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How will broadband affect burgeoning controversies over health care? The answers to this question and more came courtesy of a Broadband Cenus-hosted, hour-long panel discussion. View a video of the discussion.
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President Obama on Innovation and Sustainable Growth. President Barack Obama has new plans to strengthen the economy that will all favor people with hi-tech educations.
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Elevate Miami, a comprehensive Digital Inclusion program launched by the city of Miami, aims to serve youth, low-income families, minorities, seniors and residents facing barriers to digital inclusion.
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The Knight Center of Digital Excellence held its first Stimulus Webcast Session for Knight communities and program directors July 23. Watch it online now.
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By pushing hard on broadband, lawmakers hope to close the "digital divide" that has long separated rural America. In doing so, they hope to give rural consumers access to the same sorts of high-speed services and opportunities - think telemedicine, distance-learning and Web-based commerce - that city dwellers have enjoyed for years.
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Posts Tagged ‘KCoDE’
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Here’s a sentence you’ve probably seen in a number of recent Knight Center of Digital Excellence articles: “AT&T has publicly stated that real-time gaming is an ‘aspirational service’ and not a core broadband application.”
The statement has been used multiple times as an example the growing debate between service providers and other industries since Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski’s Sept. 21 net neutrality webcast at the Brookings Institution.
Let’s take a closer look at AT&T’s statement, though. Should real-time gaming be considered an “aspirational service” and not a core broadband application? After all, video games are more or less for kids, right?
Not quite. Growing survey data presented in a 2008 Harvard Business School study on video games and broadband revealed the traditional gamer stereotype of the teenage boy is outdated. Consider these recent Entertainment Software Association numbers:
- The average gamer is 35 years old and has been playing for 12 years.
- Forty percent of all gamers are women. Additionally, “women over 18 years of age” is one of the industry’s fastest growing demographics. Adult women represent a greater portion of the game-playing population (34 percent) than boys age 17 or younger (18 percent). In addition, 57 percent of online gamers are male and 43 percent are female.
- Twenty-five percent of gamers are over the age of 50, an increase from 9 percent in 1999. This figure is expected to rise in coming years with nursing homes and senior centers across the nation now incorporating video games into their activities.
- Forty-two percent of homes in America have a video game console.
- Thirty-seven percent of heads of households report they play games on wireless devices such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20 percent in 2002.
The statistics regarding wireless devices are particularly interesting because the FCC is still considering how issues such as net neutrality will affect wireless Internet. Regardless of what the FCC is thinking now, numbers seem to indicate devices that have a strong gaming component are likely to gain the attention of consumers.
The Harvard Business School study demonstrated that innovative devices, ubiquitous broadband access, improved games and increased reach led to U.S. sales of software, hardware and accessories reaching $18.9 billion in 2007, an almost 40 percent growth over 2006 sales. The Nintendo DS, a handheld broadband gaming device, was the top-selling gaming device in 2007 with 8.5 million units sold. Overall, more than 12 million handheld broadband video game devices were sold that year, in addition to 13 million console units that are capable of real-time online gaming.
The application side of online gaming claims a large audience as well. World of Warcraft, an extremely popular online role-playing video game, claimed 11.5 million monthly subscribers in August 2009. Facebook, the popular social media application with over 130 million subscribers, offers a number of “freemium” video games such as “Farmville” and “Mafia Wars” that not only attract millions of players, but also revolve around social networking. Gamesbrief (a video game industry blog) analyst Nicholas Lovell has claimed that many “freemium” games on Facebook make close to $20 per player on average, as players have the option to pay real money for virtual items that enhance play.
Non-video game device manufacturers are paying attention to these numbers. At a recent media gathering, Apple showed off updates to its line of iPods, pointing out there are more than 21,000 game available on the company’s App store for its iPhone and iPod Touch. In an interview with the New York Times, Apple CEO Steve Jobs said the company’s customers saw the iPod Touch as a strong gaming platform.
