Groups hope to expand broadband service « The Levisa Lazer

As the federal government promotes high-speed Internet, a Bowling Green organization is part of a nationwide group that’s trying to improve broadband access.

Connected Nation, a public-private organization that started in Bowling Green, and about 20 other organizations are teaming up to bring high-speed Internet to low-income households throughout the country...

Parts Of Cleveland Getting 1 Gbps, For Free – Case Western Reserve University project gets underway in May

Fiber optic test beds delivering 1 Gbps residential connectivity aren't just for massive advertising corporations with colorful logos anymore. Apparently, Cleveland locals will soon be able to upload their local promotional videos to YouTube much, much faster. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Case Western Reserve University is planning to deliver speeds up
to 1 Gbps to thousands of homes "in or near" University Circle in Cleveland.

The university initially applied for $26 million in broadband stimulus funds to connect 25,000 people, but their application was rejected. As such, they plan to move slowly with deployment -- grabbing funding when and where possible...

Commerce Dept. Funds Internet Training Programs in California, New York | Speed Matters – Internet Speed Test

The Commerce Department has announced broadband investments totaling more than $29 million for the nation's two largest cities, Los Angeles and New York.

The grants target computer-training programs and will allow more than 30,000 low-income students and their families online access to educational, employment, and health information...

Windstream applies for $238 million from feds for rural broadband | Arkansas News

Windstream has applied for $238 million in federal stimulus grants to expand broadband availability and offer faster Internet speeds to more than half a million homes and businesses in rural areas in 16 states.

The Little Rock-based rural telecom would provide $80 million in funding under the grant applications submitted to the Broadband Initiatives Program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS). The total cost of the proposed project would be approximately $318 million...

StimulatingBroadband.com: USDA Awards $150 Million in Broadband Stimulus Funds for 8 States

03/23/2010 San Francisco - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack this morning awarded $150 million for broadband infrastructure projects in rural regions of 8 states.

“The broadband projects announced today will give rural Americans access to the tools they need to attract new businesses, educational opportunities and jobs,” Vilsack said in a press release issued from Washington...

Delaware County funding fiber optic master plan | ThisWeek Community Newspapers

Fiber optic is drawing increasing attention these days in Delaware County.

On March 16 the Delaware Port Authority pledged $50,000 to the Delaware Area SuperHighway (DASH) LLC that will pay to develop a master plan on the deployment of a broadband-fiber optic network, said Charles Ash, information technology director for Delaware city...

SECRETARY LOCKE ANNOUNCES RECOVERY ACT INVESTMENTS TO EXPAND BROADBAND INTERNET ACCESS AND SPUR ECONOMIC GROWTH

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today announced 10 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act investments to help bridge the technological divide, boost economic growth, create jobs, and improve education and healthcare across the country. The investments, totaling more than $63 million in grants, will increase broadband access and adoption in more than a dozen states.

The grants will fund projects that lay the groundwork to bring enhanced high-speed Internet access to thousands of households and businesses and link hundreds of schools, hospitals, libraries, and public safety offices to the information superhighway...

StimulatingBroadband.com: The Broadband Stimulus Pipeline

The Broadband Stimulus Pipeline is the single most comprehensive and detailed analysis of submitted applications, pending awards, and awarded grants and loans in the federal broadband stimulus program commercially available. Prior to April 1, 2010 this detailed reporting has been made available only to clients of PrattNetworks LLC, the telecom sector advisory firm that publishes StimulatingBroadband.com...

TDS® Submits 46 Applications to Expand Broadband

Madison, WI (Vocus) March 26, 2010 -- The bell rang on round one; with the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) granting TDS Telecommunications Corp. (TDS®) $12.5 million for broadband expansion in Chatham, Mich. and Grove Hill, Ala. Now, TDS is ready for round two; announcing today the company has submitted 46 applications in 20 states. The applications also include eight markets re-submitted from the first round.

“We fought hard to have the rules changed after round one, so that more rural communities we serve would meet the eligibility requirements,” says Andrew Petersen, director of external affairs and communications for TDS. “If all our applications are approved, 27,870 more households will gain access to a high speed broadband connection in our markets...”

Qwest seeks $350M from stimulus for rural broadband - Denver Business Journal:

Qwest Communications International Inc. said Thursday it is applying for a $350 million federal stimulus grant to help it extend high-speed Internet service to rural areas of its local phone-service region.

