Broadband projects endorsed for funding
The State Broadband Strategy Council gave several major plans to expand broadband Internet access in Maine the green light to seek some of $4 billion in available federal stimulus funds.
The council reviewed 19 projects, seeking economically viable proposals that would provide broadband access in unserved or underserved rural areas, the Bangor Daily News reported. Three projects got the go-ahead to be further considered for funding:
• FairPoint Communications submitted two separate projects totaling about $6.5 million to improve service to Aroostook, Washington and Hancock counties. The company wants to expand DSL services to rural areas beyond the expansion they committed to in their agreement with regulators upon buying Verizon's landline and DSL service.
• The "Three Ring Binder" project, sponsored by a consortium led by Biddeford-based Internet service provider GWI, seeks $26 million to build a fiber-optic network that would serve 100 rural communities and institutions, including the University of Maine System.
• TDS Telecomm, parent of the Somerset Telephone Co. and the West Penobscot Telephone and Telegraph Co., submitted a $6 million proposal to expand DSL services in its areas.
ConnectME Authority will now consider the council's recommendations, before forwarding them to Gov. John Baldacci. If the proposals pass muster, they will be sent to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration by mid-October, the Daily News reported.
Read more about the competition for stimulus money to expand broadband access in Maine, in "Making connections," from the Sept. 21 issue of Mainebiz >>
Go to the article from the Bangor Daily News >>
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