
end up saving city funds by allowing remote power meter reading, City
Administrator Zane Logan has said.

Starting in 2014, a future council will have the option to consider
helping fund the system, but only if it is not making money and seems
likely to do so with such assistance, Logan has said.

The city is due a refund of $125,000 it paid to U.S. MetroNets in February
2006.

Logan said the city's contract with U.S. MetroNets requires that refund be
paid back as soon as bond revenues are received, presumably sometime early
next year.

But he said the Northwest Improvement Joint Powers Board that will
administer the funds will explore whether it makes more sense to delay the
refund to avoid paying debt service on the funds, instead paying it back
from system revenues as they become available.

Nearly two years in the making, the project is thought to be the first of
its kind in the country to be financed entirely without any guarantee of
government funding.

Telecom giants Qwest and Bresnan Communications have opposed the deal,
successfully supporting state legislation making it more difficult for
other cities seeking to fund such projects.

A city-owned network represents an unfair competitive advantage for its
operator, the companies have said.

Bray said the network is expected to cost $4.9 million to build, with the
additional $1.6 million representing the total potential financing costs.

If the network performs well initially, terms allow the city to make early
repayments and avoid some of those financing costs, Logan said.

Construction on the project is expected to take up to five months and may
begin as soon as March if weather is favorable, Bray said.

The financing model for the Powell network has been drawing attention from
other investors and service providers, Bray said, and could serve as a
model for other small, rural communities seeking to build high-speed
networks.

Council members have seen the network as a way to jump-start economic
development in Powell.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------






From ggomes at soundviewnet.com  Mon Dec 24 06:47:40 2007
From: ggomes at soundviewnet.com (Gary Gomes)
Date: Mon, 24 Dec 2007 07:47:40 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Rural Development Agency Approval of FTTP Gear
In-Reply-To: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712231838310.3481-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
References: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712231838310.3481-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>
Message-ID: <002101c8463b$ef45c140$0201a8c0@GARY>



Alcatel-Lucent [Euronext Paris and NYSE:ALU] has announced their
Alcatel-Lucent 7342 ISAM FTTU (Fiber to the User) solution has been granted
both "Rural Development Acceptance" and "Buy American" status by the U.S.
Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Agency for deployment under
the Rural Development Broadband Loan and Loan Guarantee Program. USDA
acceptance means that communities of up to 20,000 inhabitants can now
install Alcatel-Lucent's 7342 ISAM FTTU solution using funding obtained
under the USDA Rural Development funding programs. GPON offers the bandwidth
to support, over a single fiber optic cable, multiple and simultaneous HDTV
channels, high-speed Internet access, and voice services. Alcatel-Lucent's
7342 ISAM FTTU solution will be listed in the "ae - Access Equipment"
category, FTTH Systems. Alcatel-Lucent 7342 ISAM Fiber-to-the-User (FTTU)
solution, which uses gigabit passive optical networking (GPON) to enable
service providers to cost-effectively deliver high revenue, user-centric
broadband services today, over a single optical fiber. For more information,
visit Alcatel-Lucent's FTTH solution.

Gary C. Gomes
Managing Member
SoundView Networks, LLC
5085 Copper Bar Road
Las Cruces, NM 88011
575-521-1606
Mobile: 575-202-6383





From rl at radlab.com  Sat Dec 29 15:27:32 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2007 15:27:32 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Media Industries Summit, Jan 11th
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712290859360.17796-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

The Governor's Office is sponsoring a special Media Industries Summit:
"Media Industries for New Mexicos Future", on Jan. 11, preceding the
fourth annual Media Industries Conference, on the 12th .

The by-invitation-only Summit, presented and hosted by the UNM ArtsLab,
will gather leaders in education, film, animation, games and media
industries in New Mexico for a working session to identify and suggest
strategies for continuing to build a sustainable media industry cluster in
our state, with a determined focus on Education and Workforce Development,
Building New Mexico Based Production, and New Mexico Media Next.

I expect to attend and to bring up the need for a statewide initiative to
grow an integrated. 'true' broadband infrastructure, needed to support
media and all other state eco-social initiatives, as well as to foster
local (1st-mile) efforts to plan and deploy 'open' broadband for all.

Summit and Conference information is available at:
http://artslab.unm.edu/newsevents/MI4NMF.htm

Richard






From tom at jtjohnson.com  Sat Dec 29 19:36:37 2007
From: tom at jtjohnson.com (Tom Johnson)
Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2007 20:36:37 -0700
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Another closed meeting from the gov's office: Media
	Industries Summit, Jan 11th
Message-ID: <e04090490712291936w23f7fdb3j81b59d3b58387b9b@mail.gmail.com>

So, the governor's office -- borrowing a page from "Dick Cheney's
Introduction to Political Power" manual --  is running yet another closed
meeting on a topic that should be open to the citizens, eh?