The Denver-based telecom (NYSE: Q) had signaled in January that it was reconsidering its earlier decision not to apply for available rural-broadband funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act because of what it called unrealistic rules. But those rules were later revised. (DBJ report...)

Republicans Signal Major Concerns Over Broadband Plan - 2010-03-24 23:28:24 | Broadcasting & Cable

Republicans have signaled their major concerns, and likely lines of questioning, about the broadband plan in a briefing memo to Republican congressional members and staff in advance of the March 25 broadband oversight hearing with the five FCC commissioners.

While a broadband hearing in the Senate had to be cancelled at the last minute earlier this week, the House Energy & Commerce Communications Subcommittee hearing is expected to go off as planned, according to an FCC staffer prepping for the hearing late Wednesday (March 24)...

How we'll get a gigabit to US hospitals, libraries, colleges

One key recommendation in the National Broadband Plan was that the government support a scheme to wire hundreds of thousands of "anchor institutions" with 1Gbps fiber. The move would mean that schools, libraries, colleges, and community centers in every town in the country could eventually have a fat pipe and a future-proof fiber connection.

Not only that: both the FCC and the plan's backers envision the system being used to push faster broadband out into the surrounding community. The only question is how to pay for it all...

Improve Broadband Access? There's an App For That | Telecompetitor

The FCC and the Knight Foundation have partnered in launching a social-purpose ‘Apps for Inclusion‘ competition in support of the National Broadband Plan goal of expanding broadband access to 90% of U.S. households by 2020.

“Recent years have seen an explosion in content creation for handheld and desktop devices,” writes the FCC’s director of Omnibus Broadband Initiative director Elana Berkowitz on its blog. “Both at home and abroad, we have seen significant innovation in applications having social impact ranging from text message donations for Haiti to online civic engagement tools to mobile medical data collection. But there is still much room to innovate when it comes to social-purpose apps...”

Cable MSOs, AT&T enter the broadband stimulus race - FierceTelecom

ince the Obama Administration launched the Broadband Stimulus funding program under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) last year, large cable MSOs and telcos have mainly sat on the sidelines, but now many of these same companies are changing their tune.

In a somewhat unprecedented move, AT&T has joined their main rivals--cable MSOs, including Comcast, Time Warner, Cox Communications, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and other smaller MSOs--to apply for a $52 million grant in Round 2 broadband stimulus funding to bring broadband Internet and computers to poor communities...

Big Cable Joins the Broadband Stimulus Fray - Telecom News Analysis

Major domestic cable operators have sat on the broadband stimulus sidelines so far, but that all appears to be changing in the second round of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding, as Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK), Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC), Cox Communications Inc. , the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) , along with several smaller MSOs, put their collective weight behind a public/private coalition that's seeking more than $52 million to help drive high-speed Internet and computer adoption in poor pockets of the United States. (See Recovery Act: Cable Bids for Broadband Funds and Recovery Act: Cable Shortchanged.)

The proposed "Broadband Adoption Initiative" hopes to stimulate broadband adoption and generate 250,000 new high-speed Internet subscribers and computer users in government-supported, low-income housing. The total cost of the plan is projected to be $78.32 million, with $52.11 million of that total being requested through the proposal, according to an executive summary supplied to Light Reading Cable. (See MSOs, AT&T Make Low-Income Broadband Pitch.)...

RUS Awards $150 Million in Broadband Stimulus Funds Across Eight States | Telecompetitor

Round one funding from the Rural Utilities Service BIP program continues with today’s announcement of $150 million for projects in eight different states. In all twelve projects will be funded and an additional $68.2 million in private investment will be provided in matching funds, bringing the total funds invested to $218.2 million. To date, $1.05 billion has been provided to construct 67 broadband projects in 30 states and one territory from the BIP program.

“The broadband projects announced today will give rural Americans access to the tools they need to attract new businesses, educational opportunities and jobs,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a press release. The states and their respective projects are listed below...

Cape Cod Wins Broadband Stimulus Grant

In July 2009, Government Technology singled out the OpenCape Corporation, a nonprofit applicant for broadband stimulus money as a likely grant winner to watch.

Earlier this month, OpenCape did indeed win the $32 million it requested to deploy a 350-mile fiber backhaul to connect government agencies, hospitals, research organizations and other anchor institutions, both public and private sector, to high-speed broadband. Massachusetts contributed $8 million in matching funds...