Major gaming device companies such as Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo have typically written off Apple as a major threat to their industry status. However, that hasn’t stopped those companies from moving in Apple’s arena as well. Both Sony’s PSP Go and Nintendo’s DSi are relatively new efforts by traditional handheld video game manufacturers to add more broadband-heavy functions to devices.
Could AT&T’s statement be pushback rhetoric from a service provider whose infrastructure can’t support gaming? Is AT&T trying to undermine not only competitors but also an entire platform of innovation that millions of Americans take advantage of on a daily basis?
Possibly. But the point is that while AT&T may want to classify real-time gaming as an “aspirational service,” it seems that device manufacturers, online application creators and American consumers are taking a more serious stance.
Tags: Apple, aspirational service, AT&T, bandwidth, broadband, broadband applications, Broadband Expansion, Brookings Institution, cell phone, digital, digital divide, economy, Entertainment Software Association, Facebook, Farmville, FCC, Federal Communications Commission, Gamesbrief, Harvard Business School, high-speed, infrastructure, innovation, Internet, iPhone, iPhone Touch, Julius Genachowski, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Mafia Wars, Microsoft, network, New York Times, Nicholas Lovell, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi, online gaming, PSP Go, real-time gaming, Sony, Steve Jobs, video games, wireless, wireless devices, World of Warcraft
Posted in Digital news, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, broadband | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 20th, 2009
The final piece in a four-part series on the Federal Communication Commission’s six net neutrality principles:
During a recent webcast from the Brookings Institute, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski explained six principles of net neutrality and proposed making them official rules. Let’s take a closer look at proposed rules five and six, which focus on devices and competition.
No. 5: Broadband providers can’t block or demote lawful traffic, or privilege their own content over that of their competitors.
The FCC’s fifth rule touches on a number of examples we’ve discussed in previous parts of this series, such as AT&T’s classifying real-time gaming as an “aspirational [broadband] service,” and Verizon Wireless being taken to task for blocking text messages from a political organization.
A scenario the Knight Center of Digital Excellence proposed in a previous blog is that if the FCC’s net neutrality rules are not enacted: A service provider could favor information from Microsoft over Google by purposely slowing Goggle’s content delivery to create a competitive disadvantage.
Since Genachowski’s webcast, a more critical eye has been turned to service providers that had been trying to find ways to better position themselves for a future Internet stranglehold. Verizon was recently taken to task for its numerous handset exclusivity deals, for example. (It has since responded by publicly stating it would work to reduce these type of deals.)
No. 6: Broadband providers must be transparent about their services.
Both the fifth and sixth principles have recently been added to a list the FCC has been touting for quite some time, but have caused the heaviest debate between various providers. The sixth principle, in particular, has been a major sticking point.
Major broadband providers feel strongly that the billions of dollars they’ve poured into their networks should provide them the exclusive right to operate those networks however they want. That includes offering premium services over their lines to differentiate themselves from competitors – and earn a healthy return on their investments in the process.
If all providers are forced to be transparent about their services (as well as follow other rules that limit handset exclusivity, for example), it becomes increasingly difficult to establish a competitive advantage and handicap smaller providers from having equal access to consumers. It could also lead to consumers having complete freedom to choose what device they want to use and what service that device will use to connect. No one, for example, will be forced to choose AT&T as a provider because he or she simply wants an iPhone.
Those are great scenarios for consumers, aren’t they? Imagine: Instead of providers trying to ignore or hide new types of innovative programming, they’ll simply have to develop the infrastructure to support it, right?
Not necessarily. Both broadband providers opposing Genachowski’s proposal and Republicans that sit on the FCC and in Congress have expressed the opinion that network neutrality regulations would likely discourage broadband providers from expanding and upgrading their systems.
How do you view that statement? Are major providers trying to make the point that falling profit margins would simply lead to a lack of research and development dollars? Or is it a threat to essentially hold innovation hostage until they get what they want?
