Thanks to Jeff Hoel for this transcript of Episode 19 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Chris interviews John St. Julien, a local organizer from Lafayette, on how the community overcame the lies of the incumbent provider to pursue a municipal network. Listen to this episode here.

00:12:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, a production of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and muninetworks.org .  I'm Lisa Gonzalez.

In our 19th episode, Christopher Mitchell interviews John St. Julien from Lafayette, Louisiana.  John is a local organizer who's heavily involved in the community's efforts to invest in a municipal fiber network.  Christopher and John talk about Lafayette's struggle to overcome the lies generated by incumbent telecommunications giants.  Cox and others wanted to stop the community's investment in its own fiber network.  As a special treat for our audience, listen to an actual example from the many deceitful telephone push polls conducted as the referendum drew near.  Eventually, however, the community overcame the lies, passed the referendum, and have never looked back.  We include the complete telephone conversation on our website.  Now to Chris and John.

01:04:

Christopher Mitchell:  John St. Julien, thank you so much for joining me on the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  You are one of the main forces that was an influential organizing force in Lafayette throughout the many years in which there was a battle about whether or not to build a municipal fiber-to-the-home network.  So, thank you for joining me.

01:22:

John St. Julien:  Well, thanks.  Always a pleasure.

01:25:

Chris:  We learned about you from your prolific writings.  And I think we'll get into that in a little bit.  But first, can you tell us a little bit about Lafayette, for those poor souls that have not read my case study on it or aren't familiar with your LafayetteProFiber blog?

01:41:

John:  It would be a great idea for folks to read that study, incidentally.

01:45:

Chris:  Thank you.

01:46:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for this transcript of Episode 163 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Tim Miles, the Technology Director at Steamboat Springs and South Routt School Districts, explains the purpose of carrier-neutral locations and the savings to community anchor institutions. Listen to this episode here.

00:06:

Tim Miles:  And the only reason we're doing this is 'cause we were waiting for the incumbent to meet our needs and they weren't doing it.  'Cause, according to them, we weren't big enough.  We're doing this not to connect the community but to provide a good opportunity for anyone who's in that business to connect the community, and just use our assets -- at a reasonable, fair cost.

00:25:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to Episode 163 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  I'm Lisa Gonzalez from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.

Tim Miles, Technology Director at Steamboat Springs and South Routt School Districts, talks with Chris in this episode.  Steamboat Springs is a resort community that's invested in an innovative way to make connectivity more affordable and more reliable.  Several local anchor institutions have collaborated to develop a carrier-neutral location, a place where providers connect to each others' networks to bring outside Internet to their customers.  Steamboat Springs carrier-neutral location has resulted in significant savings for the school district and other anchor institutions.  And Tim explains in the interview exactly how.  This resource has also created redundancy and reliability that did not previously exist.  Tim describes how past failures from past providers have caused millions of dollars of damage to the local economy, and how the carrier-neutral location has all but ended such catastrophic failures.  In fact, the carrier-neutral location has opened up new opportunities for Steamboat Springs.  Now here are Tim and Chris.

01:38:

Chris Mitchell:  Welcome to another edition of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  I'm Chris Mitchell.  Today I'm speaking with Tim Miles, the Technology Director at Steamboat Springs and South Routt School Districts.  Welcome to the show.

01:53:

Tim Miles:  Thank you.

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for this transcript of Episode 21 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Benoit Felten of Diffraction Analysis joins Chris to talk about his case-study of Stokab, the municipal network in Stockholm, Sweden. Listen to this episode here.

00:11:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  This Lisa Gonzalez, from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance andmuninetworks.org .

In our 21st episode, Christopher Mitchell and his guest take us to Stockholm, Sweden.  Chris interviews Benoit Felten, cofounder of Diffraction Analysis.  The two discuss Stokab, the municipal fiber network created over sixteen years ago by the city of Stockholm.  Benoit has authored a detailed case study of the network, and he shares the story with us.  Benoit and Chris discuss the ripple effect of the network, and lessons learned from this world-class municipal infrastructure.  Now, to Chris and Benoit.

00:48:

Christopher Mitchell:  I'm here talking with Benoit Felten, with Diffraction Analysis -- cofounder of Diffraction Analysis -- who has written a number of important research papers, some of which we've discussed before on other shows.  Benoit, it's good to see you again.

01:03:

Benoit Felten:  Hello.  It's good to see you too.

01:06:

Chris:  I think the last time we were on a show together, we were talking about bandwidth caps, and there was a paper that put you on the map for a number of people.  The lunacy of them, I guess.

01:16:

Benoit:  I think the issue is still around.  But, yeah.  [laughs]

01:19:

Chris:  Right.  Right.  Yeah.  Unfortunately, we don't change things just by making a strong, factual case against them.  But I wanted to talk today about a network in Sweden that has had a lot of attention over the years.  And you've published an excellent case study of it, that is available to everyone.  And so we'll talk about that in a minute.  But first, can you tell us a little bit about what Diffraction Analysis does?

01:44:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for this transcript of Episode 20 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Amalia Deloney of the Center for Media Justice discusses how Internet access relates to social justice. Listen to this episode here.