NCTA Joins Digital Adoption Coalition - 2010-03-23 18:06:48 | Multichannel News

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association has joined with computer companies, telcos and a couple of broadband-centric nonprofits in a Digital Adoption Coalition (DAC) that is seeking broadband stimulus bucks.

The goal of the coalition, which is led by nonprofit broadband adoption organization One Economy, is to bring broadband to as many as 250,000 low-income households...

Statement from Governor David A. Paterson: New York City Awarded $28 Million in Broadband Stimulus Funding

ALBANY, NY (03/22/2010)(readMedia)-- Governor David A. Paterson issued the following statement regarding the award of a $28 million federal stimulus grant for a broadband development project in New York City. The grant was made through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

"I am extremely pleased to learn that the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) awarded $28 million in federal stimulus funding to New York City's Department of Information Technology & Telecommunications for their NYC Connected Learning Program. Bringing broadband to urban areas is important to ensure New York's vulnerable populations can harness the value of the internet. Although broadband availability is higher in our urban centers, adoption rates are often much lower. It is vital to bridge these digital literacy gaps to equalize opportunities for lower-income and disadvantaged urban and rural populations...

Moving U.S. to Top 10 in International Broadband Rankings Would be a Success for National Broadband... -- WASHINGTON, March 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --

WASHINGTON, March 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A six spot gain to 9th place in international broadband rankings would be a successful outcome for the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan, the Phoenix Center said in a new analysis released today. The study said that the historical trends suggest the U.S. will likely move to 13th in broadband adoption by 2012 even without significant policy changes.

The FCC plan, released on March 16, set forth the Obama Administration's roadmap to provide all Americans with ubiquitous and affordable broadband. In addition, Congress, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, allocated $7.2 billion for broadband deployment and adoption programs...

FCC's National Broadband Plan: 'The Second Wave of Electricity'

In what some say is akin to "the second wave of electricity" in America, the FCC wants to expand and increase high-speed Internet access nationwide while encouraging competition among service providers.

Set to be unveiled to Congress and the public Tuesday, March 16, the national broadband plan seeks to prioritize high-speed Internet as a "foundation for economic growth, job creation, global competitiveness and a better way of life," according to the FCC's summary report. The plan's recommendations could eventually trickle down...

Satellite Broadband has Reputation Problem | SpaceNews.com

WASHINGTON — The U.S. satellite broadband industry has only itself to blame for the fact that the U.S. government’s broadband-stimulus package treats satellite delivery as an unattractive, last-resort alternative, according to the top official of a company that is staking much of its future on the satellite broadband business.

Viasat Inc. Chief Executive Mark Dankberg said early satellite consumer broadband efforts in the United States, to make their profit goals, loaded too many subscribers onto a single transponder, resulting in poor service that tainted the young technology’s image among U.S. policymakers...

Who else wants national broadband?

Let's say that the Federal Communications Commission's $15.5 billion broadband deployment plan helps produce the fastest nationwide broadband network in the world -- is there any guarantee that more people will use it?

Here's the problem: surveys conducted by both the Federal Communications Commission and the Pew Research Center have found that roughly one-fifth of people who don't use broadband in the United States say they don't feel comfortable accessing the Web, while another fifth of non-users say they don't see the need for broadband connectivity. In other words, you can build all the 100Mbps Web connections you want but it doesn't necessarily mean that it will lead to universal adoption...

FCC wants more access to affordable high-speed Internet - USATODAY.com

Federal regulators have unveiled an ambitious plan to bring high-speed Internet service to millions of Americans who can't get it today, while boosting delivery speeds and lowering prices for 200 million current subscribers.

The Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Plan also aims to leverage broadband to transform nearly every aspect of U.S. society and industry, including health care, education and energy. The FCC will deliver the sweeping blueprint to Congress today...

Ohio.com - FCC unveiling strategy for high-speed Internet

WASHINGTON: More corners of the country would have high-speed Internet access and connections would become much faster under a sweeping proposal to overhaul U.S. broadband policy that is being unveiled today.

The plan from the Federal Communications Commission is meant to guide the government's strategy on broadband for the next decade and beyond. It reflects the Obama administration's concern that the nation that invented the Internet is in danger of falling behind the development of online applications in other countries that have faster broadband speeds at lower prices.

