Robert West wrote: > But a lot of these companies are government regulated already and have to > abide by certain amounts of transparency due to various regulations and > agreements.
Sure. So do WISPS if I'm not mistaken. The e-mail that started this thread mentioned the famous 477. :) But I know what you're saying. I > don't imagine some big company grabbing the cash and swooping in and taking > us all over. Sure. However the working theory seems to be that the cash will be used to enter new markets and/or starve out existing players. But the spirit of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 this > isn't. The idea is to provide broadband access to every corner of the U.S. > In 1936 they had co-ops formed who all worked together for the common goal. > The only people I have had contact me have been the "Connect Ohio" bunch who > do the same meetings in the other states and from whom I receive a monthly > newsletter with pictures of them with various politicians and > representatives from the major telecoms and not much info on how to get this > goal accomplished. Right. > > A few years ago I lived in Niagara Falls New York. The economy there > absolutely sucks so the county was awarding a grant to some unknown company > to come in and provide wireless internet to the entire county. I don't > remember the dollar amount but it was HUGE. The local WISP, yes, there was > already a company who was providing the larger populated areas with > wireless, he was never considered. The county supposedly thought that some > bigger outfit from out of the area would do a better job. The local guy, I > believe, was quoted as saying he could cover the entire county for 10 grand > or less in equipment and he already had the basic setup, he just had to > extend out further. But no, they threw tens of thousands of dollars to > someone outside of the area to do the same as this guy was doing. Hmmmmm. Very interesting. > > I think that's where most of my frustration comes from. I never had dollar > signs in my eyes from this, only as maybe a means to achieve a few goals a > bit quicker. But no big deal. It's how it's tossed up and celebrated by > these big shot government types and turns out to be a bunch of hype that is > a big waste of my time. Right. It very much looks like the overall stimulus package fits that category. Now they are discussing another one. *shudders* However it may be too early to fully.... appreciate the impact. :) Kinda like when your brother in law offers to come > help work on your truck. Yeah, he comes over and yeah he'll be in the > garage. But how much quicker could you have got the job done without his > help??? ;) Excellent analogy. However in this case there seems to be a gap that isn't being filled by the current crop of providers (small independent (W)ISPS and the big guys. My understanding of the stimulus package, was designed to add another variable to folks existing business plans and financial models. Was something not possible before, be made possible with an influx of cash. Folks I have spoken with who are actively pursuing grants (particularly ARRA grants) support my assessment. Will that turn out to be the case? Who knows. > > Most of us would do it quicker and cheaper and with better quality than any > big company because we have to. Right. I agree. If no one goes after the grant money due to the evidently draconian rules (I haven't read the NOFA in it's entirety as of yet) then that should send a message and the rules will get changed. Broadband policy does seem to be a priority for this administration. We have a chance to shape that policy and make sure we have a seat at the table. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WISPA Wants You! Join today! http://signup.wispa.org/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WISPA Wireless List: wireless@wispa.org Subscribe/Unsubscribe: http://lists.wispa.org/mailman/listinfo/wireless Archives: http://lists.wispa.org/pipermail/wireless/
