Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 142 of the Community Broadband bits podcast with Brit Fontenot, David Fine, and Anthony Cochenour on the Bozeman Fiber Initiative. Listen to this episode here.

00:08:

David Fine:  But, I think, for a lot of these startup businesses, they're just suffering -- there's a big gap between, you know, fiber-delivered broadband services that they can get and then everything else in the market, as far as the service that they can get.  And I think that's where this network comes in.

00:22:

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

Many of us dream of living in regions surrounded by natural beauty, such as mountain communities, the open range, or lush forests.  Unfortunately, these geographies are not necessarily rife with broadband networks.  A growing number of these communities are organizing to take control of their situations and invest in fiber networks for economic development.  In Bozeman, Montana, a group of community leaders, businesses, and residents have moved beyond an idea, to work toward better connectivity.  In this podcast, Chris touches base with several guests in Bozeman: Brit Fontenot, the City of Bozeman Economic Director; David Fine, City Economic Development Specialist and Project Manager for the Bozeman Fiber Initiative; and Anthony Cochenour, who is President of local Hoplite Industries.  In addition to being a local business leader, Anthony is also working on the Bozeman Fiber Initiative.  In this discussion, Brit, David, and Anthony describe how they've moved from vision to reality.  They talk about their inclusive approach to keep providers engaged, and they discuss their long-term plan for the network.

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 50 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast, in which Christopher and Lisa respond to arguments against municipal networks. Listen to this episode here.

00:22:

Chris Mitchell:  We have a special edition of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast this week.  We're going to be responding to common arguments that we hear from the other side, typically from the cable and telephone guys.  And so, Lisa, you and I are going to be listening to a few of these arguments that they make, and we're going to offering our thoughts on them.

00:41:

Lisa Gonzalez:  So, Christopher goes to all sorts of conferences and different panel discussions all over the country.  And he gets the opportunity to talk to a lot of different people and hear a lot of different interesting conversations.  So, this first statement that we wanted to talk about deals with the amount of coverage that ....

01:04:

Chris:  Right.

01:04:

Lisa:  ... in broadband.  Right Chris?

01:05:

Chris:  And last year, I was in Wisconsin, for the WiscNet conference.  And I heard a claim that I've heard just about everywhere I've gone.  And so, we'll lead off with one of the big lobbyists in Wisconsin for the telephone companies.

01:22:

Lisa:  OK.

01:24:

Audio clip:  Um.  I'm Bill Esbeck.  I'm the Executive Director of the Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association.  Almost all of our member companies have 100 percent broadband availability in their local service territories.  And, statewide, there's, you know, somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of the most difficult customers to serve that may not have a broadband connection from the local phone company.

01:53:

Lisa:  So, is that right, Chris?  Would you say that there's about 100 percent of people in Wisconsin who have access to broadband?

01:57:

Chris:  Well, he said, of his member companies, of the trade association that he represents.

02:03:

Lisa:  Ah, yes.  Very important distinction.

02:05:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 51 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Christie Batts of Clarksville's municipal fiber network in Tennessee. Listen to this episode here.

00:21:

Lisa Gonzalez:  Thank you for joining us for another Community Broadband Bits Podcast, from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  This is Lisa Gonzalez.

This time, we reach out to another gigabit community: Clarksville, Tennessee.  CDE Lightband joined the growing list of municipal networks who offer 1-gig service this spring.  And it's even taken on a residential 1-gig user.  Chris talks with Christie Batts, Broadband Division Manager, who provided info about benefits to the community and challenges the network faced along the way.  This community, filled with military personnel and college students, faces some unique circumstances that influence the network and the utility.  Here's Chris, visiting with Christie Batts from CDE Lightband.

01:01:

Chris Mitchell:  Welcome to another episode of Community Broadband Bits.  Today, we're talking with Christie Batts, the Broadband Division Manager at the Clarksville Department of Electricity, in Tennessee.  We're going to be dealing with folks in the central time zone of Tennessee, as opposed to an Eastern Time zone.  In the past, we've talked with folks from Chattanooga, from Bristol, and from Morristown.  So, welcome to this show, Christie.