00:12:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, a production of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and muninetworks.org .  I'm Lisa Gonzalez.

This is our 20th episode.  Christopher Mitchell interviews Amalia Deloney, Associate Director at the Center for Media Justice.  Amalia and Christopher discuss how access to the Internet has become a necessity for all income levels.  She explains the reasons why corporate deals involving the drive to control spectrum have been a big concern to her organization.  Many lower-income segments of the population have only one option to get online: cell phones.  Christopher and Amalia also discuss some of the other campaigns taken on by the Center, and how those campaigns relate to our broadband and social justice policies.  Here are Chris and Amalia.

00:56:

Christopher Mitchell:  Amalia Deloney, thank you so much for coming on the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  You're the Associate Director at the Center for Media Justice.  Can you tell us more about your background, and what you do at the Center -- at CMJ?

01:10:

Amalia Deloney:  That's right.  Well, thanks for having me on.  It's really exciting.  And podcasts are so cool.  You guys are cool.  You're doing cutting-edge technology.

01:19:

Chris:  Thanks.

01:20:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for the transcript of Episode 22 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Jason Grey discusses the history of nDanville and how the open access model has worked in Danville Virginia. Listen to this episode here.

00:15:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, there.  Welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, brought to you by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

This is our 22nd episode, and we take you to Danville, Virginia.  Many of you know that Danville is known as a community broadband success story.  Danville has evolved from a fading tobacco and textile town to a vibrant high-tech hub, thanks to the broadband infrastructure.  Christopher talks with Jason Grey, Broadband Network Manager for nDanville, the city's next-generation network.  The two spoke at the Community Fiber Networks Conference in Danville on November 8th and 9th.  Chris and Jason have a few moments to discuss the details of what the network has done for the community.  Here are Chris and Jason.

00:54:

Chris Mitchell:  Jason Grey, thank you so much for joining me for the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  We're here at the -- at a conference that I think you actually helped set up, right?

01:03:

Jason Grey:  That's correct.

01:03:

Chris:  Why don't you tell us a little bit about this conference and what's going on first?

01:06:

Jason:  Well, it's a regional conference of broadband communities, as organized with the city of Danville, Virginia.  We've been organizing for six months now.  It's their first economic development conference, of a series of conferences.

01:23:

Chris:  Great.  And why do they come to Danville?  What's Danville like?

01:26:

Jason:  The story of Danville piqued their interest.  Not only our fiber optic network -- our open access fiber optic network -- but our story of Danville being a tobacco and textile town that has lost those industries and is now trying to transform into a new industry and new city.

01:47:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript of Episode 162 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  Chris interviews David Talbot, a Fellow at Harvard's Berman Center, about the report on Holyoke, Massachusetts. Listen to this episode here.

00:05:

David Talbot:  So, I just think it's like anything else.  I mean, people know what they know, and to do something that seems completely different is just -- it can be hard to get off the mark and do that.

00:15:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello again.  This is the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

David Talbot, a Fellow at Harvard's Berkman Center joins Chris this week to discuss their most recent report about the community of Holyoke, Massachusetts.  The report goes into how the community built its municipal network, how it has capitalized on the asset for savings and economic development, and it offers valuable suggestions for other communities with an interest in municipal networks.  We encourage you to download and read the full report, at cyber.law.harvard.edu.  Now, here to talk about Holyoke, Massachusetts; municipal broadband networks; and the new Berkman report is Chris, and David Talbot.

01:01:

Chris Mitchell:  Welcome to another edition of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  I'm Chris Mitchell.  Today, I'm speaking with David Talbot, a Fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, at Harvard [pronounced Haa-vaad] University.  Welcome to the show.

01:16:

David Talbot:  Thanks, Chris.  I appreciate it.  And that was good on the "Haa-vaad."

01:20:

Chris:  [laughs]  I understand you have a paak there.

01:22:

David:  Yeah, we do.  We have a couple of paaks, and we put the caas over there, yeah.

01:26:

Chris:  And you're running a project called the Municipal Fiber Initiative.  Now, for people who aren't aware, Harvard is a university, I believe.  Right?

01:35:

David:  That is correct.

01:36:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for the transcript of Episode 161 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Chris speaks with Tim Roiniotis about Longmont's NextLight gigabit municipal fiber network in Colorado. Listen to this episode here.

00:06:

Tom Roiniotis:  You don't measure the success of a muni broadband network by looking at the financial books of the utility that's providing it.  If we were simply to just barely cover our costs, yet be able to bring this kind of capability to the city, we would be achieving our goals.

00:23:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello.  This is the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  I'm Lisa Gonzalez.

We've written many times about Longmont, Colorado, as it has developed its municipal network.  This week, Chris talks with Tom Roiniotis, who is now the General Manager of Longmont Power & Communications.  Longmont voters decided in 2013 to bond, in order to speed up expansion of their fiber-to-the-home network to the entire community.  Since then, LPC has been amazed by the demand, and has come up with all sorts of creative ways to keep the momentum going.  Tom shares some history and a few of Longmont's strategies to get the whole town wired.  Now here is Chris and Tom Roiniotis.