No matter how you view it – or any of the examples we’ve provided throughout this series – the fact remains that there are a lot of complicated issues to sort through – even well after the five-member FCC votes on Genachowski’s net neutrality proposal Thursday, Oct. 22.
For his part, Genachowski commented in a recent interview that as long as cable and telecommunications networks are delivering “high-speed, affordable broadband to all consumers in a given area,” marketplace limitations should be sufficient. However, if they “fall short” in any area or attribute, he said the FCC will propose “alternative and creative solutions” as part of its plan.
Further reading:
• Part one
• Part two
• Part three
Tags: AT&T, bandwidth, Brookings Institution, competition, Congress, digital, economy, FCC, Federal Communications Commission, Google, high-speed, infrastructure, innovation, Internet, iPhone, Julius Genachowski, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Microsoft, Net Neutrality, network, Republican party, Verizon
Posted in Knight Center of Digital Excellence, broadband | No Comments »
Friday, October 16th, 2009
When the federal government announced its investment in broadband, the broadband community applauded. Financial assistance would be in place to augment commercial investments in rural areas, provide opportunities for expanded municipal wireless networks and supplement middle-mile fiber builds connecting schools and government buildings.
Buried in the $7.2 billion funding allocation was a relatively miniscule allotment of $250 million for “sustainable broadband adoption,” with $150 million to be dispersed in the first round of funding. Yet, this small Sustainable Broadband Adoption (SBA) pool drew 328 applications totaling nearly $2.5 billion in “asks” - 10 times the amount of funding available. Why so much interest?
It’s simple. Broadband availability without adoption, use and innovative product and service development is like one-hand clapping - not much of a sound and very little real connection. The pool of 328 applications to the SBA fund indicates a huge pent-up demand, a desire to create change and the know-how to promote broadband adoption.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recognized as much in a recent report, saying the “Internet creates value only if applications are adopted by consumers; greater adoption yields greater value.”
The challenge becomes one of holding out a vision that Americans can embrace - one they can see and understand how their individual lives can benefit from broadband. As the FCC has outlined, broadband provides:
- Individuals a platform for education and training, wherever one lives, whatever one’s circumstances;
- Businesses a platform for innovation, greater cost efficiency and access to world markets; and
- Governments a platform that improves efficiency and responsiveness,
One stimulus application designed to connect broadband networks with quality of life in communities is the Connect Your Community (CYC) proposal from the Knight Center of Digital Excellence. The plan is to engage, train, equip and support communities across the county to develop and test training tools, in-depth tracking and analysis. But CYC is just one of the many proposals vying for the tiny pool of SBA funds.
Given the great demand and very limited funding for broadband adoption initiatives, we risk developing broadband networks that may result in under-usage. This is due to many Americans not understanding the benefits of new high-speed, high-capacity communications and how to participate in them fully. Part of the federal government’s job in considering applications is to weigh priorities. We hope this basic first step - of getting Americans up to speed with the what the ramifications of these new high-speed Internet highways can be - will get the attention it deserves.
America applauds the building of broadband networks, because we see the vision of a better life as a result. Our national investment in broadband will take on new relevance and excitement in communities across our nation.
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, broadband, broadband availability, Broadband Expansion, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, community, Connect Your Community, CYC, digital, economy, FCC, Federal Communications Commission, high-speed, infrastructure, innovation, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Middle Mile, network, stimulus, stimulus watch, sustainable broadband adoption
Posted in Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Stimulus Package, broadband | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 8th, 2009
Let’s assume download Internet speeds in the U.S. continue to grow at the same pace they have over the past year. How long do you think it would take us to catch up with current Internet speeds in South Korea?
One year? Two? Ten?
Try 15.
According to a recent Communications Workers of America (CWA) study, the average download Internet speed in the U.S. increased by only 0.9 Mbps between May 2008 and May 2009. At that rate, it would take us 15 years to catch up to current speeds in South Korea, the country with the fastest average connections.
Considering South Korea’s continued efforts to increase Internet speeds, we’re guessing they’re not going to sit around and wait for us – especially since we seem to have plenty of speed issues to deal with internally.