I guess I there's more work to do.  See http://tinyurl.com/23uhho

-tj

A friend writes:

On Dec 29, 2007 4:27 PM, ...

> The Governor's Office is sponsoring a special Media Industries Summit:
> "Media Industries for New Mexicos Future", on Jan. 11, preceding the
> fourth annual Media Industries Conference, on the 12th .
>
> The *by-invitation-only Summit*, presented and hosted by the UNM ArtsLab,
> will gather leaders in education, film, animation, games and media
> industries in New Mexico for a working session to identify and suggest
> strategies for continuing to build a sustainable media industry cluster in
>
> our state, with a determined focus on Education and Workforce Development,
> Building New Mexico Based Production, and New Mexico Media Next.
>
> Summit and Conference information is available at:
> http://artslab.unm.edu/newsevents/MI4NMF.htm
>
>
>

-- tj
==========================================
J. T. Johnson
Institute for Analytic Journalism -- Santa Fe, NM USA
www.analyticjournalism.com
505.577.6482(c)                                 505.473.9646(h)
http://www.jtjohnson.com                 tom at jtjohnson.com

"You never change things by fighting the existing reality.
To change something, build a new model that makes the
existing model obsolete."
                                                  -- Buckminster Fuller
==========================================
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From rl at radlab.com  Sun Dec 30 14:23:24 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Sun, 30 Dec 2007 14:23:24 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Pew Report on the Net and Libraries
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712301416390.8307-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

A new report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project:

(Many NM libraries are currently under-connected, yet they are primary
sites for networked knowledge economy development in our communities.)  rl
-----

www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/231/report_display.asp

Information Searches That Solve Problems

12/30/2007

There are several major findings in this report. One is this: For help
with a variety of common problems, more people turn to the internet than
consult experts or family members to provide information and resources.

Another key insight is that members of Gen Y are the leading users of
libraries for help solving problems and in more general patronage.

In a national phone survey, respondents were asked whether they had
encountered 10 possible problems in the previous two years, all of which
had a potential connection to the government or government-provided
information. Those who had dealt with the problems were asked where they
went for help and the internet topped the list:

- 58% of those who had recently experienced one of those problems said
they used the internet (at home, work, a public library or some other
place) to get help.
- 53% said they turned to professionals such as doctors, lawyers or
financial experts.
- 45% said they sought out friends and family members for advice and help.
- 36% said they consulted newspapers and magazines.
- 34% said they directly contacted a government office or agency.
- 16% said they consulted television and radio.
- 13% said they went to the public library.

The survey results challenge the assumption that libraries are losing
relevance in the internet age. Libraries drew visits by more than half of
Americans (53%) in the past year for all kinds of purposes, not just the
problems mentioned in this survey. And it was the young adults in
tech-loving Generation Y (age 18-30) who led the pack. Compared to their
elders, Gen Y members were the most likely to use libraries for
problem-solving information and in general patronage for any purpose.

Furthermore, it is young adults who are the most likely to say they will
use libraries in the future when they encounter problems: 40% of Gen Y
said they would do that, compared with 20% of those above age 30 who say
they would go to a library.

This report is the fruit of a partnership of the University of Illinois
-Urbana-Champaign and the Pew Internet & American Life Project. It was
funded with a grant from the federal Institute of Museum and Library
Services, an agency that is the primary source of federal support for the
nation's 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums.

The focus of the survey was how Americans address common problems that
might be linked to government. The problems covered in the survey: 1)
dealing with a serious illness or health concern; 2) making a decision
about school enrollment, financing school, or upgrading work skills; 3)
dealing with a tax matter; 4) changing a job or starting a business; 5)
getting information about Medicare, Medicaid, or food stamps; 6) getting
information about Social Security or military benefits; 7) getting
information about voter registration or a government policy; 8) seeking
helping on a local government matter such as a traffic problem or schools;
9) becoming involved in a legal matter; and 10) becoming a citizen or
helping another person with an immigration matter.

There was some variance in the results, depending on the type of problem
that people confronted. For instance, those who dealt with a health
problem turned to experts more than any other source, followed by family
and friends, and then the internet. And those who had issues related to
big government programs such as Social Security or Medicare were most
likely to go directly to government agencies for help, then the internet.

Most people were successful in getting information to help them address a
problem no matter what channel they chose and no matter what problem they
faced.

