IfG.CC - The Institute for eGovernment

The Virginia Information Technologies Agency (VITA) announced this week the addition of 14 broadband service providers, which will be offered at "competitively priced" rates to state, county, city, town, school, library and other public agencies. The new options will include wireless, satellite, cable-modem and fiber services, the Virginia Governor's Office said. The state's main provider currently is Verizon.

"It is with great pride that I commend and congratulate the Office of Information Technology Director Tanya Gott and her staff for their tireless efforts and the hard work everyone invested in implementing the County's I-Net," said Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson. "We strive to be on the cutting edge of technology to better serve the residents and citizens of Prince George's County. This award certainly exemplifies that we are achieving high marks in this crucial area."

Virginia has provided a $35,000 grant to gather a list of towers, tall buildings, silos, smokestacks and steeples in Central Virginia. Many such structures already have communications antennas, or could become sites for equipment that relays computer signals through the air.

The two-day event, dubbed "Broadband in Washington Libraries," is being hosted by the Washington State Library and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It will be held at Hotel Murano, 1320 Broadway Plaza, in Tacoma.

"Broadband is a component of the bigger initiative," said Kyle Schafer. "Another component of our three-year strategic plan is getting technology into the home. West Virginia ranks 45th in the nation in personal computers in the home."

The Metro Fiber Build project will establish a high-speed broadband connection between Marshall's Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, St. Mary's Medical Center and Cabell Huntington Hospital.

The clarification came Wednesday during a meeting of the West Virginia Broadband Council when Lee Fisher, a member from Braxton County who represents rural communities, mentioned that the 700,000 figure continues to be used.

State Commerce Department Secretary Kelley Goes, who chairs the council, said the state's federal grant application talks about connecting critical community anchor tenants.

The FCC has launched a campaign to define exactly what constitutes "broadband" and providers of the high speed service may not like how it is defined and how the FCC views their delivery of broadband.

"The allocations of these funds are a significant win for the awardees, and for the greater broadband wireless industry. But more than that, the real big winners here are the consumers in rural communities who will benefit from affordable broadband services via WiMAX," said Ron Resnick, president and chairman of the WiMAX Forum.

A press conference was held this afternoon to announce our area will receive $11 million in federal grant money to improve communication services. The money will be used to lay fiber-optic cable to connect local government, schools and public safety.

"We currently do a lot with video distance learning, some with online learning, we've been limited in the past by the amount of work we can do because of the lack of bandwidth," says Ross Wilson, CESA 10 Director of Education Technology. "This will give increased bandwidth to a number of school districts."

The project also includes a fiber-optic highway to three of the reservation’s most remote towns, eventually giving them access to high-speed Internet that can connect with the rest of the world, a Project Telephone Co. official said.

“One thing we’re really excited about, and I know that the Crow Tribe is, too, is it will bring capability to the reservation that they’ve never had before,” said Rich Hood, plant operations manager for Project Telephone. “The intention is that it will spur economic activity on the reservation and give everybody there access to Internet capability to allow them to do things urban people have been able to do for a long time.”

2010’s list includes cities large and small, from thirteen countries, in five continents. The average population of the Smart21 is 490,000, but as ICF Co-Founder Louis Zacharilla said during last Friday’s unveiling, “You don’t have to be big to be successful. Size doesn’t matter in the Broadband Economy.”

During the past 10 years or so, Rockefeller has repeatedly introduced bills with tax benefits related to broadband, particularly in rural areas. Two years ago, he offered a big resolution on the need for a national broadband plan, and he has worked on various pieces of legislation related to the topic, a Rockefeller aid said.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says for too long, rural areas have gotten the short end of the stick where healthcare and broadband internet access are concerned. Over the past two years the agency has been using recovery act money to improve that access.

Vilsack announced the latest round of grants on Monday which will, among other things, help rural medical specialists provide advanced diagnosis for patients.

“The Community Connect program serves rural communities where broadband service is least likely to be available, but where it can make a tremendous difference in the quality of life for citizens,” Conner said. “The projects funded by these grants will help rural residents tap into the enormous potential of the Internet.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is accepting applications for loans to provide and expand broadband service in rural areas, Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development Anne Hazlett announced Saturday.

“Modernizing the nation’s infrastructure to deliver high-speed internet service is essential in today’s global marketplace,” Hazlett said. “Broadband helps create jobs. It also helps rural areas offer the programs and services that strengthen economies and encourage growth. These loans will help maintain America’s economic competitiveness and connect rural communities to more opportunities.”

The loan to Open Range is expected to develop business and create new jobs in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Wisconsin.