According to the CWA study, U.S. broadband users in the Northeastern or Mid-Atlantic states are likely to have better high-speed Internet options than anywhere else in the nation. Delaware, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New York top the list of states with the fastest Internet speeds.
On the other hand, Internet speeds in Western states are more than three times slower. Hawaii, Idaho, Wyoming, Alaska and Montana are the nation’s five slowest states.
Overall, about 18 percent of U.S. users surveyed don’t even meet the Federal Communications Commission’s definition for broadband, which is at least a 768 Kbps downstream connection. And while some states managed to increase their nationwide speed ranking by more than 10 places over the surveyed time, some states fell far behind as their connection speeds either stayed the same or in some cases, actually decreased. CWA’s individual state rankings are available here.
At the Knight Center of Digital Excellence, we see this nationwide disparity as a call for a bold national broadband plan that puts the U.S. in a position to succeed. For more insight, read our “Go for gigabit speeds: America should expect nothing less.”
Tags: Alaska, bandwidth, broadband, Communications Workers of America, CWA, Delaware, digital, digital divide, download speeds, FCC, Federal Communications Commission, Hawaii, high-speed, Idaho, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Massachusetts, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, South Korea, Wyoming
Posted in Digital news, broadband | No Comments »
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009
The Knight Center of Digital Excellence has been extremely active in helping its Knight communities participate in the first round of broadband stimulus funding by collaborating with like-minded organizations to create a host of innovative programs designed to create jobs and bolster local economies.
We also supported local groups with their own asks – including Philadelphia’s Digital Philadelphia initiative; Miami’s “Elevate Miami;” Miami-Dade County’s Public Safety/Special Purpose Broadband; Detroit Broadband LLC’s (Clearwire); St. Paul, Minn.; Duluth, Minn.; and Biloxi, Miss.
Our proposals included:
• Connect Your Community
• Miami-Dade Broadband Coalition Infrastructure Project
• Northeast South Dakota Rural Broadband Project
Connect Your Community
A Sustainable Broadband Adoption stimulus proposal, Connect Your Community (CYC) saw the Knight Center partner with a host of the nation’s top digital adoption experts to propose a program that would engage, train, equip and support new broadband users in multiple communities, including Aberdeen, S.D.; Akron, Ohio; Biloxi/Gulfport, Miss.; Bradenton, Fla.; Detroit; Lexington, Ky.; Miami; and St. Paul.
CYC would directly help more than 75,000 disadvantaged households benefit from Internet access through a high-touch, community-based, replicable approach. The program would include digital literacy training and support, creating about 136 direct jobs while generating another 50 indirect positions. The Knight Center has partnered with community agencies such as urban leagues, libraries, educational institutions, economic development groups and health and human services organizations that would carry out the work in each targeted region.
National collaborators that would support key aspects of CYC include the Benton Foundation; the Alliance for Community Media; PBS; PC Rebuilders and Recyclers; TechSoup; Angela Siefer, of ShinyDoor; Jim Baller, of Baller Herbst Law Group and the U.S. Broadband Coalition; and Karen Peltz Strauss, of KPS Consulting. Dr. Kate Williams, an assistant professor at the University of Illinois and a leading authority on program evaluation, would design evaluation methods for the project.
Miami-Dade Broadband Coalition Infrastructure Project
The Knight Center partnered with the Miami-Dade Broadband Coalition in the planned construction of a robust, open, carrier-neutral broadband network that would provide broadband services augmented by nearly 35 square miles of wireless Internet access to up to 900 community organizations and institutions while reaching more than 2 million residents. This project has the potential to serve as a model economic engine and platform for innovation for the healthcare, education, public safety, digital inclusion, biotechnology, research and e-government applications.
This infrastructure project is expected to create more than 1,150 immediate, high-paying jobs directly involved with the implementation of the project, and 575 indirect jobs as a result of project related activity. The estimated economic impact created by this project is projected to be more than $1 billion with an increase in direct annual income of more than $700 million.
