Unbuffered

This week on the Community Broadband Bits podcast, Christopher Mitchell chats with Sean Gonsalves, ILSR’s Community Broadband Senior Reporter, Editor and Researcher to catch up on some of the most interesting broadband stories in recent weeks. The two begin by discussing a recent story by Jericho Casper, ILSR Researcher and Writer, reporting more than 20 communities in … Continue reading "Recent D...

On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits podcast, Christopher Mitchell talks with John Windhausen, Executive Director of the Schools, Health, Libraries and Broadband Coalition (SHLB) and Alicja Johnson, SHLB Communication Manager. The non-profit advocates for anchor institutions to be at the table when communities are considering building municipal fiber networks. This is because these inst...

This week on the podcast Christopher is joined by Douglas Adams, the CMO of Think Marketing, a firm which handles the marketing operations for the municipal network FairlawnGig in Ohio, Ernie Staten, Director of Public Service for the city of Fairlawn, and Angela Siefer, Executive Director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance. The topic of the day is … Continue reading "“Pushed Through in th...

Last month, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a historic, $7 billion plan to increase broadband access across the state. On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, host Christopher Mitchell is joined by Ernesto Falcon (Senior Legislative Counsel) and Hayley Tsukayama (Legislative Activist) from the Electronic Frontier Foundation to talk about how the funds will be … Continue...

On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits podcast, Christopher Mitchell is joined by broadband analyst and telehealth advocate, Craig Settles; Dianne Connery, Special Projects Librarian in Pottsboro, Texas; and Adam Echelman, Executive Director of Libraries Without Boarders, to talk about how libraries are the cornerstones of information access for communities across the country.  Libraries...

On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits podcast, Christopher and ILSR senior reporter and editor, Sean Gonsalves chat with Nate Benson, a reporter with WGRZ in Buffalo, New York, about his approach to reporting on connectivity issues afflicting the Western part of the state.  Benson explains the origins and results of his Fall 2019 investigation into monopoly … Continue reading "Reporting...

On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits podcast, Christopher and ILSR senior reporter and editor, Sean Gonsalves chat with Nate Benson, a reporter with WGRZ in Buffalo, New York, about his approach to reporting on connectivity issues afflicting the Western part of the state.  Benson explains the origins and results of his Fall 2019 investigation into monopoly … Continue reading "Reporting...

A couple of months ago we wrote about the city of Tucson’s efforts to bridge the digital divide by building a wireless citywide network. On this episode of the podcast, Christopher talks with Collin Boyce, the city’s Chief Information Officer, to hear more about how the effort started, what they’ve learned along the way, and the impact … Continue reading "Building a Citizen-Centered, Smart City Pu...

For the twelfth episode of our bonus series, “Why NC Broadband Matters,” we’re joined by Doug Dawson (Owner and President of CCG Consulting), Catharine Rice (Project Director for the Coalition for Local Internet Choice) and Gene Scott (General Manager of the Outside Service Plant for the Greenlight Network) to talk about the wave of new federal dollars reaching … Continue reading "North Carolina B...

On this episode of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, Christopher is joined by ILSR’s senior editor and reporter, Sean Gonsalves, Doug Seacat, Owner of Deeply Digital and Clearnetworx, and Casey Irving, Director of Business Development, about bringing world-class connectivity to households in and around the city of Ridgeway, Colorado.  Around five years ago, Clearnetworx won a Colorado broadban...

This week on the podcast, Christopher is joined by two representatives from Conway Corp, a municipal utility in Conway, Arkansas to hear about their commitment to providing high quality Internet access to residents over the last four decades. CEO Bret Carroll and Chief Technology Officer Jason Hansen dive into the rich history of Conway Corp, starting … Continue reading "How Broadband Became a Mun...

This week on the podcast, we’re joined by two representatives from Minnesota based CTC, a firm that started as a telephone cooperative and has become one of the most aggressive fiber network builders in greater Minnesota. CTC partners with electric cooperatives and communities to undertake internet infrastructure projects around the state. CEO and General Manager, Kristi Westbrock, and Director of...