Light Reading - Optical Networking - Maine Fiber Network Comes Under Fire - Telecom News Analysis

Maine would seem to be the poster state for broadband stimulus funding. In addition to being largely rural, it is geographically remote, meaning no one builds a network through Maine to get to anywhere else. Add to that the fact that during the years when most telecom and cable companies were building out their broadband infrastructures, Maine’s two largest incumbents -- Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and Adelphia Communications -- were seeking to sell off the state network and going through a bankruptcy-driven breakup, respectively. The result was a substantial lag in network investment.

So it shouldn’t have been a shock when a public/private partnership, Maine Fiber Co., won a $25.4 million grant to build what is called the Three-Ring Binder, an middle-mile fiber optic network that will include three fiber rings in Western, Northern, and Downeast Maine. Maine Fiber’s intent is to lease dark fiber as an open access network, and not to sell commercial services...

RCN Metro to Design, Build and Operate Advanced Fiber-Based, Middle Mile Network in Southeastern Massachusetts, Cape Cod, and the Islands

RCN Metro Optical Networks, a division of RCN Corporation (NASDAQ: RCNI) and a premier provider of fiber optic-based network solutions, today announced that following the NTIA's announcement that OpenCape Corporation was awarded a $32M broadband stimulus grant that they have kicked off a project to design, build and manage the network on OpenCape Corporation's behalf.

The 350-mile network will span from the South Coast of Massachusetts onto Cape Cod and the Islands and will serve as the broadband backbone for this region. RCN Metro was selected in a competitive process last July to design, build and maintain this regional open access network as part of a public-private partnership...

Akron Ohio News - West Side Business News & Notes

AKRON — The city of Akron has learned it will be among cities nationwide receiving funds from the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program of the U.S. Department of Commerce, the so-called $7 billion “Broadband Stimulus” fund.

The Akron Urban League (AUL) will receive $2 million as part of an application submitted by the city of Akron’s partner in building out a wireless broadband network in Akron, OneCommunity. OneCommunity is an Ohio-based nonprofit with a mission to accelerate the adoption of information technologies to drive economic development across the region...

NARUC Asks For Clarification on Broadband Grant Tax Status - 2010-03-08 18:14:17 | Broadcasting & Cable

The nation's regulatory commissioners have asked the Treasury Department to clarify that the government's broadband stimulus grants are not taxable.

The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners says that the Recovery Act grants for smart grid energy projects have been held up because nowhere in the act does it say whether the government billions are taxable.

It argues that not to make them tax-deductible would be counterproductive and work against the goal of simulating the economy...

Boucher makes plans for telecom reform while ramping up re-election campaign - The Hill's Hillicon Valley

Rep. Rick Boucher (D-Va.) has big plans this year. He wants to reform the nearly $8 billion-a-year fund to subsidize internet services. He also wants to enact the first online privacy legislation. That's not all--he also wants to push the Spectrum Inventory Act through the House and hold a number of oversight hearings on the FCC's National Broadband Plan.

All the while, Boucher will be campaigning against a Republican challenger for his seat. As chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet, he has a lot to accomplish in Washington while also defending the seat he has held for 28 years...

Broadband Stimulus Applications and Awards | Tableau Software

$787 billion dollars- it is likely that you have heard that figure mentioned in the past year. This is the final price tag for "the Stimulus", or The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Unfortunately, the program is so monolithic and the figures involved are so large that even the most inquisitive minds can be quickly overwhelmed. Instead of trying to tackle everything at once in a visualization, we decided to dig deep into just one program: The Broadband Stimulus fund...

KeyOn's broadband stimulus apps rejected, stock tanks - FierceBroadbandWireless

Rural wireless broadband operator KeyOn Communications announced that all 11 of its applications for broadband stimulus funds were rejected by the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service (RUS). Following the announcement, publicly traded KeyOn lost 46 percent of its value.

The company had requested $152 million in funds to build a WiMAX network in the 3.65 GHz band to expand its current rural coverage area from 2.5 million people to 6.5 million across 16 states. For several months in 2006, KeyOn's stock surged on the idea that it would be a big winner of broadband stimulus funding. From May 1 to Nov. 1, the per share value of KeyOn rose from 4 cents to $2.10, representing an increase of more than 5,000 percent...

Stimulus funds will expand broadband service

A $2.28 million federal stimulus grant will bring broadband Internet service to more than 3,000 Pickaway County residents who currently do not have access, according to Chris Cooper, managing partner of Intelliwave.

