stimulating broadband adoption

8/2/2019 Stimulating Broadband Adoption

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Stimulating BroadbandAdoption in Delaware:A Planning ToolDecember 2011

authorsAndrew HomseyTheodore PattersonTodd OBoyle

assistant

Margaret Coleman

principal investigator/project leaderDouglas Tuttle

Institute for Public Administration

School of Public Policy & Administration

College of Arts & Sciences

University of Delaware

www.ipa.udel.eduserving the public good, shaping tomorrows leaders

published in coordination with and funded through

State of Delaware Department of Technology and Information

www.dti.delaware.gov


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StimulatingBroadbandAdoptioninDelaware:APlanningTool December2011

i

Preface

AsDirectoroftheInstituteforPublicAdministration(IPA)attheUniversityofDelaware,I

ampleasedtoprovidethisreport,StimulatingBroadbandAdoptioninDelaware:APlanning

Tool.Thisresearchispartofamulti-phaseeffortundertakenbyIPAundercontractwiththeDelawareDepartmentofTechnologyandInformation(DTI)throughagrantfromthe

NationalTelecommunicationsandInformationAdministration(NTIA).NTIAisan

executivebranchorganizationthatfocusesonadvancingtheadoptionofInternet

broadbandaccessnationwide,withparticularattentiontodisparitiesinaccess,inorderto

fostergrowthandinnovation.

WhileDelawarehasenjoyedveryhighconnectivityandbroadbandspeedscomparedto

otherstatesnationwide,thisaccessisnotuniformacrossthestate.Thisdisparity,known

asthedigitaldivide,isparticularlypronouncedbetweenthenorthernportionofthestatetheurbanizedcorridornorthoftheC&DCanalandthesouthernportions,

particularlyinKentandSussexCounties.Inthislatterregionprovisionandadoptionof

broadbandhasbeenlimited,andsomeareascompletelylackadequateoptionsforhigh-

speedInternetaccess.Inadditiontogeographicfactorsaffectingtheadoptionof

broadband,therearedemographicfactorsthatalsocanhaveanegativeeffectonadoption.

Increasingly,theworldwillbedividedintothetechnologicalhavesandhave-nots,a

situationthatwillplacethosewithoutaccesstothepowerandresourcesofferedbyrobust

Internetaccessatacompetitivedisadvantage.Inmanyaspectsofpeopleslives,including

business,medicine,education,andgovernment,thenegativeeffectsofthisdisadvantagewillbeincreasinglypronounced.Theresearchhereattemptstoframetheissues

associatedwithdifferentialsinbroadbandadoptionrates,andpinpointtheareasofthe

statewhereproblemsexist.

PartofIPAsservicemissioninthestateofDelawareistoassistlocalgovernmentsto

bettermeettheneedsofconstituents,businessestogrow,andcommunitiestoprosper.

Broadbandaccessisincreasinglybecomingacriticalfactortowardthisend.Wehave

soughttoframethisissueforDelawareansbyprovidingmodelsandcasestudies,

identifyingphysicalanddemographicbarriers,anddevelopingspecificstrategiesthatcanbeappliedindifferingcircumstances.Ihopethatwecanmakearealdifferencein

Delawareandplayapartinexpandingprovisionoffast,reliable,anduniversalbroadband

accesstopositionourstateforcurrentandfuturechallenges.

JeromeR.Lewis,Ph.D.

Director,InstituteforPublicAdministration


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InstituteforPublicAdministration

TheInstituteforPublicAdministration(IPA)preparedthisreport.AunitwithintheCollege

ofArts&SciencesSchoolofPublicPolicy&AdministrationattheUniversityofDelaware,

IPAlinkstheresearchandresourcesoftheUniversitywiththemanagementandinformationneedsoflocal,state,andregionalgovernmentsintheDelawareValley.IPA

providesassistancetoagenciesandlocalgovernmentsthroughdirectstaffsupportand

researchprojectsaswellastrainingprogramsandpolicyforums.IPAsAndrewHomsey,

ToddO'Boyle,andTedPattersonwereinvolvedwiththeresearchandwritingofthis

report,withassistancefromMaggieColeman.

InstituteDirector

JeromeR.Lewis,Ph.D.

ProjectTeam

AndrewR.Homsey,AssociatePolicyScientist

TheodorePatterson,AssistantPolicyScientist

ToddOBoyle,ResearchAssistant

MargaretColeman,ResearchAssistant

EditorialReview

MarkDeshon,AssistantPolicyScientist

Acknowledgements

Thisstudywasmadepossiblethroughthegeneroussupportandguidanceofpersonnel

fromtheDelawareDepartmentofTechnologyandInformation(DTI)underagrantfrom

theNationalTelecommunicationsandInformationAdministration(NTIA).

ToddOBoyleperformedthebackgroundandframeworkresearchonthetechnicalaspects

ofbroadbandandpolicyapproachesforencouragingitsadoption.AndrewHomseywas

theprimarydeveloperofthequantitativeanalysismethodologyofthemappingoffactors

relatingtobroadbandadoptioninDelaware.SpecialthanksgotoIPAsDougTuttlefor

guidanceandprojectleadershipandTedPatterson,whohelpedwithmuchoftheproject

design,writing,andediting.


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TableofContents

IntroductionandOverview:IPAsRoleinIncreasingBroadbandCapacityin

Delaware..................................................................................................................................................1

StructureoftheBroadbandPlanningToolDocument......................................................................3

Chapter1.GettingtheMostOutofBroadband...........................................................................4

TheLastMileisActually4Problems2Technical,1Educational,1Economic..............5

HowMuchCanBroadbandActuallyDoforYourCommunity?....................................... ..............6

DifferentTechnologies,DifferentNeeds.................................................................................................7

DoesntWirelessInternetSolvetheLast-MileProblem?........................................... ..............7

SatelliteBroadband..................................................................................................................................7

DigitalSubscriberLine(DSL)...............................................................................................................8

CableInternet..............................................................................................................................................8FiberOptics..................................................................................................................................................9

Public-SectorInvolvementinBroadband:Federal,State,andLocal......................................10

FederalPolicy............................................................................................................................................10

StateandInterurbanPolicyInitiatives......................................... ............................................ .....11

MarylandBroadbandCooperative........................................... ............................................ .....11

UTOPIA..................................................................................................................................................12

MunicipalCaseStudies........................................... ............................................ ...................................12

BristolOptinet...................................................................................................................................13

WilsonGreenlight....................................... ............................................ ..........................................13

ChattanoogaEPB..............................................................................................................................14

PickingtheRightApproach......................................... ............................................ ...................................14

AligningGoals,Technology,andPolicy......................................... ............................................ .....15

Livability......................................................................................................................................................15

JobCreation................................................................................................................................................15

