[1st-mile-nm] Farmington Cable Upgrade

[Richard Lowenberg]

Comcast project to increase available Internet speeds, add HD TV

The Daily Times, Farmington, N.M.

Apr. 15--FARMINGTON -- A multi-million dollar renovation of cable infrastructure
to provide high-speed Internet at least five times faster than what's available
in the Farmington area is set to begin in May, Comcast Corporation officials
said Tuesday.

The privately funded Comcast project would offer residential Internet service at
8 megabytes per second and business service at speeds as high as 20 megabytes
per second in Farmington, Bloomfield and Aztec, Comcast Southwest area
spokesman Chris Dunkeson said.

DSL services currently available in San Juan County through Qwest Communications
are limited to 1.5 megabytes per second, approximately three times faster than a
traditional dial-up Internet connection.Some similar services are provided
through Brainstorm Internet, a regional company.

To complete the project, Comcast cable wires running along community power lines
and other infrastructure electronics must be replaced and upgraded to a
fiberoptic wire and connected to a service hub in Albuquerque. Once completed,
the cable lines will be the most advanced in New Mexico.

Similar high-speed Internet services already are available in Albuquerque, Santa
Fe, Las Cruces and Silver City through Comcast.

The upgrade also will provide more than 60 high-definition television channels
and on-demand video services, the first cable alternative to satellite dish
programming services.

The project, which will begin construction the first week of May, is anticipated
to be completed
in November, with full services set to be made available before the end of the
year.

"This is our chance to make a long-term investment in the Farmington community,"
Dunkeson said. "... We believe the demand is here."

The price tag of the seven-month project is not confirmed, but the upgrade
expense will exceed $5 million, the company spokesman said.

Residential Internet service is expected to cost $43 per month with no contract
period; the HD service upgrade likely would cost an additional $7 to
already-billed cable fees.

Noting weekly calls requesting the improved services from Farmington area
customers, Comcast officials said local demand was a driving factor in bringing
the multi-million $ project to fruition.

In addition to improved services, the project will increase a flow of revenue in
the local economy and provide employment opportunities, Farmington Mayor Bill
Standley said of the upgrade, which city government has promised to support
after meeting with company officials Monday.

The project will require more than 125 contract workers, 25 of which are
expected to be hired from the area.

"It couldn't happen at a better time. It's going to bring money into the
community and (local) businesses," Standley said. "It's going to help that
business infrastructure, as well as residential infrastructure, to provide
better services they've been asking, and waiting, for."

A consequence of the cable system upgrade will be temporary disruption of
services for current Comcast subscribers in neighborhoods where work actively
is being completed, company officials said.

To limit the interruptions, Comcast intends to advertise weekly notices of where
work will be completed in addition to posting door hangers in affected areas
alerting to the pending work, said Mark Johnson, Comcast operations manager in
Farmington.

When completed, the Comcast upgrade will provide much-needed business
competition in a market where Qwest practically has had a monopoly on
high-speed Internet, Farmington Chamber of Commerce President Dorothy Nobis
said.

"It will benefit both companies and it certainly will benefit the business
community," Nobis said. "We need, and deserve, a choice."

Nobis described the available Internet connectivity as an inconvenience with
which most local businesses are unhappy.

"In the high technologies that most businesses operate in today, it's really
critical for most of us," she said of increased Internet speeds.

The Farmington mayor said he hoped the Comcast investment would encourage Qwest
to reinvest in the services made available in the Four Corners area to stay
competitive.

"I think it's good that competition is coming to town," Standley said.

A spokesman with Qwest said the company is working on construction of a new
fiberoptic line that could provide Internet services of up to 20 megabytes per
second to Farmington customers.

"That's something we've been working on bringing to that area, and we've made a
substantial effort in time and resources to be able to bring speeds of 20
megabytes to the Farmington area," said Qwest regional spokesman Mark Molzen.

The Qwest project has been under development for approximately 18 months.
However it's unknown when the faster Internet services would be made available
in Farmington, Molzen said.

James Monteleone: jmonteleone at daily-times.com

http://www.daily-times.com


-- 
Richard Lowenberg
1st-Mile Institute
P.O. Box 8001, Santa Fe, NM 87504
505-989-9110;   505-603-5200 cell
rl at 1st-mile.com  www.1st-mile.com

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