I seem to remember the estimated timeline for BEAD projects was start in mid 2026 and finish in 2-4 years.
I would think LEO is a bit different than fiber because they don’t need to build infrastructure specific to the awarded locations. So given that Amazon claims they will start commercial service around the end of 2025, completion of BEAD commitments by 2030 seems feasible. Starlink had issues like dropouts while they were completing their constellation so it would be reasonable to expect that Amazon might have the same during 2026 and 2027 but eventually will launch enough birds. From: AF <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Bill Prince Sent: Saturday, September 27, 2025 10:29 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [AFMUG] Strategic Management, LLC Timeline on that must be pretty open. Does Kuiper even have 100 sats orbiting yet? bp <part15sbs{at}gmail{dot}com> On 9/27/2025 8:04 AM, Ken Hohhof wrote: I saw that also. Has pretty much a placeholder website from last year saying it is a consortium. Searching the Illinois Secy of State business registration database, the only active entity with that name was registered in 2024 with an address of 120 W. LANE STREET, EQUALITY,IL. A search on that address comes up with Shawnee Communications. Equality is in middle of nowhere southern Illinois, about 50 miles east of Carbondale. Looking at the locations they were awarded, and given that the state broadband office awarded the most difficult locations to Amazon Kuiper, my guess would be these involve existing fiber ISPs building to areas adjacent to their current footprint. Otherwise it makes no sense to me they would bid on these dispersed locations and bid low enough to fall below the threshold for LEO. Maybe some grant writing firm rounded up a bunch of small ISPs and offered to create a consortium to bid for BEAD money. Focusing on areas they could expand into for cheap if they got some govt money. Just my guess, probably wrong. From: AF <mailto:[email protected]> <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Jason McKemie Sent: Saturday, September 27, 2025 9:05 AM To: AnimalFarm Microwave Users Group <mailto:[email protected]> <[email protected]> Subject: [AFMUG] Strategic Management, LLC Anyone heard of these guys? They got a pretty big award for BEAD funding for fiber here in Illinois.
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