Incentives........................................ ............................................ ............................................. ............15

Public-PrivateCooperative..........................................................................................................16

PublicProvision................................................................................................................................16

BlendingJobsandCommunityDevelopment........................................... ...................................16

ConcludingThoughts....................................... ............................................. ............................................ .....16

Chapter2.FactorsAffectingtheAdoptionofBroadbandinDelaware............................18

Introduction......................................................................................................................................................18

FactorsRelatingtotheAdoptionofBroadband...................................... ..........................................20

PhysicalConnectedness......................................... ............................................ ...................................20

ConnectednessDataLayers......................................... ............................................ ....................21


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Demographics...........................................................................................................................................23

DemographicsDataLayers..........................................................................................................24

LevelofService.........................................................................................................................................25

Level-of-ServiceDataLayers....................................... ............................................ ....................27

Validation...........................................................................................................................................................29

Appendices...........................................................................................................................................30

Appendix1:FinalMapsShowingPredictedLikelihoodofBroadbandAdoption..............31

MapA1PhysicalConnectedness...................................................................................................31

MapA2DemographicFactors........................................................................................................32

MapA3LevelofService.....................................................................................................................33

Appendix2:UsingthePlanningToolCaseStudies.......................................... ...........................34

Introduction...............................................................................................................................................34

Strategies.....................................................................................................................................................35

StatusQuo............................................................................................................................................35AggregationofDemand.......................................... ............................................ ...........................35

BroadbandCooperatives........................................ ............................................ ...........................35

LocalNetworkandInfrastructureProvision............................................ ...........................36

Scenarios.....................................................................................................................................................36

DowntownWilmingtonUrbanAccessDesert....................................... ...........................36

WesternKentCountyRuralIsolation........................................ ..........................................42

Seaford,DelawareSmall-TownPotential......................................... ..................................47

Appendix3:PotentialFundingSources...................................... ............................................. ............53

CommunityConnectRuralBroadbandGrantProgram...................................... ....................53

DistanceLearningandTelemedicineProgram(DLT)......................................... ....................54

FarmBillLoanProgam........................................... ............................................ ...................................55

TelecommunicationsInfrastructureLoanProgram...................................... ...........................56

UniversalServiceRuralHealthCarePilotProgram...................................... ...........................56

UniversalServiceSchoolsandLibrariesProgram......................................... ...........................57

References............................................................................................................................................58


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IntroductionandOverview:IPAsRolein

IncreasingBroadbandCapacityin

DelawareInmid-December2009,thestateofDelawarewasawardedfundstoresearchandpublish

broadbandoptionsforitscitizens.GovernorJackMarkelldesignatedtheDepartmentof

TechnologyandInformation(DTI)astheagencytoreceive,apply,andimplementthe

funds,accordingtotheguidelinesandmandatesoftheNationalTelecommunicationsand

InformationAdministration(NTIA).

In2010thebroadband-mappingportionofthisprogramwasinitiatedbyDTI,consistingof

datacollection,thedevelopmentofastatewidebroadband-availabilitymap,transmission

ofthosedatatoNTIAforthedevelopmentofitsnationalbroadbandmap,andthelong-

termmaintenanceofthesedatabythestate.TheUniversityofDelawaresInstitutefor

PublicAdministration(IPA)isassistingDTIwithproject-datacollection,publicoutreach,

andpublicpolicydevelopmentthatincludesthefollowing:

DelawareBroadbandMapThemappingwebsitewaslaunchedbyDTIinspring2011.Gotobroadband.delaware.govtolocateplacesinDelawarethatofferpublic

InternetaccessandlearnaboutInternetaccessinDelaware.

CommunityAnchorInstitution(CAI)InventoryCAIsarepotentialpublicInternet-accesslocationssuchaslibraries,seniorcenters,schools,andhospitals.IPAconductsaCAIinventorytwiceayeartofindnewCAIs,gainmoreinformationaboutCAIs,and

providethepublicwithinformationaboutwheretogotoaccessahigher-quality

Internetconnection.

BroadbandPlanningToolThebroadbandplanningtoolwillseektoquantify,andmakespatiallyexplicit,thefactorsthatencourageorinhibitwideradoptionofhigh-

speedInternetaccess.Thetoolwillconsistofspatiallyexplicitinformationthatserves

toidentifytheviabilityofhigh-speedInternetconnectivityacrossthestateofDelaware

basedonphysical,demographic,andeconomicfactors.Measuresaregroupedintothree

separateandindependentcategories:

PhysicalConnectedness(howphysicallyconnectedalocationistoexistinginfrastructure,populationcenters,orprojectedgrowthareas)


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DemographicRiskFactors(howatriskanareaistonotadoptingbroadbandtechnologiesbasedoncharacteristicssuchasage,educationlevel,income,etc.)

LevelofService(thedegreetowhichbroadbandisavailable,affordable,andofsufficientspeedtoenableapopulationtotakefulladvantageofInternet-based

resources)

Togetherthesemeasureswillformapictureofthedegreetowhichbroadband

adoptionisfacilitatedordeterredbythesefactors.Dependingonthescoreswithineach

category,thepreferredstrategytoaddresstheproblemofbridgingthedigitaldivide

willvary.

TechnologyPlanningTeamsTheBroadbandDataImprovementActauthorizesgrantstocreateandfacilitatelocaltechnologyplanningteams.TheStateofDelaware

hasidentifiedthreebroadbandusergroupstobetargetedlocalgovernments,smallbusinesses,andagriculture.

IPAisengagingrepresentativesofeachofthesethreegroups,who,asmembersof

technologyplanningteams,willhelptoidentify:

Issuesaffectingthedeploymentandfulluseofbroadband.

Broadbandbestpracticesfortheircommunityofinterest.

Potentialprojectsforexpandingtheuseanddeploymentofbroadbandinthesecommunities.

Anyoneinterestedinparticipatinginthisbroadbandtechnologyplanningendeavoris

encouragedtocontactIPABroadbandProjectteamleaderDougTuttle

([email protected]).

TechnicalAssistanceThiscomponent,startinginfall2011,involvestheprovisionoftechnicalassistancetomunicipalities,nonprofitcommunity-serviceorganizations,and

thesmallbusinesscommunityandisessentialtoexpandingtheawarenessofandengagementwithissuesrelatedtobroadbandavailabilityanduse.IPAwillleverageits

establishedrelationshipswithDelawareslocalgovernments,grant-in-aidrecipients,

andeconomic-developmentagentstobuildahigherunderstandingofbroadband

capabilitiesandneeds.Currentlyavailabledigital-literacyinitiativeswillbeidentified,

catalogued,andevaluated.Enhancedbroadbandeducationprogramswillbedeveloped

throughestablishedpartnershipswithorganizations(e.g.,theDelawareMunicipalWeb


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DevelopersGroup)andwillbemadeavailabletocommunity-supportentitiesthrough

anongoingprogramoftrain-the-trainersessions.Broadbandliteracywillbeexplicitly

incorporatedintotheestablishedprogramsofcertificatetrainingandprofessional

developmentthatIPAprovidesforlocalelectedandappointedofficialsandtheirstaff.