A major focus of this survey was on those with no access to the internet
(23% of the population) and those with only dial-up access (13% of the
population). This low-access population is poorer, older, and less
well-educated than the cohort with broadband access at home or at work.
They are less likely to visit government offices or libraries under any
circumstances. And they are more likely to rely on television and radio
for help than are high-access users.


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------





From rl at radlab.com  Mon Dec 31 11:03:11 2007
From: rl at radlab.com (Richard Lowenberg)
Date: Mon, 31 Dec 2007 11:03:11 -0800 (PST)
Subject: [1st-mile-nm] Broadband Policy Imperatives from the Bottom Up
Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.4.44.0712311059170.6245-100000@wheel.dcn.davis.ca.us>

Japan Eyes 10 Gigs by 2010 as United States Sweats 200 Kbps

http://w2i.com/resource_center/the_w2i_report__weekly_newsletter/news/p/newsletterId_/id_187

Peter Orne
Broadband Wireless Communities Blog
12/27/2007

In Japan today, the "point of competition" is a gigabit, and by 2010 it
will be at 10 gigabits, observed telecommunication lawyer and broadband
champion Jim Baller as he kicked off the panel "Broadband Policy
Imperatives from the Bottom Up" at the 15th Digital Cities Convention in
Washington, DC (December 11-12, 2007).

"The dialogue has begun there about how to get to 100 gigabits per second,
and this is all symmetrical. And here in the United States we're talking
about a definition of broadband that is 200 Kbps and some places in the
United States can't get that - or get it at affordable rates. What kind of
country are we when we are talking at that level and the world is moving
so quickly?"

The national digital divide widens when other countries move ahead and the
United States falls behind. But what happens when that disturbing
technology trend pairs with a preexisting shift in the world economy?
Baller quoted from Ted Fishman's China, Inc.: How the Rise of the Next
Superpower Challenges America and the World:

    The far bigger shift, just now picking up steam, is occurring among
the products that manufacturers and marketers trade with each other: the
infinite number and variety of components that make up everything else
that is made, whether it is the hundreds of parts in a washing machine or
computer or the hundreds of thousands of parts in an airplane. And then
there are the big products themselves: cars, trucks, planes, ships,
switching networks for national phone systems, factories, submarines,
satellites, and rockets. China is taking on those industries too.

And it's not just China, Baller noted. It's India, Indonesia, Bangladesh,
Brazil, Russia and every other country that is competing at the low end of
the manufacturing scale.

Evaporation of the U.S. manufacturing base means the creation of
high-technology jobs is essential to maintaining American competitiveness
and standards of living. But what if other advanced countries like Japan
are already far ahead in developing the broadband networks that support a
robust information-based economy?

The statistics are all too familiar now. The United States used to be
first in the broadband rankings. It was fourth by 2001 and had slipped to
10th by 2004. At that time, President Bush issued a strategy promising
that broadband would be available to everybody in the United States by
2007. But today, the U.S. is somewhere between 15th and 24th.

We pay more than four times and get a 10th of the capacity that the
Japanese get, Baller said.
He called for the development of a "national broadband strategy that
fosters prompt and affordable and ubiquitous access to both advanced
communications networks - fiber - as well as wireless."

Trade associations, think tanks, scholars, foundations, high-tech business
leaders are all beginning to talk about what America needs to do, he said.

    * At the federal level, there is growing support for a national
broadband strategy, with support from FCC Commissioners Copps and
Adelstein, and Senators Rockefeller, Durbin, Clinton, Obama, and others.
    * Before Congress are two bills that would prevent states from
interfering with the ability of local governments to step forward and
participate in the growth of broadband. "The key message is that we've got
a national challenge that can be solved only by the public and the private
sectors working together in a spirit of mutual respect and harmony,"
Baller said.
    * At the FCC, there are various rule makings, including defining
broadband more realistically than it has been doing in the past.

"My main message is: We can't stop at making small plans, we can't look at
issues in isolation, we've got to fit together digital inclusion with
economic development, we've got to fit together wireless and fiber, we've
got to fit together the role and the needs of the incumbents with the role
and the needs of communities we're supposed to be serving. Most important,
we've got to recognize that we're missing the big picture: We've got to
get the sewer people together with the entertainment people. We've got to
get the cities together with others."

(snip)

Bottom Up State, Regional and Local Initiative Examples (follow in the
article on the web)


------------------------------------------------
Richard Lowenberg
P.O.Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110,  505-603-5200 cell

1st-Mile Institute
New Mexico Broadband Initiative
www.1st-mile.com
------------------------------------------------