01:29:

Christie Batts:  Thank you.  I'm glad to be here.

01:31:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 141 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast on our reaction to the FCC decisions on community network barriers and network neutrality. Listen to this episode here.

00:08:

Chris:  We're not always going to have an FCC that's this good.  And so, I hope we can both get what we can out of it, but also need to recognize that we need to still have local control over the networks, so we're not just depending on the FCC to protect us.

00:23:

Lisa:  Hey, there, everybody.  Welcome to the Community Broadband Bits Podcast.  Today, Chris and I have switched roles a little bit.  He's been traveling all over the country lately.  He's going to tell us a little bit about his travels lately.  And the first place that he went to -- and I'm sure that everybody is not surprised to hear this -- he was in DC.  And, Chris, what were you doing there?

00:46:

Chris:  Well, I was able to attend the open meeting of the Federal Communications Commission, where they discussed the muni petitions from Chattanooga and Wilson, as well as the net neutrality decision.  And I was actually in the room, watching it unfold.  It was pretty incredible.

01:03:

Lisa:  Yeah.  Yeah.  I watched a little bit -- well, I watched the whole thing, actually, from afar.  But tell us a little bit about that.  Describe what it was like.  What did it feel like?

01:13:

Chris:  Well, it felt quite historic.  And it also felt really fun, because I was sitting next to Bill Vallee and Harold Feld -- sitting between the two of them.  And I think they're two of the best senses of humor in our line of work.  So ...

01:26:

Lisa:  Oh, God.  Harold's tweets were hilarious.

01:29:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 52 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Harold Feld. Listen to this episode here.

00:20:

Lisa:  Hello.  This is Lisa Gonzalez, from the Institute for Local Self-Reliance.  Welcome to another episode of our Community Broadband Bits Podcast.

In episode 52, we visit once again with Harold Feld, Senior Vice President of Public Knowledge.  Harold is well-known for his extensive work on telephone and broadband issues that impact consumers.  This time, Chris and Harold talk about events in Fire Island, New York, and Barrier Island, New Jersey.  Both communities were hit hard by Hurricane Sandy over six months ago.  And both are still waiting for telephone and Internet connections to be restored.  Verizon has decided it is not longer interested in offering telephone service via traditional copper wires.  The company has filed an application with the FCC to, instead, integrate its inferior VoiceLine service.  As Chris and Harold discuss, this situation could determine U.S. communications policy as we move forward.  Here are Chris and Harold with the details.

01:14:

Chris:  Welcome to another episode of Community Broadband Bits.  Today, we're back with Harold Feld, in DC, with Public Knowledge.  Harold, can you remind us, what is -- what Public Knowledge does?

01:26:

Harold:  Thank you.  So, Public Knowledge, we're a nonprofit in Washington, DC.  We're a digital advocacy group, and believe in everybody's right to access information online in a meaningful way, without gatekeepers or either government or private corporate intermediaries.

01:47:

Chris:  In addition to all of the great resources you have available at publicknowledge.org , you also write a blog that's semi-famous -- it's totally famous in our telecom world -- "Tales From the Sausage Factory."  So, I encourage people to check that out.  I don't think we noted it last time.

02:02:

Harold:  Yes.  Thank you very much.

02:05:

Thanks to Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 53 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Mike Litterer on the muni fiber initiative in Waverly, Iowa. Listen to this episode here.

Thanks Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 140 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Randy Klindt on Co-Mo Cooperative's fiber-to-the-home project in Missouri. Listen to this episode here.

00:08:

Randy Klindt:  And we're saving everybody, on average, around $20 to $25 per month.  And when this project is complete, that's about $1 [million] to $1.5 million a year of disposable income put back into our members' pockets that they can spend on other things.