The Knight Center and the Miami Dade Broadband Coalition submitted a proposal to the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, requesting $64 million to cover close to 80 percent of the total project costs. If this funding is not obtained, the project will continue at a smaller scale.
Northeast South Dakota Rural Broadband Project
The Northeast South Dakota Rural Broadband Project is possible through a partnership between the Knight Center, TelServ Communications and the North East Council of Governments. The project aims to bring a wireless broadband super-highway linking 12 contiguous counties in rural Northeast South Dakota and provide broadband connectivity to more than 60,000 people. The Knight Center also worked with both partnering organizations to submit a Broadband Information Program application for funding.
In addition to the possible development and deployment of advanced public safety, e-government, telemedicine, agricultural, biotechnology and learning applications, the project is expected to generate an economic impact of more than $22 million a year, including preserving and creating more than 50 immediate, high-paying jobs directly involved with implementation and 470 indirect jobs.
These projects are just the beginning as rounds two and three should provide even more opportunities for Knight communities. The Knight Center of Digital Excellence is dedicated to helping our communities become connected communities. For more information on what the Knight Center is doing in your community and others, visit www.knightcenter.org.
Tags: Aberdeen, Akron, Alliance for Community Media, American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, Angela Siefer, Baller Herbst Law Group, bandwidth, benton foundation, Biloxi, BIP, Bradenton, broadband, Broadband Expansion, Broadband Initiatives Program, broadband stimulus funding, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, BTOP, community, Connect Your Community, CYC, Detroit, digital, Digital Philadelphia, Dr. Kate Williams, Duluth, economy, education, electricity, Elevate Miami, Gulfport, healthcare, high-speed, infrastructure, innovation, Internet, Jim Baller, Karen Peltz Strauss, KCoDE, Knight, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, KPS Consulting, Lexington, Miami, Miami-Dade County, network, North East Council of Governments, Northeast South Dakota Rural Broadband Project, PBS, PC Rebuilders and Recyclers, Philadelphia, rural communities, ShinyDoor, South Dakota, St. Paul, stimulus, stimulus watch, TechSoup, telemedicine, TelServ Communications, U.S. Broadband Coalition, University of Illinois, utilities
Posted in ARRA, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Stimulus Package, broadband | No Comments »
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009
 By Mark T. Ansboury, the Knight Center of Digital Excellence
As federal officials begin reviewing 2,200 detailed proposals requesting more than seven times the $4 billion in broadband investment in this round of stimulus funding, it’s a good time to revisit the big-picture and ask what outcomes are we looking for and what should drive funding decisions. With the government investing ambitiously in economic recovery, Americans should be equally bold in expecting a return on our nation’s investment.
And to ensure the long-term benefits - particularly given this is our infrastructure for innovation and global competitiveness for years to come - we all should be thinking years and decades out. To quote the “Great One,” Wayne Gretzky, you should “go to where the puck’s going, not where it is.”
So, as the Federal Communications Commission is charged with establishing our nation’s first broadband policy, we should focus not only where we fall short today, but also where we will entirely miss opportunities - and the puck. We need to know where our broadband strategy is going and what happens to our nation’s future without a bold one.
We need to follow the lead of other countries and start aiming (including investing and incentivizing) for gigabit Internet speeds for all. Gigabit-speed networks would provide Americans with hundreds of times the Internet speeds broadband households currently have.
Only a broadband policy striving for gigabit speeds will put us on par with our world competitors and provide the infrastructure America will need to compete for years to come. Right now, the U.S. government and the stimulus package are allowing the bar to be set so low, we are certain to fund initiatives that are, by international standards, already obsolete, while other countries such as Australia and Korea are committing even greater funds than the U.S. to upgrade networks. Quite simply, tomorrow’s innovation will come from whatever parts of the world have the platforms to foster it.
Gigabit broadband can also drive sweeping transformation in our communities and across sectors that affect us all, such as health care, education, government and public safety, and get our economy moving in the right direction again.