Fielddeploymentofagraduate-levelbroadbandresearchassistantwillresultin

expandeddirect-assistancecapabilitiesthrougheconomiesthataresimilartothose

associatedwiththeAmericorpsVISTAprogram.

StructureoftheBroadbandPlanningToolDocument

TheBroadbandPlanningTool,whichthecurrentdocumentrepresents,includesthe

followingcomponents.

Chapter1.GettingtheMostOutofBroadband framestheissuesrelatedtobroadbandin

Delawarebyexploringthebenefitsofbroadband,comparingavailabletechnologies,and

examiningthechallengestoimprovingconnection.Chapter2.GeospatialAnalysisofthe

FactorsAffectingtheAdoptionofBroadbandinDelawaredescribesandquantifiesthe

factorsthatcontributetobroadbandconnectivityordigitalisolation.

Appendix1providesmapsofthelatestdataavailabletovisualizecommunityhotspots

andcoolspotsofconnectivityacrossDelaware.Appendix2outlineshowtousethe

BroadbandMappingTool.Thetoolenablesplannersandlocalgovernmentofficialsto

evaluatetheirownbroadbandchallengesandopportunities.ItincludesthreeDelaware

broadbandcasestudiesfromacrossthestatetodemonstratehowtoimproveconnectivity.Appendix3listsfederalgrantandloanprogramsavailabletocommunitiesandagencies

acrossthestate.Eachentryintheresourcelistincludesadescriptionofthepurposeof

funding,andqualificationsforeachprogram,alongwithcontactinformation.


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Chapter1:GettingtheMostOutof

Broadband

BroadbandiscriticaltoDelawaresfutureinthe21stcentury.MuchlikethestatesothercrucialphysicalinfrastructurethePortofWilmington,Interstate95,anditsraillinesa

high-qualityandaffordableconnectionfacilitateseconomicdevelopment.Yet,connecting

householdsandbusinesseshasbeenachallengenationallyandglobally.Aminimal

connectionisnolongerenough.Bandwidthiskey.

Whydoesbroadbandmatter?

BusinessFirmsincreasinglyconsiderthelevelofbroadbandwhencitingoperations. WorkforceDevelopmentLibrariesandschoolsmakeuseofqualityconnectionsto

educatetheworkforce.

HelpingtheunemployedManyemployersonlyacceptonlinejobapplications. QualityofLifeForend-users,todayswebapplicationsrequirebroadband

connectionstofunctionproperly.Afastconnectionallowsuserstoconnectwith

distantrelativesviavideoconferencing(e.g.,Skype)oruploadhomemoviestoshare

withgrandparents.Additionally,moreandmoreapplicationsaremovingintothe

Cloud,whichwillrequireevermorebandwidthtostayregionallyandinternationally

competitiveinthenearfuture.Choosingthewrongbroadbandstrategymeansthat

communitieswillnotreapallthebenefitsofbroadbandinvestments.

WhatistheCloud?

TheCloudisanewparadigmforcomputing,whichallowscommoditycomputerswithfast

connectionstoperformhigh-endtasks.IntheCloud,high-capacityservershandlethedata-

intensivetasksandthencommunicatebackwiththeend-userscomputer.Examplesof

Cloud-basedwebapplicationsincludeDropbox,whichkeepsdocumentsinsyncacross

everycomputeryouuse.GoogleusestheCloudtokeepyourcontactsandcalendars

syncronizedbetweenyourphoneandcomputer.MicrosoftiscurrentlytestingaCloud

versionofOfficetoallowteamstocollaborateondocuments.

InruralDelawareorlow-incomeareas,broadbandoftenisnotavailableatall.Wherebroadbandisavailable,consumersusuallyhaveachoiceof,atmost,twoproviders:the

localDigitalSubscriberLine(DSL)orcableInternetprovider.Cabletendstoout-perform

DSL,sothetypicalconsumerhasonlyonetruehigh-speedoption.Clearly,thesearenot

optimalmarketconditions,and,assuch,thepublicandnonprofitsectorshavearoletoplay

inimprovingthedeliveryoftelecommunications.


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TheLastMileisActually4Problems2Technical,1

Educational,1Economic

Physicallywiringhouseholdsandbusinessesisreferredtoaslast-mileservice.This

processiscapital-intensive,sothelast-mileproblemisusuallythoughtofasaneconomicissue.Inreality,thelast-mileproblemrepresentsfourrelatedissues:levelofservice,

technicalcompetency,physicalavailabilityofinfrastructure,andaffordability.Figure1.1

illustrates.

Figure1-1.FourFactorsinthelast-mileproblem

LevelofService(LoS)Istheconnectionfastenough?TheFederalCommunications

Commission(FCC)targetsaminimumof4/1MbpsbandwidthforfunctionalInternetusage

in2010(FCC,2010b).Dataneedsareonlylikelytogrowinthefuture,sothisfigureis

probablyamovingtarget.Communitiesshouldplanforbringinginthehighestbandwidth

feasiblypossible,asdiscussedbelow.

Whydoesupstreambandwidthmatter?Mostsubscriberspayattentiontodownstreambandwidth,whichmeasureshowquickly

userscandownloaddatafromservers.Usersoftenforgetaboutupstreambandwidth,

whichmeasuresthespeedatwhichdatagobackouttothenetwork.Taskslikereal-time

videoconferencing,distancelearning,andtelemedicinerequirequalityupstream

bandwidth.UpstreamneedswillgrowasmoretasksmovetotheCloud.

TheLastMile

LevelofService

TecnicalCompetency

Affordability

PhysicalAvailability


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TechnicalCompetencyDoestheend-userknowenoughaboutusingacomputerto

makethemostofbroadband?Seniorsareoftennottechnologicallysophisticated,and

othertargetcommunitymembersmightwishtousecomputersbutlacktraining.

Fortunately,thereavarietyofresourcesforbothissues.

AffordabilityResearchbythePewFoundationshowsthatthenumberonehurdleto

broadbandadoptionbyconsumerswhohaveaccesstoitiscost(Horrigan,2009,p7).For

thepoor,theupfrontpriceofacomputerisafrequentdeterrent.Manyotherhouseholds

cannotjustifythemonthlyexpense.

PhysicalAvailabilityThisisthetraditionaldefinitionofthelast-mileproblem.Cana

potentialusergetaconnectionthatoffersreasonablespeedatanaffordableprice?

