Agree. I'd go a step further and say that Dark Fiber as a Public Utility (which is regulated to provide open access at published rates and forbidden from providing its own lit service directly) is the only way forward.
That said, I don't think it's a good idea to see the municipality provide the fiber and Internet access. There needs to be some separation to promote an equal playing field. That isn't to say the town couldn't provide their own service within the framework of being a customer of the utility, which would be helpful as a price-check and anchor provider. Just need to make sure it's setup to promote competition not kill it. For rural areas where the population density is too low to deliver an acceptable ROI for companies like Verizon or Comcast, I think municipal dark fiber to the home is the only hope. Let the ISPs focus on the cost and investment of the optics and routers to drive up bandwidth instead of trying to absorb the cost of a 20 year fiber plant in 3 years. On a side note, this model actually makes it possible for a smaller ISP to actually be viable again, which might not be a bad thing. On Mon, Jul 21, 2014 at 3:08 PM, Blake Dunlap <iki...@gmail.com> wrote: > My power is pretty much always on, my water is pretty much always on > and safe, my sewer system works, etc etc... > > Why is layer 1 internet magically different from every other utility? > > -Blake > > On Mon, Jul 21, 2014 at 1:38 PM, William Herrin <b...@herrin.us> wrote: >> On Mon, Jul 21, 2014 at 10:20 AM, Jay Ashworth <j...@baylink.com> wrote: >>> Over the last decade, 19 states have made it illegal for municipalities >>> to own fiber networks >> >> Hi Jay, >> >> Everything government does, it does badly. Without exception. There >> are many things government does better than any private organization >> is likely to sustain, but even those things it does slowly and at an >> exorbitant price. >> >> Muni fiber is a competition killer. You can't beat city hall; once >> built it's not practical to compete, even with better service, so >> residents are stuck with only the overpriced (either directly or via >> taxes), usually underpowered and always one-size-fits-all network >> access which results. As an ISP I watched something similar happen in >> Altoona PA a decade and a half ago. It was a travesty. >> >> The only exception I see to this would be if localities were >> constrained to providing point to point and point to multipoint >> communications infrastructure within the locality on a reasonable and >> non-discriminatory basis. The competition that would foster on the >> services side might outweigh the damage on the infrastructure side. >> Like public roads facilitate efficient transportation and freight >> despite the cost and potholes, though that's an imperfect simile. >> >> Regards, >> Bill Herrin >> >> >> -- >> William Herrin ................ her...@dirtside.com b...@herrin.us >> Owner, Dirtside Systems ......... Web: <http://www.dirtside.com/> >> Can I solve your unusual networking challenges? -- Ray Patrick Soucy Network Engineer University of Maine System T: 207-561-3526 F: 207-561-3531 MaineREN, Maine's Research and Education Network www.maineren.net