If the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act is truly going to help, today’s investment needs to continue once the shovels are put back in the shed. That means investing in technologies that will continue to have impact and empower businesses individuals while creating new opportunities and sustainable growth. As our economy changes, business and individuals are looking for new ways to engage their future workforce. On the home front, it’s about addressing the future needs of a connected household, providing high-bandwidth networks to manage household services, access to sensors for environmental and health management, availability of real-time access to the workplace, school, public safety and community services and numerous applications that have not been invented yet.
What do we know? Internet service has become more and more a necessity of daily life. It was only 15 years ago when phone companies said the Internet was a fad. The world has changed and will keep changing. Enabling gigabit access throughout the community will foster economic development and enable citizens to have access to new applications where they live, work and play. We should be thinking about incentivizing investment and innovation enabling new markets, new consumers and new services so as a nation and as individual citizens, we have a choice on the type and level of services we can access. Such access will determine whether we can actively conduct business from a home office, participate in a class discussion remotely, or access top quality health care regardless how far we live from the best hospitals.
What don’t we know? The opportunities, services, efficiencies and competitive advantage that having a true platform for innovation - a gigabit national network - would provide.
Take the example of health care, and what gigabit speed - or lack of it - would mean to you. With gigabit speeds, you could live in a remote town, yet be “seen” by a top doctor any distance away via video, through your home television screen, use local sensors to provide environmental information, statistics regarding your condition or state of health, monitor the trends in regards to chronic conditions. Gigabit speed means you can be monitored daily from your home by nurses and technicians at your local caregiver or doctor’s office. This, too, is possible with medical devices available on the market and is already happening in pockets of our country, where broadband capacity is available.
Close monitoring of this kind can mean life or death to many individuals. Simultaneously, it can help shift the focus of health care to wellness and prevention, to avoid as many high-cost emergencies as possible.
Looking similarly at government, education and other key sectors of our economy, there are equally transforming possibilities that will result from gigabit speeds.
Collectively across sectors, the effect of gigabit speeds will be not just economic recovery, but also improved quality of life and sustained competitiveness. Today’s spending choices and public policy decisions amount to an incentive and investment into the business plan for America’s future. Good planning requires that we learn from the past while keeping our eye on a greater future. Our American tradition is one of reaching for the highest goals, whether, in our past, via the Oregon Trail or an Apollo mission to the moon. Today, in the 21st century, why wouldn’t we go for gigabit speeds?
Mark T. Ansboury is chief technology officer of the Knight Center of Digital Excellence, based in Akron, Ohio. The center is operated by Cleveland-based technology nonprofit OneCommunity, in partnership with The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and is dedicated to creating connected communities through strategies that utilize information technologies to drive civic progress and economic development. To learn more about the Knight Center, go to www.knightcenter.org or e-mail info@knightcenter.org.
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, bandwidth, broadband, Broadband Expansion, broadband stimulus funding, community, digital, economy, education, FCC, Federal Communications Commission, gigabit, gigabit Internet speeds, healthcare, high-speed, infrastructure, innovation, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Mark Ansboury, network, OneCommunity, stimulus, stimulus watch, telemedicine, utilities, Wayne Gretsky
Posted in ARRA, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Opinion, Stimulus Package, broadband | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009
Either the technical problems associated with the first round of broadband stimulus funding keep on coming, or the old one never ended.
Today, the Knight Center of Digital Excellence spoke with BroadbandUSA officials that pointed out the software problem encountered by many applicants when creating and storing PDFs is still a major one: Attachments associated with more than 1,000 applications still can’t be viewed. According to the agency, developers are working on the issue and are hoping to finally resolve the problem this week.
However, there’s no need to panic. The review process for first-round applications has not begun, and when it is initiated, reviewers will have direct access into the system itself (so they will not be dependent upon the .pdf version). As of now, there is no other way to get a copy of the application, an issue that is causing worry and putting the agency under significant political pressure.