In this episode, we’re joined by Jonathan Chambers, a partner at connects at Connexon. Connexon has helped rural electric cooperatives build fiber to the home networks since its founding five years ago. Christopher and Jonathan talk about ideas for how to improve structuring rural broadband subsidies in a way that takes advantage of fiber infrastructure’s long … Continue reading "Speed Vs. Longevi...

One component of the recently passed Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 was the Emergency Broadband Benefit, a $3.2 billion program designed to get families connected to available service that they otherwise might not be able to afford. The program provides a subsidy of up to $50/month (or $75 on tribal lands) for broadband service as well as up … Continue reading "Advantages and Potential Pi...

This week on the podcast, Christopher talks with Belle Ryder, Orono, Maine Assistant Manager and President of the nonprofit OTO Fiber Corporation. The towns of Orono and nearby Old Town began their search for better broadband more than 10 years ago, and have overcome an array of challenges in bringing a pilot project to justify future-proof … Continue reading "Resiliency in a Decade-Long Fight to...

This week on the podcast, Christopher speaks with Julie Bushell, President of Paige Wireless and Co-chair of Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) Precision Ag Connectivity Task Force. Christopher and Julie talk about the importance of reliable, symmetrical wireless data connections so farmers can deploy devices on farms which communicate across Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) protocols...

This week on the podcast, Christopher talks with Travis Carter (CEO, US Internet), Deb Socia (President/CEO, The Enterprise Center), and Brian Worthen (President, Visionary Communications and CEO, Mammoth Networks) to talk about overbuilding.  The group discusses the importance of reclaiming the term as what it really is: plain old competition. They discuss the economics of building … Continue rea...

This week on the podcast we’re joined by Berin Szoka, President of TechFreedom, to talk about the pressing broadband issues of today and tomorrow. Christopher and Berin share what they see as the biggest barriers to universal, high-quality Internet access today, including the jurisdictional issues facing communities large and small, as well as the regulatory solutions which … Continue reading "Fro...

We don’t often get to spend a whole episode diving into the earliest work that communities do to set the foundation for progress in expanding high-quality broadband access down the road, but that’s what we’re talking about today. This week on the podcast Christopher is joined by Pierrette Renée Dagg, Director of Marketing and Communications … Continue reading "Building a Network to Build a Network...

For the twelfth episode of our bonus series, “Why NC Broadband Matters,” we’re joined by North Carolina League of Municipalities Chief Legislative Council Erin Wynia to talk about Internet access in the state a full year into the COVID 19 pandemic, and the access gaps experienced in towns across the eastern part of the state. Erin shares … Continue reading "North Carolina’s Broadband Preemption La...

The conclusion of the RDOF auction was met with a good deal of drama and uncertainty, leaving many of us working after the fact to understand the policy and practical impacts of its outcomes. This week on the podcast Christopher talks with Jonathan Chambers, a partner at Conexon, a network solutions provider for electric cooperatives … Continue reading "“This Isn’t a Game:” The RDOF Auction, Unfor...

This week on the podcast Christopher talks with Anza Electric Cooperative General Manager Kevin Short, and Network Administrator Sean Trento. Anza Electric stretches across 550 square miles in Southern California between San Diego and Palm Springs, sandwiched between the Salton Sea and the San Jacinto Mountains. About 6 years ago they initiated a vote to see whether … Continue reading "“Fiber from...

This week on the podcast we’re catching up with what’s been happening in Le Sueur County (pop. 28,000) in southern Minnesota, and path they’re on to turn the region from one of the least connected in the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes to one on track to becoming among the most connected in the next couple of … Continue reading "Partnerships Bring Better Broadband to Le Sueur County, Minnesota – Episod...

2020 was a year of explosive growth for what is now UTOPIA Fiber’s 15-city footprint, fueled by unprecedented demand. The network buried 1.7 million feet of conduit and 1.4 million feet of fiber cabling, driven by 10,000 new residential installations and over 500 new business connections. This week on the podcast Christopher is joined by CEO and … Continue reading "Wrapping Up a Landmark Year for...

This week on the podcast, Christopher talks with Larry Thompson, CEO of Vantage Point Solutions, a South Dakota-based company which provides engineering, consulting and regulatory services for ISPs of all sizes. The two talk about how the variety of subsidy and grant programs we’ve built to get broadband out into rural areas and make sure folks … Continue reading "Reforming Rural Funding Structure...