However,themerepresenceofagoodconnectiondoesnotmeanthatthecommunitywill

getthemostoutofbroadband.

HowMuchCanBroadbandActuallyDoforYour

Community?

Inthepast20years,politicians,technologyenthusiasts,andinvestorshaveweighedinon

thepoweroftheInternet.TherosiestandgloomiestscenariosofhowtheInternetwould

changelifehavethusfarproveninaccurate.However,broadbanddoesplayanimportant

roleinshapingthewaypeopleinteract,conductbusiness,andbecomeinformed.

TheInternetcanplayaninstrumentalroleincommunitydevelopment.Teacherscanuse

theInternettoimproveclassroominstruction.Senior-centeremployeeshavestoriesof

helpingseniorsdiscovervideosoftheirfavoriteoldiesonYouTubeorimmigrantsusing

Skypetoconnectwithrelativesbackhome.

However,intermsofeconomicdevelopment,broadbandonitsowncreatesrelativelyfew

jobs.Thoughthereareanecdotalcasesofcitiestransformedbybroadband,theresearchso

farshowsthatbroadbandimpactseconomicdevelopmentaspartofabroader

developmentstrategythataddressesthetraditionalissuesofqualityschools,reliable

roads,andsoon(see,forexample,Atasoy,2011;Brogan,2009;VanGaasbecketal.,2007;andGillettetal.,2006).


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DifferentTechnologies,DifferentNeeds

Deliveringservicetothelastmileisacomplexproblem.Therearenoeasysolutions.

Differentsectorsandpopulationsofusershavedifferenttechnologyneeds,andso

policymakersshouldconsiderwhattechnologythepublicsectorshouldpromote.

DoesntWirelessInternetSolvetheLast-MileProblem?

Next-generationwirelessInternet,knownas4G,offersonesolution.Theadvantageof

wirelessisthatasubscribercouldpurchaseaconnectionforthehomeandonthego,and

haveaccesstotheInternetviaaUSBmodemattachedtohis/herlaptop.Theservice

marketedas4Gistypicallyoneofseveralcompetingwirelesstechnologies,suchasLTE,

HSPA+,orWiMAX.However,nomatterthewirelesstechnologyused,therearea

numberofcaveats,andwirelessInternetshouldnotbeconsideredapanacea.

Currently,CLEAR,thelargestretailerof4Gservices,offershomeandmobileInternetinthe

WilmingtonareabutnowhereelseinDelaware.CLEARspeedsareroughlycomparableto

ComcastCableInternetinthesamearea.OpenRange,anotherwirelessoperator,hada

similarservicefootprint,butwasmuchlesscompetitive.Table1.2comparestheofferings.

Provider LowTier HigherTier

Comcast 1.5/.384Mbps@$40.95 6/1Mbps@$49.95CLEAR 1.5/.5Mbps@$35.00 6/1Mbps@$45.00

OpenRange 1/.5Mbps@$30.00 1.5-3/1Mbps@$38.95

Table1-2.ComparisonofCLEARandOpenRangetoComcast

Ofnote,CLEARslowertierisonlyforin-homeusage.Tofullyrealizetheadvantagesof

wirelessInternet(specifically,accessanywhereonthego),theuserhastopurchasethe

highertier.Moreover,thesepricesareforadvertisedspeeds.OutsideofCLEARs4G

servicearea,theuserhastocontendwithmuchslower3Gspeeds.Underoptimal

conditions,CLEARoffersuserssufficientbandwidthtoaccomplishbasicInternettaskslike

sharingphotosorwatchingshortvideoclipsonline.Additionally,OpenRangehasrecently

filedforbankruptcy,renderingitsfutureuncertain(Schrader,2011).

SatelliteBroadband

SatellitebroadbandistheonlyoptioninafewareasofruralDelaware.Satelliteproviders

likeHughesofferlowspeedsathighprices.Forthesereasons,plannersaroundthestate

shouldnotprioritizesatelliteservice.


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However,wirelessInternetshouldnotbeviewedasamajordriverofeconomic

development.Data-intensivefirmswillnotrelocatetoacommunitythatonlyhaswireless

Internetavailable.Moreover,wirelessInternetisnotaguaranteedfixforthelast-mile

problem.Aswithothertechnologies,providersmaynotbeinterestedinbuildingout

infrastructureinareaswithlowpopulationdensity.Currently,CLEARhasnotstated

publiclywhenitmightexpandits4GnetworkoutsideoftheWilmingtonarea.Additionally,

andperhapsmostcritically,manywireless-Internetcompanieshaveconsideredcreating

monthlyusagecaps.AsmoreroutinecomputeractivitiesmovetotheCloud,usagecaps

createasignificantbarriertogettingthemostoutofbroadband.Finally,anywireless

broadbandtowerrequireshigh-capacityfiber-opticwiringtoconnectuserstothewider

Internet.

Tosummarizethestrengthsandweaknessesofwirelessbroadband:

PRO CONOffersusersconnectivityonthego Speedsnotsufficienttodriveeconomicdevelopment.Highertiercomparableinpriceandspeedto

cable

Pricemaybeoutofreachformanylower-incomehouseholds.

Mayarrivesoonerthanhigh-speedcableorfiber Nosignfromprivateproviderswhentheywillofferhigh-speedwirelessoutsideofWilmingtonarea.

Table1-3.Strengthsandweaknessesofwirelessbroadband

DigitalSubscriberLine(DSL)

Fromadevelopmentstandpoint,DSLtechnologiesaretheleastattractivebecausetheyare

theslowestandmostdifficulttoupgradetonext-generationspeeds.AnexampleisAT&Ts

U-Verse,whichthecompanymarketsasfiberopticsbutisactuallyahybridfiber-and-DSL

network.U-Versedelivershighthroughput,butthetransitionfromtraditionalDSLto

hybridfiberhasbeenexpensiveandfraughtwithdelays.AT&Thasindicatedsome

ambivalencetowardsexpandingU-Versedeploymentstoareasnotalreadyserved

(Godinez,2010).Therefore,plannersandlocaladministratorsacrossDelawareshouldnot

countonhigh-speedDSLbecomingavailableinthenearterm.Nevertheless,DSLcanmeet

basicdataneeds,andDelawaresseniors,forexample,mayfindDSLsufficientforthe

exchangephotosofgrandchildrenviaemail.However,eventhoughDSLallowsforbasic

websurfingtoday,thatmaychangequickly,ascomplexwebsitesdemandevermore

bandwidth.