We’ll continue to pay close attention to this issue and provide you with any critical updates as they are released. But that doesn’t mean you can take your eye off the ball. Be sure to read the Knight Center’s “Hold your breath, your first-round application may not be done yet,” for some tips on how to ensure your other attachments are still accessible to reviewers.
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, BIP, broadband, Broadband Initiatives Program, broadband stimulus funding, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, BroadbandUSA, BTOP, digital, infrastructure, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, network, NTIA, RUS, stimulus, stimulus watch
Posted in ARRA, Digital news, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Stimulus Package | No Comments »
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
The numbers are in: 2,200 applications are requesting $27.6 billion in first round broadband stimulus funding.
The problem: There’s only $4.3 billion available.
Welcome to the competition.
According to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), applications were submitted by a diverse range of applicants, including state, local and tribal governments; nonprofit organizations; industry; anchor institutions, such as libraries, universities, community colleges and hospitals; public safety organizations; and other entities in rural, suburban and urban areas.
While the American Recovery & Reinvestment Act (ARRA) provided a total of $7.2 billion in broadband stimulus funding, approximately $2.4 billion from RUS and up to $1.6 billion from NTIA is available in this first grant round.
According to a preliminary analysis of applicant-reported data, the applications break down as follows:
Infrastructure
• More than 260 applications were filed solely with NTIA’s Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), requesting over $5.4 billion in grants to fund broadband infrastructure projects in unserved and underserved areas.
• More than 400 applications were filed solely with RUS’s Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP), requesting nearly $5 billion in grants and loans for broadband infrastructure projects in rural areas.
• More than 830 applications were both BTOP and BIP filings that requesting nearly $12.8 billion in infrastructure funding. (Applicants for infrastructure projects in rural areas had to apply for BIP funding, but were given the opportunity to jointly apply to BTOP in case the RUS declines to fund their application.)
Sustainable Broadband Adoption
• More than 320 applications were filed with NTIA requesting nearly $2.5 billion in grants from BTOP for projects that promote sustainable demand for broadband services. (The ARRA directs NTIA to make at least $250 million available for programs that encourage sustainable adoption of broadband services. Up to $150 million is allocated in the first round.)
Public Computer Centers
• More than 360 applications were filed with NTIA requesting more than $1.9 billion in grants from BTOP for public computer center projects, which will expand access to broadband service and enhance broadband capacity at public libraries, community colleges and other institutions (The ARRA directs NTIA to make at least $200 million available for expanding public computer center capacity. Up to $50 million is allocated in the first round.)
Keep in mind the numbers released today represent applicants’ self-reported totals from proposals submitted before the Aug. 20 deadline. Both organizations said these results are preliminary estimates and may change as the applications are reviewed for errors, omissions and duplicates. Both organizations said they would post a searchable database containing summaries of all applications received within a few weeks.
However, the numbers clearly show the demand for broadband expansion across the country. And both organizations seem committed to getting the money necessary for this expansion in the hands of applicants as quickly (and as carefully) as possible.
Read the Knight Center of Digital Excellence’s, “Back to your corners; Round one is over,” for information on some upcoming dates as they relate to BTOP funding.
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, ARRA, BIP, broadband, Broadband Expansion, broadband grants, Broadband Initiatives Program, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, BTOP, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, NTIA, rural communities, Rural Utilities Service, RUS, stimulus, stimulus application, stimulus watch, underserved, unserved
Posted in ARRA, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, NTIA, RUS, Stimulus Package | No Comments »
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
Ding ding ding. Back to your corners; Round one is over.
Like punch-drunk prizefighters, legions of exhausted broadband stimulus applicants spent last weekend shaking off the marathon sessions of research, writing and failed attempts to submit their applications to overworked computer systems. So what happens now that the applications have been submitted and we wait to hear about the awards for round one and the start of round two?
