Showing posts tagged “Internet”
Samiha Khanna ·
15 Mar 2010, 10:49 AM ·
Comment
In a follow-up to our cover March 10 cover story, “Gaga for Google’s fiber,” we’d like to update metrics of the involvement of the Triangle’s top three participants.
Durham’s still ahead in Facebook presence, with 2,180 fans on its “Bring Google Fiber to Durham N.C.,” page, while 935 people have signed up for “Bring Google Fiber to Raleigh!”. The western part of the Triangle is not far behind: the Facebook group “Bring Google Fiber to Chapel Hill & Carrboro N.C.” boasts 906 members.
The towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, and UNC-Chapel Hill, will hold a public forum at 7 p.m. today at Chapel Hill Town Hall, 405 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., to receive public comment regarding community interest in the fiber optic trial and how residents would use an ultra-high speed Internet network.
On Thursday, Durhamites hope to make a splash by corralling thousands of locals into the Durham Bulls Athletic Park at 11 a.m. Thursday to spell out “We want Google” on the field, to pose for an aerial photograph. More here >>
Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Durham, Durham County, North Carolina, Raleigh, Wake County, business, media, national, news Carrboro, Chapel Hill, Durham, Google, Google Fiber, Internet, Raleigh, Triangle
Samiha Khanna ·
5 Mar 2010, 1:52 PM ·
1 Comment
Folks, this is even bigger than the “We Want Oprah!” sign that used to occupy the windows of a converted motel on Corcoran Street downtown.
Durham wants Google. Specifically, Durham residents, businesses, elected leaders and creatives are hoping to lure Google Fiber, an project that Google is embarking on to bring broadband fiber and high-speed Internet access to one or more lucky cities in the U.S. Google has opened the application process to the entire country, and like many cities across the country have demonstrated in recent days, Durham wants in.
To demonstrate Durham’s engagement, a committee has organized an effort to spell the words “We want Google” on the field of the Durham Bulls Athletic Park on Thursday, March 18, said Sam Poley, a spokesman on Durham’s application for Google Fiber. An aerial photographer will take photos of the display that day and submit them to Google when the application is due, March 26. Continue reading »
Durham, Durham County, North Carolina, business, national, news City of Durham, DBAP, Durham Bulls, Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau, Google Fiber, Internet, technology
Fiona Morgan ·
14 Apr 2009, 11:25 AM ·
11 Comments
Update 4/16: A vote on the bill was postponed to next Wednesday, April 22.
N.C. Rep. Ty Harrell, who represents western Wake County in the General Assembly, last week introduced a House companion to a Senate bill that would effectively stop local governments from building their own broadband Internet and other telecommunications services if they compete with private industry.
Harrell is an otherwise progressive legislator. He’s a co-sponsor of the comprehensive sex education bill, the Healthy Youth Act and the anti-bullying bill, the School Violence Prevention Act. He has twice received our endorsement. But by sponsoring HB 1252, Harrell has angered a wide grassroots base. Since introducing the bill, he says he’s heard from many progressives who oppose it.
“I did not know there would be this type of response, to be honest with you,” Harrell said in an interview.
He’s likely to hear more of that response this Wednesday, April 15, when the same coalition that fought the anti-muni broadband bill in 2007 plans to attend the House Science and Technology Committee meeting at 11 a.m. in Legislative Office Building room 425.
Harrell is chairman of that committee (though under House rules he won’t chair discussion of a bill he sponsors.) He says Time Warner Cable is based in his district and approached him about sponsoring the bill, which would require local governments to tack on to the fees they charge consumers the difference in the amount it would cost a private company to provide the service. Also under the bill, a city could not use government funds to “cross-subsidize” the launch or operation of a system, a practice common in private industry.
“You’ve got the municipalities who are more of less being subsidized by private industry in the sense that they don’t pay property tax, they don’t pay income tax, they receive rebates on their sales tax for these services and they have access to tax-free financing,” Harrell said, summarizing the industry’s argument. “I wanted to make sure that I look out for the businesses that are in my district. It was not an intent to rub out or punish municipalities that try to provide this service.”
But the bill’s opponents say that’s precisely the industry’s goal. They say these prohibitions artificially increase the cost of the municipal service and impose obligations that private industry does not have to meet. The cities of Wilson and Salisbury have already beaten a path to Harrell’s door, seeking to explain that building their own telecommunications infrastructure allows them to offer faster speeds and greater capacity than private industry is willing to build for their citizens.
The League of Municipalities, which lobbies for the interests of towns and cities across the state, is circulating a resolution to their members laying out the arguments against the bill (PDF).
Among the League’s concerns is the fact that North Carolina would be ineligible for $4.7 billion in federal stimulus grants set aside for local and state governments to provide broadband Internet service to unserved and underserved areas.
The timing of the bill is made worse by Time Warner Cable’s recent announcement that it would institute bandwidth caps for its customers in Greensboro and other cities nationwide. Customers who use more than their capped allotment (40 GB being the highest tier) will have to pay $1 per extra GB. Those customers are not happy and they’re fighting back with help from national groups like Free Press.
Continue reading »
politics broadband, Internet, NC General Assembly, Ty Harrell