The company, based in Athens, is one of three companies that received a portion of nearly $10 million in stimulus money through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to provide affordable wireless broadband and VoIP phone service to unserved or underserved rural Ohio communities...

Broadband speed in U.S. up 28 percent in 2009, still lagging - Top Technology Articles by FinallyFast.com

A report released by Scottsdale, Arizona-based market research firm In-Stat showed that broadband speeds in the U.S. rose by 28 percent in 2009. The study also indicates that cable modem speed increased at a faster rate than fiber-to-the-home speeds.

Even with the improvements, though, the Federal Communication Commission reported that 93 million Americans, about 35 percent of the population, do not have access to broadband internet. The advancements do not help shrink the digital divide, as most new technology is either too expensive or entirely unavailable to poorer communities...

NSP Strategist: Client Wins Stimulus Award!

CONGRATS! to Athens, Ohio Based Intelliwave Receives $2.28 Million Federal Broadband Stimulus Award to Bring Desperately Needed Broadband Service to 11,232 Households & Businesses in Athens, Pickaway and Fairfield Counties.

Intelliwave, an Athens Ohio wireless Internet service provider (WISP), received word today from the USDA that they are the recipients of an award totaling $1,116,997 in grant funds and $1,162,599 in loan funds. These funds will be used over the next 36 months to build cutting edge wireless "last mile" Internet infrastructure to residents and businesses of the included counties...

Zanesville receives $3.1M for broadband access boost | zanesvilletimesrecorder.com | Zanesville Times Recorder

ZANESVILLE -- With the help of a multimillion-dollar grant, a greater number of people in southeast Ohio will be able to access broadband technology.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, along with other top Ohio leaders, such as Gov. Ted Strickland, announced Tuesday a total of $11.7 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act resources was awarded to the Ohio nonprofit OneCommunity to expand broadband Internet adoption in underserved communities...

Detroit low-income households to get $3 million in federal funds for Internet training - Detroit News and Information - Crain's Detroit Business

The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded $3 million in broadband stimulus funds over the next two years to fund Internet training for more than 5,000 low-income households in Detroit’s Central Woodward/North End and Osborn neighborhoods.

The funding is part of $18.7 million directed to Detroit and six other communities in Ohio, Kentucky, Florida and Mississippi to assist 25,000 low-income residents in Internet usage, as part of the national Broadband Technology Opportunity Program, led by OneCommunity in Cleveland...

FCC’s National Broadband Plan May Cost $25 Billion | Telecompetitor

In about two weeks the FCC is scheduled to deliver a national broadband plan to Congress. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 mandated that the FCC author the plan, with the idea that the billions of dollars that are being allocated to broadband infrastructure should be wisely invested. The broadband stimulus plan allocates $7.2 billion towards the broadband cause. It appears to be a down payment.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the FCC’s national broadband plan will call for an additional $25 billion in spending. Of that $25 billion, approximately half or more will be allocated to a nationwide broadband public safety network for first responders. The FCC hopes to pay for this portion through future wireless spectrum auction proceeds. Additionally, the plan calls for $9 billion in funding for bringing broadband to rural areas. But it’s not entirely clear where that funding will come from...

USDA Awards 22 More Stimulus Grants :: Cable360

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced another 22 broadband infrastructure awards for projects being provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

In all, more than $254.6 million will be invested in 22 projects. An additional $13.1 million in private investment will be provided in matching funds.

Ohio
Wabash Mutual Telephone Co.: Fort Recovery Area FTTH Project; $2,201,042 loan and $2,174,787 grant. The funding will provide an optical fiber network in the region that allows digital television and high-speed Internet using fiber optics deployed directly to the premises.

Intelliwave: The Athens, Fairfield, and Pickaway County Ohio Rural Broadband Initiative Project; $1,162,599 loan and $1,116,997 grant. The funding will provide affordable wireless broadband and VoIP phone service to underserved rural Ohio communities in Athens, Fairfield, and Pickaway counties.

Benton Ridge Telephone Co.: The Broadband Expansion Project - Benton Ridge; $1,611,124 loan and $1,547,942 grant. The funding will provide Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) in the Benton Ridge exchange of South Central Ohio, including dedicated fiber optic connections for each customer...