CableInternet

CableInternetofferssufficientcapacitytomanylocalnonprofits,smallerbusinesses,and

consumers.UnlikeDSL,cablecanbeupgradedquicklyandaffordablythroughthe

transitiontoanewtechnologyknownasDOCSIS3.Mostmajorcablevendorsalreadyhave


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planstoupgradetoDOCSIS3,inwhichcasepublic-privatepartnershipsandincentives

maybeusefultoacceleratethosedeploymentstoend-users.Aweaknesswithcable,

however,isthatittypicallylagsinupstreamcapacity,makingitapoorfitforreal-time

interaction.

FiberOptics

Businesses,schools,hospitals,andothercommunityanchorinstitutions(CAIs)standto

benefitmostfromfiber-opticconnectionsthatprovidethehighest-bandwidthupstream

anddownstreamspeeds.

Simplyput,qualityfiberopticsofferthegreatesteconomicandcommunitydevelopment

opportunitytolocalgovernmentsthroughoutDelaware.Furthermore,sincefiberoptics

uselighttotransmitdataandnothingtravelsfasterthanthespeedoflight,fiberopticswill

notsoonbedisplacedbyanothertechnology.However,fiberisthemostcapital-intensive.VerizonoffersitsFiOSserviceinDelaware,mostlyinNewCastleCountyandinthebeach

towns.

Togetthemostoutofbroadband,localgovernmentsshouldlookforanyopportunityto

promotefiberopticsintheircommunities.Table4comparesfibertoothertechnology

optionsanddemonstratestherelativestrengthsandweaknessesofeach.Otherbenefitsof

fiberandstrategiestoimprovefiber-opticpenetrationareoutlinedbelow.

Technology Downstream Upstream IdealFit Strengths Weaknesses

Wireless LowtoMed Low Homeuserswhodonotuseupstreambandwidth

GoodchoiceforruralDelaware

Suffersfrominterference;unknowndeploymenttimeframe

Satellite Low Low Geographicallyremotelocaleswherenootheroptionsexist

Ubiquitousavailability

Veryuncompetitiveprices,lowspeeds

DSL LowtoMed Low Cost-consciousconsumerswithminimaldataneeds

Lowprice,goodfornon-data-intensiveapplications

Lowspeeds;difficulttoupgrade

Cable MedtoHigh Med Nonprofits,smallbusinesses,consumers

Goodspeeds,easilyupgraded

Lowupstream;pricemaybeoutofreachforsome

FiberOptics High High Cities BestSpeeds Highcapitalcost

Table1-4.Comparisonofbroadbandtechnologies.


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Public-SectorInvolvementinBroadband:Federal,State,andLocal

FederalPolicy

ComparedtomostotherWesterneconomies,thetelecommunicationsindustryinthe

UnitedStateshasdevelopeduniquely.InseveralcontinentalEuropeannations,for

example,thegovernmentlaidthewiringforInternetconnections.Thepublicsector,in

turn,allowsanyprivateproviderstobuyaccesswholesaleandofferretailservicetolocal

customers.Suchenhancedcompetitionhasloweredpriceandimprovedlevelofservice.

Thisarrangement,knownasopenaccess,allowsmultipleprovidersandensurespro-

consumercompetition.Incontrast,theUnitedStateshastakenamuchmorehands-off

approachtothediffusionofInternetconnections.ResearchattheBerkmanCenterfor

Internet&SocietyatHarvardUniversityhaslinkedopen-accessprovisionswiththehigh

levelofserviceinotherdevelopednationstoAmericasslideasabroadbandleader

(Benkler,2010).Asanexample,AmericanspaymorethanSwedesandBritishcitizens,

whethertheyarebuyinghigh-speedorlow-speedservice(Losey&Li,2010).Evenatthese

relativelyuncompetitiveprices,FCCresearchnotesthatthetypicalAmericanbroadband

consumerpurchasesservicemarketedas7-8Mbpsdownload,buttypicallyonlyrealizes3-

4Mbpsinthroughput(FCC,2010a).TheOrganizationforEconomicCooperationand

Development(OECD)nowrankstheUnitedStates,onceagloballeaderinconnectedness,

the14thmostconnectednation(OECD,2010).

TheObamaadministrationappearsdissatisfiedwiththestatusquoand,asapartoftheAmericanRecoveryandReinvestmentActof2009(ARRAorstimulus),appropriated$7.2

billionforbroadband.Inadditiontothevariousbroadband-mappingprojectsand

BroadbandTechnologyOpportunityProgram(BTOP)grants,thestimuluscalledfora

NationalBroadbandPlan(NBP).

InMarch2010,theFCCreleaseditsNBP,withadetailedlistofpolicyobjectivestoimprove

broadbandpenetrationandspeedsintheUnitedStates.TheFCCproposedatwo-pronged

approach,withonesetofsolutionsforareasthatwillbeeasiertoconnectduetoexisting

infrastructure,andonesetforareasthataremoredifficulttoconnectbecauseof

geographicisolationorlowincome.Thetwinproposalsare,respectively,the1002

initiativeandtheConnectAmericaFund(CAF).The1002initiativeaimstoconnect100

millionhouseholdstoa100/50mbpsconnectionby2020(FCC,2010b).TheCAFsuggests

reformingtheUniversalServiceFund(USF)thatisaddedtophonebills.TheUSFmoneyis

currentlyusedtoconnectschoolsandlibrariesthroughthee-Rateprogram,which

supportstheLifelineandLinkupprogramsthatmaketelephonyavailabletothe


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impoverished.Withlegislativeauthorization,thatmoneycouldbeusedtoprovide

computersandInternetconnectionstothoseinfinancialneed.

WhiletheNBPhasimportantaims,itincludesanumberofprovisionsthatdependupon

Congressionalaction.Atthistime,itisunclearwhetherthecurrentCongresswillfindtime

onthelegislativecalendartoconsiderNBPrecommendationsand,ifso,howtheywould

fare.TheNBPwasmetwithcriticismbyseveralconservativeRepublicans,whotook

controloftheU.S.Housefollowingthe2010elections.Ayearafteritsintroduction,the

NationalBroadbandPlanhasnotachievedmanyofitsgoals.Newsheadlineshavederided

theplanasmovingatdial-upspeed(Romm&Krigman,2011).TheFCCitselfhasstated

publiclyontwooccasionsthatitisdissatisfiedwiththespeedoftheplansimplementation

(Engebretson,2011).GiventhequestionssurroundingtheNationalBroadbandPlan,the

bestexamplestofollowmaycomefromthestates.

StateandInterurbanPolicyInitiatives

ThestoryofAmericanbroadband,however,hasnotbeenoneofuninterruptedlossof

globalposition.States,municipalities,andnonprofitsacrossthenationhavedeveloped

innovativesolutionstodeliverhigh-speedandreasonablypricedtelecommunicationsto

underservedmarkets.Infact,anarrayofpolicytoolsrelevanttoDelawaressituationis

availabletopolicymakersandplanners,afewofwhicharediscussedbelow.