00:25:

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

Many people think that Google Fiber in Kansas City has the top average speed in Missouri.  Well, in 2014, Ookla ranked Tipton, with approximately 3,200 people, as number one.  This rural town was also ranked 18th in the U.S., all thanks to its local electric provider, Co-Mo Cooperative.  The electric cooperative, located in the center of Missouri, began in 1939 to bring electricity to rural farmers.  Co-Mo Cooperative is on-track to provide Internet access via next-generation fiber to all its members for a large swath of rural central Missouri.  In Episode 140, Chris talks with Randy Klindt, General Manager of Co-Mo Connect, the triple-play service available from the utility in the Tipton area.  Randy's description of the Co-Mo Connect network echoes what we've heard from other cooperatives.  A community-minded approach that focuses on including both town and rural properties.  As more electric cooperatives answer rural demands to provide broadband access, successful cooperatives, such as Co-Mo, can pass on lessons learned to ease the way for others.

Each week, we bring you the latest on municipal networks and telecommunications through the Community Broadband Bits Podcast, without annoying advertisements.  Please take a moment to go to ilsr.org and click on the orange "donate" button.  Or click on "donate" at muninetworks.org .  Every contribution is appreciated.

Now, here are Chris and Randy, talking about Co-Mo Cooperative's fiber-to-the-home project.

02:08:

Thanks Jeff Hoel for providing the transcript for the episode 137 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Jeff Gavlinski on the Mountain Connect Internet conference in Colorado. Listen to this episode here. 

00:08:

Jeff Gavlinski:  We'll never lose our focus, as a base, in terms of talking about how do we fix our rural infrastructure issues.  But we need to also be cognizant of the fact that we have broadband issues in our metro areas as well.

00:23:

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

If you've been paying attention to community broadband lately, you know that Colorado is one of the busiest places for municipal networks, and one of the places where local communities are taking the necessary steps to regain local authority.  Colorado is also home to Mountain Connect, a broadband conference that draws people from all over Colorado, and even from surrounding states.  Chris has presented at the conference, and describes it as one of his favorite events.  This week, he speaks with co-chair, Jeff Gavlinski, who shares the story how the event has grown to include topics beyond the original focus, which was rural connectivity.  Jeff provides information on the upcoming conference, which is scheduled for June 7th-9th in Vail.  Jeff also gives us an in-the-trenches perspective on Colorado's existing state barriers.  Currently, local governments face too much uncertainty to take any steps, even in creating partnerships with private entities.

We bring you the Community Broadband Bits Podcast ad-free each week.  But we need your support.  Please consider contributing to our work.  It's easy.  Go to ilsr.org and click on the orange "donate" button.  Every little bit helps.

Now, here's Chris and Jeff Gavlinski from Mountain Connect.

01:51:

Thanks Jeff Hoel for proving the transcript for the episode 136 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast with Dan Dorman on non-metro Minnesota's need for high speed Internet connectivity. Listen to this episode here.

00:08:

Dan Dorman:  With some of my more conservative former members that say it's a private free market, I generally try to remind them, you know, if you're going to have a free market -- and you believe in the free market -- you have to have at least three competitors.  And in most places in Greater Minnesota, there's one.

00:23:

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

Our guests often include CIOs, municipal utility managers, or other people with extensive technical expertise.  Well, this week, Chris interviews a leader in economic development advocacy.  Dan Dorman is a business owner and Executive Director of the Greater Minnesota Partnership.  He's also served as a member of the state legislature.  Dan's unique perspective gives him insight into the needs of Minnesota businesses.  And at the top of that list is better connectivity.  Working as an elected official at the state level, Dan also saw the influence of big cable and telecom lobbyists.  Chris and Dan discuss the Greater Minnesota Partnership and the critical need for better connectivity in the parts of the state beyond the urban center.  They address the challenge that lawmakers face.  And Dan offers suggestions for improving connectivity, including creating an environment where municipalities are allowed to step in and serve local communities.

The Community Broadband Bits Podcast is a weekly advertisement-free service from ILSR.  Please consider contributing to our efforts.  Go to ilsr.org and click on the orange "donate" button.

Now, here are Chris and Dan Dorman, from the Greater Minnesota Partnership.

01:46: