The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday morning voted to push aside laws in two states that restrict municipalities from building out their local…
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The FCC’s other big vote: small cities await their broadband fate
The big battle over net neutrality will go to a vote on Thursday but, for many people in small cities, it’s the other item on…
Read MoreFCC Chair says agency will nix state laws that block broadband
State laws that obstruct towns and cities from building their own broadband networks are likely to fall at the end of the month, as…
Read More46 Connecticut towns join push to be first US “gigabit state”
Dozens of Connecticut municipalities, representing half the state’s population, have signed on to a project that aims to dramatically increase broadband speeds…
Read MoreFCC’s Wheeler tells towns to fight for faster internet
Should city governments play a bigger role in getting faster internet for their citizens? The FCC's chairman shared some thoughts at a time when the city of Palo Alto and others are doing the same in a public proceeding.…
Read MoreSimplicity, innovation and the death of anti-muni network laws
State laws that hinder efforts to build municipal broadband networks can be repealed or dismantled, and showing startups using gigabit networks and the promise of economic development is a good place to start.…
Read MoreCan the FCC clear the way for cities to build broadband? Legal fight heats up over agency’s powers
Small cities want the federal government's help in sweeping aside state laws that prevent them from offering better internet service. The dispute has triggered a broader debate about the FCC's power under the Constitution.…
Read MoreMr. Wheeler, tear down these walls: The economic case for removing barriers to muni broadband
The FCC has been gently pushing for the end of state laws that make it difficult to build out municipal broadband networks. It should push harder.…
Read MoreInspired by Google, Chicago pursues gigabit broadband
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is embarking on a gigabit fiber project, thanks to the suggestion of Google's Eric Schmidt, taking advantage of the overhaul of its water infrastructure to lay new data pipes. The plan is create 15 tech zones to feed Chicago's growing startup community.…
Read MoreLegislators aim to turn states into broadband backwaters
Regressive, telco industry-influenced state legislators are at it again, trying to kill communities’ right to determine their own broadband futures. Anti-community broadband bills are rearing their ugly heads in several states. Can SOPA-style protests help?…
Read MoreHow It Feels to Have Been Passed Over by Google
Chip Rosenthal headed the effort to bring Google’s gigabit fiber network to Austin. He says the Texas capital was on the short list of cities, but thinks Austin was passed over because of a state law banning municipal participation in broadband networks.…
Read MoreGoogle Fiber Brings Threat and Opportunity for ISPs
James Nelson has been offering folks in Kansas City Internet access since 1995 through his ISP KCnet, where he is the CEO and president, but Google's decision to deploy a Gigabit fiber network is both a threat and an opportunity for the area's largest independent ISP.…
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