MarylandBroadbandCooperative

JustacrosstheborderinMaryland,outlyingcommunitiesacrossthestatefromFrederick

inWesternMarylandtoSalisburyatthesouthernendoftheDelmarvaPeninsulaworkedtogethertocreateapublic-privatepartnership.TheMarylandBroadbandCooperative

(MdBC)isapublic-privatepartnership,inthatthepublicsectorutilizeslocalandfederal

moneytoinstallInternetbackhaulcapacityandprivateproviderstofostereconomic

development.Backhaulreferstotheconnectionsthatlinkbackboneofthenetworktoits

periphery.

TheMdBCsemphasishasbeenonsolvingthelast-mileproblem.Publicmoneylaysthe

fiber-opticbackbonebetweencommunitiesandmaintrunklines,whileprivateproviders

offerthelast-mileservice.Twenty-sixofthe60memberagenciesareInternetservice

providersthatconnectindividualhomesandbusinesses.Theventurehasbeenaneffective

meansofconnectingrurallocationsinMaryland.Asasignoftheprojectspromise,the

federalgovernmentawardedtheMdBC$115millioninstimulusfundsforbroadband

(MarylandBroadbandCooperative,2010).


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UTOPIA

InUtah,16municipalitiesaroundSaltLakeCitypooledtheirresourcestoinstallalarge

fiber-opticloopconnectingthecities,formingtheUtahTelecommunicationOpen

InfrastructureAgency(UTOPIA).Thesystemisopen-access,andmorethanadozen

providerscompetetoreselltheservicetohomesandbusinesses.Thecompetitive

marketplacehascontainedprices,evenasconsumerspurchasesomeofthehighestspeed

serviceinthecountry.UTOPIAsuccinctlymakesthispointontheirwebpage,advertising

itselftoresidentswiththepitchthat

Sinceyourcommunityownsthenetwork,you'renotdependentonasingleservice

provideryoucanchoosefromUTOPIA'swidevarietyofserviceproviderstobest

meetyourneeds.Andsincethey'recompetingforyourbusiness,yougetthebest

qualityandthebestservices(UTOPIA,n.d.).

MunicipalCaseStudies

Public,nonprofitprovisionisanotheravenueforpolicymakerstoconsider.Underthis

model,thelocalgovernment,oroneofitssubsidiariessuchasautilityauthority,uses

publicmoneytoprovidehigh-qualityserviceonanot-for-profitbasis.Typically,themoney

isintheformofGeneralObligationBonds(GOBs)orCertificatesofParticipation(COPs).

Publicprovisionisappealingforanumberofreasons.Forone,publicnetworksoftenserve

allneighborhoodswithinthecityandcanbeavectorforsimultaneouslypromoting

economicandcommunitydevelopment.Second,asnonprofits,theyaremotivatedby

publicservice,ratherthanshareholdervalue.Assuch,theyareeithercheaperforend-

usersorelseofferhigherlevelofserviceatcomparableprices.Finally,localnetworkskeep

localmoneyinthecommunity.

Nevertheless,publicprovisionisnotwithoutriskandinsomecaseshasresultedin

financialproblemsforthemunicipalityifsubscribershipdoesnotmeetprojections,asin

Burlington,Vt.(Briggs,2011).Moreover,municipalnetworksusuallyfaceoppositionfrom

incumbentfor-profitproviders,astheadministratorsofthePhiladelphia,Pa.,andLafayette

Parish,La.,networksfoundout.InPennsylvania,lobbyistsforthetelecommunications

industryquicklyshepherdedadefactobanonanyfurthercommunitynetworksfollowing

Philadelphiaswirelessinitiative(Blevins,2009).InLouisiana,despiteresidentsvotingin2005tocreateafibernetwork,incumbentproviderBellSouth(nowAT&T)tooktheparish

governmenttocourttohavethevoteoverturnedontechnicalgrounds.Afterseveral

roundsoflegalchallengesandre-votes,servicebecameoperationalinearly2009

(Perlman,2009).


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BristolOptinet

Anexampleofamunicipalbroadbandsuccessstorycomesfromruralsouthwestern

Virginia.Bristol,acitythathadwatcheditscoal-miningeconomydeclineinrecentyears,

hadbeenoperatingafiber-opticnetworkforinternaldata-managementpurposes.

Administratorsbegantohearfromresidentswhowantedaccesstohigh-speedandreliable

data,sothenetworkwasmadeavailabletobusinessesandhouseholds.Optinethasbeen

centraltothecityseconomic-developmentstrategyandhashelpedluremajordefense

contractorstothearea(TheEconomist,2009).Itnowoccupiesa62percentmarketshare

andhasbeensuchasuccessthattheNationalBroadbandPlanevenmakesexplicitmention

ofitandsuggeststhatfederalpolicymakersconsiderlocalmunicipallyoperatednetworks

asaviablepolicytool(FCC,2010b,p.153).

Neighboringcommunitieshavealsobenefited.Inadditiontotheaerospacejobsthat

qualityinformationinfrastructurerecruited,Bristolandsurroundingcountieswon$28

millioninstateandfederalfundingtoexpandOptinetsfiber-opticbackboneacrosstheregion(BVU,2010).

AnunforeseenbenefittothecityfromOptinethasbeeninconsultingwithotherlocal

governmentsonmanagingtheirownmunicipalnetworks.ThetownsofDavidsonand

Mooresville,N.C.,contracteduntilrecentlywithBristolforthemanagementoftheirown

networkMI-Connection(Marusak,2010).

WilsonGreenlight

Wilsonisacommunityof50,000anhoureastofthebustlingTriangleregionofNorth

Carolina.LikeBristol,Wilsonhasseenitsbedrockindustriesoftobaccoandtextilesfalterand,inanefforttoreinvigoratethecity,createdamunicipalfiber-opticnetworkin2008.

CityeldersmodeledtheirGreenlightnetworkonOptinet.Asinothercases,ithasproven

controversial,andthetelecommunicationsindustryhassoughtlegislationrestricting

municipalbroadbandonfouroccasionssincethecityfirstcontemplatedGreenlight.

Speedsstartat10/10Mbpssymmetric(CityofWilson,n.d.).Thisbandwidthismuch

higherthaneitheroftheincumbentproviders,andtheupstreamcapacityisnotable.

Upstreambandwidthiscrucialforreal-timeteleconferencing,distancelearning,

telecommuting,andothernext-generationWebapplications.Thecompetitionhasalsoincreaseditsspeedstoretaincustomers,andhasbeenmuchslowertoraisepricesin

Wilsonthaninsurroundingareaswithlesscompetition.Presently,Greenlights150/150

Mbpsservicetieroffersthehighestspeedinthestate(Moore,2011).Already,Wilsonhas

reportsoffamiliesmovingtothecityjusttohaveaccesstohigherbroadbandspeeds

(Bowman,2011).