Federal funding brings Internet to underserved - ReviewOnline.com | News, sports, jobs - The Review - East Liverpool

LISBON - Columbiana County is expected to benefit from nearly $12 million in federal stimulus money awarded Ohio to help the poor and unemployed obtain high-speed Internet service and train them how to use it.

Cleveland-based OneCommunity was recipient of the $11.7 million stimulus money awarded this week through the U.S. Department of Commerce. OneCommunity will direct $3.1 million of that amount to ACCEL, a Zanesville non-profit with which it partnered to administer the two-year program to 10 Appalachian counties, including Columbiana County...

W.Va. co gets $2.9M in funding for Internet access

A West Virginia company is getting nearly $2.9 million in federal funding to improve broadband Internet access.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller says StratusWave Communications is receiving a grant and a loan funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

The funding will provide broadband Internet to residents and anchor institutions in parts of Ohio, Marshall and Harrison counties...

OneCommunity to use $18.7M in stimulus money to open Internet to the poor - Crain's Cleveland Business

OneCommunity has received $18.7 million in stimulus money that it plans to use to help poor residents in Ohio and four other states get high-speed Internet access and learn to use it.

The Cleveland-based nonprofit, which provides fiber-optic Internet service to government agencies and nonprofits in Northeast Ohio, will use $11.7 million of that money to increase broadband adoption in Cleveland, Akron and southeastern Ohio. The rest of the money for the “Connect Your Community” program will go to Detroit; Lexington, Ky.; Bradenton, Fla.; and Gulfport and Biloxi, Miss...

NTIA rewards Level3, others, with broadband stimulus grants | Top Stories | Lightwave Online

MARCH 3, 2010 By Stephen Hardy -- Level3 Communications became the first “name” carrier to receive broadband stimulus money to enhance it fiber-optic network. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke yesterday announced 23 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act investments under the department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s (NTIA's) Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP). Six of those grants went to Level 3.

Secretary Locke announced grants worth a total of more than $160 million. The awards will fund broadband access and adoption projects in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin, and West Virginia...

Extension Granted for Round 2 Broadband Stimulus Applications

Applicants who are pursuing broadband stimulus grants intended for building broadband infrastructure received an extension Tuesday, March 2, for the second and final funding window established by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and Rural Utilities Service (RUS), the two agencies disbursing $7.2 billion set aside in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for broadband projects.

The deadline for infrastructure grants to the NTIA moved from March 15 to March 26. Applications to the RUS are now due March 29. The deadline for grants intended for public computing center and broadband adoption initiatives is still March 15 for both agencies...

OneCommunity gets $18.7 million in stimulus funds for broadband training and outreach | cleveland.com

The U.S. Commerce Department on Tuesday awarded an $18.7 million Recovery Act grant that will help a Cleveland-based organization bring Internet training to 26,000 low-income people in seven urban areas across the country including Cleveland, Akron and Zanesville.

Cleveland-based OneCommunity says it will divide most of the money up among partner organizations in each of the urban areas, which also include Detroit, Lexington, K.Y., Bradenton. Fla., and the Gulfport-Biloxi region of Mississippi...

Broadband Stimulus

Three years from now many more Washington residents will have access to faster internet service. Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke visited Seattle Monday to announce that federal stimulus funds have been dedicated to expand high–speed broadband access across the state.

Secretary Locke said nearly $85 million of Recovery Act money was allocated to build broadband Internet networks in remote areas of the state. The money will be used to bring high–speed access to almost 400,000 homes and 18,000 businesses in Washington. Locke said that's key to creating a competitive economy in the 21st century...

Washington State Gets $84 Million in Broadband Stimulus - 2010-03-01 19:41:13 | Broadcasting & Cable

Washington State is the latest to get broadband stimulus money from the National Telecommunication and Information Administration.

NTIA said Monday (March 1) it would give out $84 million in grants for community anchor institutions including schools, libraries and government buildings...

3wan.net: USA - FCC Report Validates Providers' Broadband Uptake Fears

As the FCC prepares to release its national broadband plan recommendations to Congress, it turns out there are some Americans who don’t even want high-speed Internet. About 93 million don’t have the option at all, and many of those citizens see the Web as a waste of time and money, according to a new FCC survey.

Whether that’s a silly perception is for you to decide. Yet, as the Obama Administration pushes for ubiquitous broadband coverage with stimulus money and a pending strategy, the reality is, the FCC is finally getting to the bottom of some providers’ fears – if we build it, will they come? And the answer is not necessarily yes...