Well, the BTOP “Quarterly Program Status Report” to Congress released August 17th provides the following schedule for the application/awards process:
| Application/Award Step |
Timeline |
| Applications reviewed |
NOW |
| Due Diligence Review and State Consultation |
Sept. 14, 2009 - Oct. 15, 2009 |
| Round Two BTOP Request for Information (RFI) |
Fall 2009 |
| Round Two BTOP NOFA Released |
Winter 2009 |
| Begin Announcing First Round of BTOP Awards |
November 2009 |
| Round Three BTOP RFI Released |
Winter/Spring 2010 |
| Round Three BTOP NOFA Released |
Spring 2010 |
| All BTOP Funds Awarded |
Sept. 30, 2010 |
But, and this is a BIG “BUT”, the NTIA is still recruiting, selecting, and training volunteer reviewers to handle the influx of complex BTOP applications. Even at the time of this post, there is still a “Call for Reviewers” on the BroadbandUSA website.
Assuming the NTIA recruits enough reviewers, the next step is an initial review, results of which will be announced NO EARLIER than Sept. 14. Reviewer’s scores will then be averaged and the most qualified applications will move on for further consideration. The NTIA will then, if needed, request applicants submit additional information.
In addition, the governor’s office of each state will receive a list of the applications under consideration and the states are then permitted to prioritize recommended projects and explain why the selected proposals meet the greatest needs of the state. Finally, the NTIA staff will review and analyze supplemental information, consider the recommendations made by each state and assign a rating to applications.
Once all the reviews and ratings have been completed, the NTIA’s current goal is to announce the round one awards in November, issue a second NOFA before the end of 2009 and a third in the spring of 2010. So, while we wait here is how you can prepare for round 2:
• Organize your research files so that you’re ready for any application challenges by agencies or incumbents. In the rushed last days before the applications were to be submitted, sorting and organizing source files and resources was not a priority. It should be now.
• Consider your best round two opportunities. The consensus is that there will be a much more urban focus on round two.
• Rethink your round one applications in anticipation of challenges or changes that may need to be made.
• If needed, line up your GIS/Mapping consultants/resources
Don’t forget to contact the Knight Center of Digital Excellence or check out our Stimulus Center - we’re here to help position you for success!
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, BIP, Broadband Initiatives Program, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, BroadbandUSA, BTOP, GIS mapping, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, network, NOFA, NTIA, Quarterly Program Status Report, RUS, stimulus, stimulus watch, urban
Posted in ARRA, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Stimulus Package | No Comments »
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009
Now that the first-round stimulus funding deadlines (and extensions) have come and gone, applicants can sit back and catch their breath knowing full well all the “i”s are dotted and the “t”s crossed.
Or can they?
The Knight Center of Digital Excellence learned that may not necessarily be the case as a careful review of completed applications 24-hours after they were submitted revealed some attachments confirmed as uploaded really weren’t.
Despite receiving the electronic conformation, several documents supposedly uploaded successfully were actually caught in some kind of cyberspace limbo, if you will. They were still being uploaded. In transit. Being processed. Which means the document has NEVER been uploaded. The file name may be listed, but the document itself doesn’t exist. And what exists online is what the government will eventually see.
OK, so we have a problem. What are the repercussions?
• A reviewer could reject your proposal because it’s not complete.
• You could be penalized crucial points.
• You might end up ranking lower because of missing materials.
What can you do about it? First, thoroughly double-check your application, even though all deadlines have passed. Go through all your attachments and make sure they’re fully uploaded and viewable. If you find anything wrong, be sure to contact the BroadbandUSA Help Desk. You should receive a response fairly quickly. Our experiences with the Help Desk have been positive and we have found officials to be very helpful and responsive.
You’ve done the hard part, now make sure that all that work is received by double-checking your application.
Tags: American Recovery & Reinvestment Act 2009, BIP, broadband, Broadband Initiatives Program, Broadband Technology Opportunities Program, BroadbandUSA, BTOP, Help Desk, Internet, KCoDE, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, network, NTIA, RUS, stimulus, stimulus watch
Posted in ARRA, Knight Center of Digital Excellence, Stimulus Package | No Comments »
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