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Despitelegislativechallenges,Greenlighthasbeenatremendoussuccess.Around5,700

membershavesignedup,beatingtheirthree-year,30percentmarket-penetrationgoals,

andtheserviceismakinganoperatingataprofityearsaheadofschedule(Moore,2010a,

2010b,2011).ReflectingonGreenlight,WilsoncitymanagerGrantGoingsstated,Well,

youcanttalkaboutjobswithouttalkingabouttheinfrastructurethatbringsthemand

keepsthem.Shortandsimpleadvancedbroadbandiscriticalinfrastructure(Moore,

2011).

ChattanoogaEPB

Inanotherhigh-profilemunicipalnetwork,theChattanoogaElectricPowerBoard

(ChattanoogaEPB)inChattanooga,Tenn.,operatesanetworkthatcurrentlydeliversthe

fastestavailablespeedsinthecountry.Themunicipalutilityofferspackagesofserviceup

to1Gbpsforresidentsandbusinesses.ChattanoogaEPB,asawingofthelocalelectric

utility,alsoallowscustomerstousesmart-gridtechnologies,whichholdsignificant

environmentalandeconomicadvantages.

Anetworkthatfasthasallowedthecitytopositionitselfasanenclaveforbiomedical

research(Bregel,2011).TheEPBisaninformationinfrastructuresopowerfulthatit

allowsChattanoogatocompetedirectlywithNorthCarolinasResearchTriangleParkand

Cambridge,Mass.,forhigh-qualitybiotechjobs.

PickingtheRightApproach

Policymustmeetlocalneeds,andasingleapproachwouldnotworkinDelawarestatewide.Specifically,inlower-incomeurbanareas,broadbandmaybeavailable,butunaffordable.

Intheseareas,theLifelineandLinkupprogramsmayprovideausefulmodelforimproving

broadbanduptakeinpoorerareasofDelawarebyofferinglow-incomecitizensvouchers

withwhichtopurchasecomputerequipmentandabroadbandInternetconnection.

Plannersshouldnotoverlookcost;itisoneofthemostcommonreasonswhyconsumers

choosenottopurchasebroadbandevenwhenitisavailable(Smith,2010).

Toreiterate,differentusershavedifferentneeds,andacommunitymayhavesufficient

wirelesscoverageforitshomeconsumersbutinsufficientcableforitssmallbusinesses.Inthesecases,localadministratorsshouldlookforcreativewaystomatchpolicytoolswith

technologyneeds.Thebesttechnologytopursuedependsonthepolicygoals.Thissection

includesanoverviewofbroadbandstrategyconsiderations.Anin-depthdiscussionof

broadbandplanningisavailableinAppendix1,completewithbroadbandcasestudies

drawnfromacrossthestate.


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AligningGoals,Technology,andPolicy

Acriticaldecisionforlocalplannersisgoal-setting.Thissectionoutlinessomestrategies

forimprovingbroadband,dependingontheplannersgoal.

Livability

Iftheaimistoenhancelivabilitybyofferingafunctionalbroadbandconnectionforhome

users,thenapublic-privatepartnershipwithawirelesscompanymayworkwell.The

followingtableoutlinesthemajorissuesinvolvedincreatingawirelesspublic-private

partnership,fromtheperspectiveofconsumersandproviders.

Stakeholder PotentialIssue ActionItem

Consumers Price Offerbroadbandvouchers.

Reliability Incentivizereliableservicewithprovider.

Provider UnsureaboutROIinasmallorlow-incomecommunity

Lureproviderswithfinancialincentives.

Table1-5.Apublic-privatepartnershipforwirelessbroadband

JobCreation

Researchanddesignandlogisticsfirmsprocesslargeamountsofdata.Datacentershave

proventobeacrucialgeneratorofhigh-payingjobsinruralareasacrosstheSoutheast,but

managerswillnotmovetoalocationwithlowdatacapacity.Evenagriculturaloperations

constantlyprocessweatherandpriceinformation,whichrequireareliableInternetconnection.Totapintotheeconomic-developmentpotentialoftheInternet,plannersmust

focusonimprovingfiber-opticconnectionsintheircommunity.Again,evenifthe

communityfocusesonwirelesstechnologyintheirbroadbandplan,wirelesstowers

requirefiber-opticconnections,sofibercannotbeignoredinanycase.

Aspreviouslystated,fiberiscapital-intensive,andtheprivatesectorhasbeenslowto

provideit.Therearethreemajorstrategiesforimprovingfiberoptics:incentives,public-

privatecooperative,andpublicprovision.

IncentivesThestateshouldconsidertaxcreditsforcapitalinvestmenttospurtheexpansionofquality

connections.Localgovernmentscanwaivethepropertytaxesonrights-of-waydedicated

tobroadbandinfrastructure.


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Public-PrivateCooperative

Closelysituatedsmall-andmedium-sizedtownsmayconsideracooperativefiber

installationinthemodelofUTOPIA.Themunicipalitieswouldundertaketheinstallationof

afiberringamongthecommunitiesthatwouldlinkCAIs,majoremployers,and(ideally)

households.Privateproviderscouldthencompetetoprovidetheserviceandsupportto

subscribers.ThismodelwouldbeidealforplacessuchasMiddletown,Odessa,and

Townsend.InmunicipalitiessituatedalongtheMarylandborder,findinginnovativeways

topartnerwiththeMarylandBroadbandCooperativeshouldbeapriority.Thecooperative

ensurescompetitionandspreadstheriskofthecapitalexpenditurewhileavoidingmanyof

thepoliticalcomplicationsassociatedwithpublicprovision.

PublicProvision

Publicprovisionisahigh-risk,high-rewardoption.Thecommunitiesinvolvedmust

borrowsubstantialfundsandthentakeontheday-to-dayoperationofafiber-optic

network.Typically,privateprovidersobjectvociferouslyandmountlegalchallenges.Nevertheless,inmanysmallertownstheprivatesectormaynotbeinclined,evenwith

incentives,toofferstate-of-the-artconnections.

Publicprovisionhasitsownadvantages.Researchshowsthatpublicprovisionisa

substantialdriverofeconomicgrowth(Ford&Koutsky,2005;Kelley,2004).The

communitycapturesmoreofthatprosperityandrevenuewhenitownsthenetwork.

Finally,localgovernmentsarealreadypayingfordata,andoperatingtheirownnetworks

maybemorecost-efficient.

BlendingJobsandCommunityDevelopment

Ahybridoptionisalsoavailable.Plannerscanworkwithawirelessprovidertobringbasic

servicetohouseholdswhilesimultaneouslybuildingacooperativefiberringforbusinesses

andCAIs.