01:07:

Chris Mitchell:  Welcome to another edition of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  I'm Chris Mitchell.  Today I'm speaking with Tom Roiniotis, the General Manager of Longmont Power & Communications.  Welcome to the show.

01:20:

Tom Roiniotis:  Hi, Chris.

01:22:

Chris:  It's great to have you on.  I've been out there.  I think I've actually visited you.  I have a hat looking at me right now from Longmont Power.  It's -- you've got a wonderful community out there.

01:31:

Tom:  Well, thank you.  We've got to get you, now, a new LextLight hat with our new logo ...

01:36:

Chris:  Yes!

01:36:

Tom:  ... emblazoned across the top.  Yeah.

01:38:

Chris:  Yeah.  I would definitely like that.  Why don't you -- for people who aren't familiar, tell us a little bit about Longmont, and what you're doing.

01:45:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for Episode 24 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Dr. Michael Browder explains how Bristol, Tennesee built its own gigabit FTTH network. Listen to this episode here.

00:15:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hi, there, and welcome once again to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, produced by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

For our 24th episode, we contacted Dr. Michael Browder, CEO of Bristol Tennessee Essential Services.  Earlier this month, BTES announced that it was among the growing number of municipal broadband networks that now offer 1-gig service.  We offer congrats to BTES on this achievement.  But it's actually BTES's customers who come out the winners.  Dr. Browder shares the history of the network, and talks about some of the amazing ways local schools and businesses are finding new ways to use the technology.  Let's go now to the interview, and hear more about Bristol Tennessee Essential Services.

00:56:

Chris Mitchell:  This is Chris Mitchell, with Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  And I'm talking today with Dr. Browder, with Bristol Tennessee Essential Services.  Dr. Browder, thank you for coming on the show.

01:10:

Dr. Michael Browder:  Thank you.

01:11:

Chris:  Can you tell us a little bit about Bristol -- Bristol, Tennessee?

01:17:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for Episode 23 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Harold Feld of Public Knowledge talks about telecommunication policy and the reality of antitrust enforcement. Listen to this episode here.

00:15:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, brought to you by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

For our 23rd episode, we visit with Harold Feld.  Harold is the Senior Vice President of Public Knowledge.  Public Knowledge is one of the leading organizations dedicated to the ** of an open Internet, copyright protections, and telecommunications law.  Harold is also the author of his blog, "Tales of the Sausage Factory."  Harold and Chris discuss the economic realities of antitrust enforcement, and how it has inspired AT&T to invest in its network.  The two also discuss current communications policy and regulation from a historical perspective.  They talk about the hurdles that will need to be scaled for effective policy moving forward.  Here are Chris and Harold.

01:00:

Chris Mitchell:  Harold Feld, you are the Senior Vice President of Public Knowledge.  Thank you so much for coming on Community Broadband Bits.

01:08:

Harold Feld:  Thanks for having me.

01:09:

Chris:  I was actually on a Public Knowledge podcast with Michael Weinberg -- a year ago, I believe -- and it was a good discussion.  Can you tell us what Public Knowledge does?

01:18:

Harold:  Public Knowledge is a digital rights advocacy group.  We're based in Washington, DC.  What we try to do is make sure the public has a seat at the table for the very important policy discussions that shape our digital future.  So, that means trying to fight for sensible copyright policies, that don't allow the content holders to overreach and shut down people's rights online.  And don't interfere with the development of new technologies.  But we also care very much about making sure that everybody has access to broadband, and in a way that the companies providing it can't censor, and ensuring that it's affordable.  So we're very active on broadband issues as well.

01:59:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for Episode 28 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast. Bruce Kushnick of the New Networks Institute on the history of big telecom. Listen to this episode here.

00:15:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Hello, and welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, brought to you by the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

In our 28th episode, we talk to Bruce Kushnick, Executive Director of the New Networks Institute.  Bruce has been a telecom analyst for over 29 years, and is heavily involved in consumer advocacy through Teletruth.  Bruce is a regular blogger in the Huffington Post, and his articles run in a variety of syndicated publications.  He's been described as the Ralph Nader of the telecom set.  Bruce looks back at the modern history of telecommunications.  He explains how the large telecommunications giants made promises to bring broadband to all of us.  Bruce goes on to describe where things went wrong, how promises were broken, and how many of us will never receive services we've already paid for many times over.  Here are Chris and Bruce.

01:03:

Christopher Mitchell:  I'm here today with Bruce Kushnick, the Executive Director of New Networks.  Thanks for coming on this show, Bruce.

01:09:

Bruce Kushnick:  Thanks for having me.

01:11:

Chris:  I first became of your work, I think, probably about 4.5, 5 years ago, right around the time I was starting.  And I looked at one of your books that you have available.  And my first thought was, this can't be true.  It can't be true that the telephone companies have ripped off America to this extent, and nobody knows about it.  And so that's why I wanted to have you on the show today, to talk about your -- the research that you've done over many years, and what the telephone companies have done to our country.

01:44: