Broadband projects moving forward in Gallia Co.; service too pricey for average consumers

GALLIPOLIS — Horizon Telcom representatives were present during a regular meeting of the Gallia County Board of Commissioners on April 21 to provide the commission with an update of federally funded projects that are allowing Horizon to provide high-capacity broadband services to community anchor institutions throughout southern Ohio.


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Frontier plans major upgrade

By Chris Pugh
Connect Ohio

Frontier Communications will be making major investments to expand broadband service throughout various areas of Ohio after completion of the company’s purchase of Verizon’s landline customer accounts in the state.

Dave Davidson, Frontier Senior Vice President and General Manager for Ohio, said the company has made a number of commitments in the state, including:

- Expanding broadband availability to 85 percent of households within the Frontier service territory by Dec. 31, 2013. The current broadband availability in these areas is approximately 60 percent.

- Making capital investments of at least $110 per access line or a minimum of $50 million per year for each of the next three years.

- Capping basic local telephone rates in Frontier’s service territory at current levels until broadband deployment reaches 85 percent of the households in the Frontier Ohio service territory.

- Retaining the 1,000 to 1,100 existing Verizon employees in Ohio after the acquisition. This includes employees at the Marion Call Center and Norwalk Dispatch Center.

After the acquisition, the company will serve parts of 77 Ohio counties.

“Frontier Communications’ acquisition of Verizon land lines is a positive step for residents and businesses within Southeast Ohio because of their commitment to invest millions of dollars in infrastructure,” Connect Ohio Southeast Region State Operations Manager Bart Winegar said. “This means broadband services will be extended further into unserved areas and businesses will have enhanced product offerings.”

BroadbandStat question of the month

Q: How do you access multiple layers of technology in BroadbandStat?

A: You can view several layers simultaneously by using the advanced tab of the application. The website is at http://www.connectohio.org/mapping_and_research/interactive_map.php

Got a question about our BroadbandStat program? E-mail it to Public Relations Specialist Chris Pugh and he will find an answer for you.

New research, maps, and adoption project discussed at Tech Association meeting

By Chris Pugh
Connect Ohio

About seventy elected officials, Internet providers, and other key state stakeholders took part in Connect Ohio’s quarterly Technology Association meeting June 25 at the Riffe Center in Columbus.

Executive Director Tom Fritz presented attendees with the organization’s 2010 State Residential Technology Assessment statistics.

Most notably, he reported Ohio has moved ahead of the national average with two of three residents connected to broadband service. Three out of five American adults are connected to high-speed Internet.

Fritz also shared updates to Connect Ohio’s BroadbandStat website, which included the ability to sort new maps by technology and the addition of searchable online maps.

A roundtable discussion was also held on Connect Ohio’s federal broadband stimulus funds application for its Public Adoption through Libraries II/Every Citizen Online Adoption Project, which would allow for statewide computer classes and advertising for the program.

State Public Utilities Commission Section Chief Marianne Townsend also talked about the impact of Ohio’s new Telecom Bill, which is slated to go into law in September.

More research added to BroadbandStat

Chris Pugh
Connect Ohio

Connect Ohio is offering Ohio residents a robust guide to available broadband services with its new mapping data, which is now available on the initiative’s BroadBandStat Web site.

The maps are based on information derived through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s Broadband Data Improvement Act and the State Broadband Data Development Program.

“The new data includes technology type, advertised speeds and layers that better show connectivity data for communities throughout the state,” Connect Ohio Executive Director Tom Fritz said. “This information will be useful to customers seeking new or improved broadband service.”

The new mapping data comes in addition to February’s release of BroadbandStat, a mapping service which offers local and state-wide education and population demographics, current broadband speeds and availability and research about the barriers to broadband adoption.

Connected Nation, Connect Ohio’s parent organization, joined forces with ESRI, a market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, to create the revolutionary application.

All Connected Nation partner states and territories will be using BroadbandStat to organize the results of data currently being collected on available broadband services.

Connected Nation currently produces mapping and broadband data in twelve states and one territory.

Ohio’s latest mapping research can be foundhere

Funding for the Ohio projects came from a $1.8 million federal grant awarded to the state last December in order to compile and map broadband availability, including location, available speed and type of technology delivering the service.

The maps are updated semi-annually and include data provided by more than 100 broadband service providers across the state.