The question is, who will qualify to get the funds, if Broadband added to
USF?
It doesn't help if the ILECs, or Super large companies with tons of backend
financing are the one that end up being the only ones able to qualify to get
the funds.
Do you think the Telcos and Large CLECs would just sit there and let us
collect the money? I'm just sinical that we'll start paying but not
receiving. The other side is that FIBER, any way you look at it, has a
better value propositions than Wireless, and if upfront money is available
and long term financing, it has been proven fiber can be isntalled for the
same amount as wireless to a rural town.
So getting USF for rural, could mean getting more competition in the rural
markets that we now have as our best non-competitive markets.
However, it would be great, if we were inked into the plan to be able to
receive for USF.
I'd justify VOIP getting taxed, if it meant I got to receive funds from it
to build my wireless networks.
Not that I live in rural america :-(
What I'd like to see is for USF to cover deployment to underserved, not just
rural.
Thats an areas where Wireless provider can produce the MOST value. Filling
in the holes. Fiber is cheaper to deploy in Rural and Urban, when
considering 90% of the homes in the area are going to get the service. But
the few people that just aren't convenient to hit get left behind, and are
forgotten about. Nobody should be left behind.
An example I can point to is here locally with Fios. One of my customers
just switched to FIOS when it came available, because he had a crappy
wireless link with me, because he had to shoot through a forest of PINE
TREES. I actually recommended that he change. FIOS could serve him because
his house was right on the street by the wire. However, 1 mile down the
road, I have 5 prospects, that are to far away from the road, and Version
said they couldn't and wouldn't serve them. Thats 5 homes, that I can serve
with my Wireless, even though FIOS was in town. These 5 homes were jsutas
needy as anyone in rural america.
The day the Underserved are treated equal, is the day I will be satisfied.
If you have a problem, you should not be discriminated against because of
where you live, even if its a weathy county. My support for USF will only
come, if it gets reformed to meet its name "UNIVERSAL" service fund, not
just "RURAL ILEC" service fund.
Tom DeReggi
RapidDSL & Wireless, Inc
IntAirNet- Fixed Wireless Broadband
----- Original Message -----
From: "Barry at Mutual Data" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: "WISPA General List" <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, January 27, 2006 11:09 AM
Subject: Re[2]: [WISPA] USF tax changes?
Hello Marlon,
At 100 bucks a month for USF, I could drop fiber into each customer
and scrap my wireless altogether. And that would be a kick ass
network!
Barry
Friday, January 27, 2006, 10:37:09 AM, you wrote:
MKS592> I had a call the other day from someone at the
MKS592> Congressional Budget Office.
MKS592> It *looks* like there is a move afoot to expand USF to broadband.
MKS592> I believe this would only be a good thing for the market.
MKS592> Out here the telco gets $109 per month per phone line. And they
require a
MKS592> phone line for DSL service.
MKS592> So $15 per phone line.
MKS592> $30 per dsl.
MKS592> $109 per line in usf funds.
MKS592> Nearly $160 per month per sub. And I get $35. Oh joy!
MKS592> Now if I could get $109 too! At nearly 300 subs
MKS592> today.... Man could I put
MKS592> in a nice network! And afford to go where others aren't going
yet.
MKS592> And the value of a wisp would REALLY shoot through the roof.
MKS592> I'm not a big fan of government meddling but one of two things has
to happen
MKS592> here. Either they drop usf (most rural telcos would fold so this
is
MKS592> unlikely) or expand it to include us and cable and sat. Like it
or not,
MKS592> government funding was used for electrification,
MKS592> phones, roads etc. If the
MKS592> competition is going to get subsidized, we should to.
MKS592> WISPA needs to support this move. In a big way.
MKS592> Marlon
MKS592> (509) 982-2181 Equipment sales
MKS592> (408) 907-6910 (Vonage) Consulting services
MKS592> 42846865 (icq) And I run my own
wisp!
MKS592> 64.146.146.12 (net meeting)
MKS592> www.odessaoffice.com/wireless
MKS592> www.odessaoffice.com/marlon/cam
MKS592> ----- Original Message -----
MKS592> From: "Blair Davis" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
MKS592> To: "WISPA General List" <[email protected]>
MKS592> Sent: Wednesday, January 25, 2006 6:08 PM
MKS592> Subject: [WISPA] USF tax changes?
Does WISPA have a stand on this?
http://techrepublic.com.com/2100-1035-5959140.html?tag=nl.e550
As one who has built my network without any public money, I have no
interest in collecting special taxes. I have more than enough paperwork
now...
I also don't want my competitors to get government money to build their
networks. But locally, I have found out that they are getting
government
grants to expand into my area. Having seen their install rates, monthly
fees and tower provisioning costs, they would not be making any money if
they did not have the government footing the bill.
--
Blair Davis
West Michigan Wireless ISP
269-686-8648
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Best regards,
Barry mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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