RS Fiber - Calix Success Story

Interesting example of a Public/Private FTTH Partnership in Minnesota.

The Internet rates are very competitive.

Speeds and Feeds

Researchers achieve fastest ever data transfer at a speed of 1.125 Tbps. Wow!

Couple of things - the article shows fiber even though the data ran directly from the transmitter to the receiver. Fiber will be added in between at a later date. For an example of how fast 1.125 Tbps is the article stated that speed would allow the transfer of the entire HD collection of Game of Thrones in one second. Another real world example of how this speed may come in handy - consider that the fans in the stands at the recent Super Bowl in San Francisco used 91 Terabytes of data on their mobile devices just taking pictures and videos of the spectacle. Data transfer speeds of this magnitude are going to be needed in the near future.

Can Broadband Really Save a Home $10,000 a Year?

Interesting position that having access to high speed broadband can save an average household more than $10,000 a year.

It was based on the household paying $120 / month for broadband and did not take into account the increase in the value of the home that having broadband creates.

Interesting.

Bringing Internet to Rural Nepal

The man who is bringing Internet to rural Nepal.

His name is Mahabir Pun and he is an inspiration.

Things Have Changed

Telephone wires in Manhattan 1887.

Home Broadband 2015

Interesting information on the state of broadband in the US via the Pew Research Center.  The information can be a little misleading though. Yes it is easily understandable that many adults are switching from broadband to "smartphone only" - for people who grew up playing games on Nintendo Game Boy-like devices the screens on a smartphone are big enough for pretty much all needs. And why pay for both a cell bill and a broadband bill when money is tight and the smartphone can do pretty much all you need?

What I find misleading is the fact that people choosing a smartphone only life had the option to have broadband in the first place. That's not the case for many rural Americans.  How can you be part of the 15% of American adults that cut the cord if you never had a cord to begin with? I had particular issue with this passage:

Large numbers of non-broadband households have never had home high-speed service in the past, and few have interest in subscribing in the future.

Overall, 33% of American adults do not have broadband at home. Within this group of non-adopters, 36% had a subscription in the past, while 59% say they have never had a broadband subscription plan at home. In addition, just 25% of non-adopters are interested in subscribing to broadband service in the future, while 70% say they are not interested in doing so.

Communities that have never had broadband - either from cable or from incumbent telephone companies - those numbers would easily be inverted with 70% or greater wanting broadband service. Adults in communities without broadband could easily be counted as "smartphone only" because they have a smartphone they bring with them to work. The digital divide is a very real problem in this country.

Linky Links

Stuff I found interesting and thought I'd share.

- Facebook's ad revenue provides solid evidence on the growing importance of smart phones, tablets and pads.

- Interesting analysis of Comcast's business model. Basically Comcast was a cable company with awful customer service but is morphing into a broadband provider with awful customer service.

- Cool 2-minute FiberFacts video

- 5 companies grab 70% of your online dollars

- Fiber based broadband the new greatest thing for electrical co-op's