Blandin Foundation Broadband Initiative

January 2007

Season’s Greetings,

The New Year is a good time to take stock and reflect on success of the past year – and plan for success in the coming year. This year it seems particularly poignant as we welcome our latest and last Get Broadband program communities and prepare our Broadband Strategy Board to move forward on a new strategy that we believe addresses the unique challenges of making ultra high-speed broadband accessible and affordable to rural Minnesotans.

A Look Back – Get Broadband in 2006
First, I would like to thank the Get Broadband community coordinators and steering committees for their hard work and creativity. In the last year you have organized tech fairs, built Wi-Fi networks, hosted a wide range of classes for businesses, seniors, and the general public. You have awarded grants to improve web sites, written and published countless articles and developed curriculum in the schools to increase technology and business acumen.

I would also like to thank Bill Coleman of Community Technology Advisors and the rest of the leadership team for their energy and expertise. Through our virtual meetings we have learned about a range of technology topics related to education, e-commerce, heath care, citizen participation, economic development and more.

In September, the Center for Rural Policy and Development confirmed what we already suspected: the Get Broadband program is making a measurable difference. On average, local broadband adoption rates increased at a rate higher in the seven Get Broadband communities than the state average over an 18-month period. (Get details) . Since September, three more communities have been surveyed with similar results. We are learning that even in “demographically challenged” communities, the program is making a difference. Results like this would not be possible without the hard work of our Get Broadband communities and our leadership team

Again this year we enjoyed working with Minnesota Rural Partners on the 2006 Broadband Summit, Next Generation Broadband: Policies, Practices, & People. Highlights include the online gubernatorial debates with Steve Clift and E-Democracy, videos from the Get Broadband communities, and demonstrations from students from University of Minnesota, Crookston.

In December, we welcomed the final two communities, Monticello and Willmar/Kandiyohi Counties, to round out the total to 29 communities participating in the Get Broadband program. (Visit the Get Broadband web site for a full list and map of communities.)

Broadband Vision for the Future
We celebrate the work accomplished by the Broadband Strategy Board, especially their pivotal work in creating a Broadband Vision and set of principles endorsed by Governor Pawlenty and brought into public discourse through their endorsement by all three gubernatorial candidates.

I would like to thank the Broadband Strategy Board for their help in creating and promoting the Vision. Their hard work has been invaluable.

In 2007, we will refocus the work of the Broadband Strategy Board to promote a new strategy to increase public and private investment in broadband infrastructure. I will be sharing more about this strategy as we define its contours. For now I want to thank Gary Fields for his due diligence and perseverance in advocating this direction.
We are very excited about the future of both the Get Broadband program and continuing our work realizing the Broadband Vision. We are heartened to see that our work has made a difference and we are proud to partner with so many good people – including many of you reading our monthly eNews.

I very much look forward to working with you in the coming year. Thank you for your continuing contributions to these important efforts.

With best regards,

Bernadine Joselyn
Director, Public Policy & Engagement


Technology a Boon in Nursing Homes Grand Rapids, a Get Broadband community, was recently featured in a Star Tribune article on use of technology in nursing homes. Technology helps older people improve their memory and social interaction, target nursing home care and monitor potential problems at home. Often aides use hand-held computers or voice-activated ones at a bedside to chart a resident's activities, condition and what care was given -- faster, cheaper and more accurate ways to record and target care. First Frontier Telephone Wi-Fi Network Elko Nevada recently unveiled a city-wide Wi-Fi Network, the first of its kind in the entire Frontier Telephone network in 24 states. Frontier has committed to creating 10 networks in the US. Elko was selected because of the strong and coordinated support of city and county officials. (Learn more.) AT&T Rethinks Net Neutrality Nine months ago AT&T and BellSouth announced their merger, pending FCC approval, which they still await. On December 28, AT&T sent a letter to the FCC agreeing to many concessions to expedite the merger, including a commitment to Net Neutrality for two years. The Reports in Provo are In and Contrary Provo, Utah, has created the largest municipally-owned Fiber to the Home network in the US. Construction on this public-private partnership began in July 2004 and was completed within two years. In early December, the Reason Foundation published a critique of the project claiming that the city would never be able to pay off the project's $39.5 million bond. Provo has published a rebuttal claiming that the Reason Foundation report was biased. The two reports can be found at www.reason.org/ps353.pdf and www.provo.org/downloads/util/building_a_digital_community.pdf.

This month we’ve asked the Get Broadband Leadership Team and community leaders to share their New Year’s Resolutions: Get Broadband Leadership Team: Bill Coleman: Learn more about wireless technologies and applications. Learn more about how the big companies are redesigning work through technology and bring that information to bear on my own work with communities. Learn how to play the guitar that I bought myself two years ago and gave up on! Gary Fields: “My technology new years resolution is to starting using my webcam for video calls on a regular basis. (And buy a few more guitar and PA electronic gizmos.) Have a Happy New Year!” Becky LaPlant: “Happy Holidays Everyone, In 2007 I resolve to expand my tech horizons by: Learning how to use the instant message function on my cell phone. Committing to creating no less than five pod casts. Learning how to use the web cam so I can virtually attend Bill's first guitar recital.” Jane Leonard: “My New Year's tech resolution is to learn more about technologies that kids are using now, especially teenagers and college-age kids, so I know how to "communicate" with them and understand how they communicate with one another differently than how we communicated at those ages. That will help me understand what to prepare for in the immediate and longer-range future as they are shaping our world.” Ann Treacy: Keep up on the applications offered by Google, starting with the free calendar applications you can post on your web site. Buy a digital camera to replace the numerous half-filled disposable cameras scattered throughout my house. Learn more about Vonage and other VoIP services to reduce our international phone bills. Community Resolutions: Conrad Feldt in Cohasset: “With the wonders of Microsoft I will no doubt be learning the new operating system in addition to the new office suite. I am not complaining. That is what I have always enjoyed about this field: it is always changing. In addition I am hoping to continue giving existing presentations to more people and also perhaps work on an additional one. I would also like to teach a formal class along the way sharing some of my knowledge.” DonnaRae Jacobson in Five Small Towns: “My tech resolution will be to learn more about online learning as both an initiator and as a participant.” Jill Klinger in Mankato: “To get the SourceLink link on all websites in southern Minnesota!” Lynne Dahl-Fleming in Monticello: “There is an affordable and easy-to-use, email newsletter service out there called Constant Contact. They provide a free 30-day trial. I have signed up twice for the free trial and have not done anything with it. My resolution is to schedule time and familiarize myself with the product/services this company offers as I believe it will be a useful communication tool for 2007.” Alex Weego in Todd County: “In January, Todd County will select 8-10 local businesses to work with Minnesota Technology to improve e-business strategies. We will also begin work with the five high schools in the county to provide teacher training and student access to BizPathways, an online tool that supports and promotes entrepreneurs.” Steve Renquist in Willmar and Kandiyohi County: “We see technology as the great equalizer in terms of competing with the metropolitan areas that are larger and, perhaps, more sophisticated than Willmar and Kandiyohi. Adaptation and utilization of technological innovations are key to the evolution of the area's economy and the incorporation of equal growth opportunity for the rural areas. In every case we have found that technological innovation is not probable without reliable, high speed and high capacity communications. “As we seek to baseline our present communications capacity and to formulate a plan to address equipment and personnel areas of needed improvement we turn to the Blandin Broadband program for advice and assistance. May 2007 be fruitful!

February 13-16 - eTail 2007 (Palm Desert, CA) – focuses on how retailers can use technology to reach their customers and sell more online. February 26 – March 1 – Minnesota Telecom Alliance (Minneapolis) – the 98th annual conference. March 27-29 - CTIA Wireless 2007 (Orlando, FL) – the annual conference for the international association for the wireless telecommunications industry. (For wireless hot topics visit their industry topics page.) April 30 – May 2 – Killer App (Fort Wayne, IN) - explores the applications that are driving broadband use and adoption worldwide. Killer App is looking for presenters. Visit their web site for more information. Deadline for applications is January 15, 2007.) May 10-11 - Minnesota Rural Summit (Brainerd, MN) – the theme for the 10th annual Minnesota Rural Summit is "Kickoff to Minnesota's Sesquicentennial - Thriving by Design!!". May 17-18 – Building the Broadband Economy 2007 (Brooklyn, NY) - an annual meeting place and "idea exchange" for government officials from around the world and their private-sector partners in telecom, IT, consulting, finance and real estate.

The end of one year, the beginning of another. A time for review and a time for planning. I encourage you to take the time for both activities. One of the key objectives of the Blandin Get Broadband program is to bring community leaders together around the common theme of accelerated technological adoption, primarily through the use of broadband technologies. Sometimes we tend to lose that big picture thinking as we focus on measurable objectives like increasing broadband adoption rates or the number of businesses with web sites. As you review your successes and plan for the future, I encourage you to bring back some of that big picture thinking, to engage the top leaders of your community around the theme of developing technology vitality as a competitive advantage for economic development and quality of life. California has developed an excellent benchmarking tool that is available at www.cenic.org/publications/archives/glossies/guide.pdf. This could serve as an excellent tool for understanding where your community, its institutions and businesses stand in the competitive global marketplace and be indicative of their future ability to thrive. Use the tool, do some big picture thinking and set some achievable goals. Make 2007 a year that will be remembered for positive change and rapid technological adoption. Bill

Teleradiology http://www.radiology.uiowa.edu/MoreRAD/Teleradiology/Tele.html In the spirit of learning new technology in the New Year, consider checking out the University of Iowa; they provide a great introduction to teleradiology. The Get Broadband Toolkit is designed to promote and facilitate community-led broadband market development and education efforts. To view the Toolkit online visit GetBroadband.us To request additional copies of the Toolkit email: broadband@blandinfoundation.org.