ConcludingThoughts

Findingtherightbalanceofpublic-,private-,andnonprofit-sectorinvolvementisnosimple

task.Yetitisacrucialtask,asthestateofDelawareseconomiccompetitivenessrestson

thequalityofitsinformationalinfrastructure.Fromtheclassroomsthataretrainingour

nextgenerationofentrepreneurstothefarmerswhoneedweatherandpriceinformation,

reliableandqualityaccesstodataisanecessarycomponentofanyeconomic-development

strategy.Inaglobalage,thestatescompetitioncomesnotjustfromitsneighborsbutfrom

aroundtheworld.Severaldevelopednationsalreadyhavenationalbroadbandplans,


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manyofwhichsetmuchmoreambitiousgoals.Australiaalsohasplansforanationwide

fiber-opticnetwork.SouthKoreaplanstoachieve2Gbpsnationwideby2012(Falch&

Henten,2010).Delawarecommunitiesdonothavetheluxuryoftimetodeliberateover

whetherthepublicsectorhasaroletoplayininformationservicesprovision.Yet,with

adequateplanningandpublicinvestment,Delawarecanassureitssuccessinthe

technologicallydriveneconomiesofthefuture.


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Chapter2:FactorsAffectingtheAdoption

ofBroadbandinDelaware

Introduction

Itisbeyondquestionthataccesstotheresourcesandinformationavailablethroughthe

Internetplaysamajorroleinthedegreetowhichpeopleareempoweredboth

economicallyandpolitically.Thedigitaldividebetweenthosewhoarehighlyconnected

throughthisworld-widenetworkandthosewhoarenotmirrorsthatbetweenthewealthy,

educated,upwardlymobilesectorsofsocietyandthosewhoaredisadvantagedand

isolatedfromthemainstreameconomy.

Overall,DelawarehasoneofthehighestInternetconnectionspeeds(Akamai,2011);however,theprovisionofbroadbandservicevariesgreatlybygeographiclocationwithin

thestate.Inparticular,moreruralandeconomicallydisadvantagedareasoftenonlyhave

accesstomuchslowerandlessrobustconnectivity.Barriersinsomecasesexistdueto

economicorculturalconditions,inothersduetophysicalisolationorbusinessstrategy

decisionsonthepartofproviders.Someareas,especiallyinthemoreruralsouthernpart

ofthestatedonothaveaccesstothelevelsofserviceenjoyedinthemorehighlyconnected

urbanlocations.Thisurban-ruralInternetgaphasbeennotedintheliterature(LaRoseet

al.,2007),ashasthedigital

dividebasedoneconomicor

otherdemographicfactors

(see,forexample,FCC,2009).

Thequestionoftheuse,

availability,andviabilityof

Internetusageismulti-layered,

relatednotonlytothe

technicalaspectsofphysical

connectedness(forinstance,

whetherthroughcable,telephonelines,fiber-optic

cable,orwirelesssignals),but

alsotosocio-economic,

demographic,andgeographic

factors.Makingthedistributionandadoptionofbroadbandaccessmoreuniversal,acrossa

largercross-sectionofthepopulationwillgofarinhelpingtobridgethedigitaldivide.

Figure2-1.Schematicrepresentationofthefactorsusedtodetermine

barrierstobroadbandadoptioninDelaware


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Thespatialanalysisdevelopedinthisdocumentseekstoquantifyandmakespatially

explicitthefactorsthatencourageorworkagainstwideradoptionofhigh-speedInternet

access.Theanalysiscombinesawidevarietyofspatialinformationtoidentifytheexpected

viabilityofbroadbandadoptioninDelawarebasedonthreefactorsphysical,

demographic,andeconomic.Thethreeseparateandindependentcategoriesare:

PhysicalConnectednesshowphysicallyconnectedalocationistoexistinginfrastructure,populationcenters,orprojectedgrowthareas

DemographicRiskFactorshowat-riskanareaistolackofadoptionofbroadbandtechnologies,basedoncharacteristicssuchasage,educationlevel,income,etc.

LevelofServicethedegreetowhichbroadbandisavailable,affordable,andofsufficientspeedtoenableapopulationtotakefulladvantageofInternet-based

resources

SeeFigure2.1onthepreviouspageforaschematicrepresentationofthefactorsaffectingbroadbandadoptionasdefinedinthePlanningTool.Eachmeasureislargelyindependent

oftheothers,andtogethertheyformapictureofthedegreetowhichbroadbandadoption

isfacilitatedordeterred.Areasinthestatearerankedonarelativescaleintooneofeight

levelsbasedonthecombinationoffactorswithineachset.Therankingsdonotseekto

quantifyaprecisepredictionofbroadbandadoptionratesinaparticularareabutto

broadlyindicatewhere,

basedonindependent

factors,thereisagreateror

lesserlikelihood.Figure2.2indicatestherelative

scaleshowing

representativeareasonthe

mapwherebothhighand

lowlevelsofInternet

serviceexist.

Dependingonthescores

withineachcategory,the

preferredstrategyto

addresstheproblemofthe

digitaldividewillvary.For

instance,subsidizedaccessorinvestmentinCAIsprovidinghigh-speedWebaccessmight

bemostappropriateinareaswherethereisagreatdealofprovisionofservice,butlow

adoptionratesduetodemographicfactors.

Figure2-2.Representativemapdetailshowingtherelativescaleofthe

likelihoodofbroadbandadoptionbasedonfactorsrelatedtolevelofservice

provision


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FactorsRelatingtotheAdoptionofBroadband

PhysicalConnectedness

Thedegreeofphysicalconnectednessisexpressedasanimpedance,orresistancetoovercomingabarrierofdistancetoagivenfeaturerepresentingacertainlevelof

connectedness.Examplesofconnectednessrelatetophysicalinfrastructure,utilities,and

plannedgrowthareas;thefartheroneisfromsuchfeaturesorregions,themoredifficultor

unlikelyinteractionwillbe.Forinstance,CAIs,whichofferpublicaccesstohigh-speed

Internet,aremostlikelytobeusedbythoseclosesttothem.Thelikelihoodofsomeone

usingthefacilityisassumedtodecreasewithincreasedtraveldistancetothatfacility.The

notionofadistancedecayintheinteractionbetweenactorscorrelateswiththephysical

modelofgravity.WilliamJ.Reilly(1931)extendedtheideaofgravitytointeractions

betweentradecentersandpotentialcustomers.Modifiedforthisproject,thedistance-

decayfunctioncanbestatedas:

I=!

!!(!

!)!

Where:

I=impedance,withzeroindicatingnoimpedance,and1indicatinginfinite

impedance

d=distance(e.g.,inkilometers),fromthefeatureorfacility

p=powerterm,indicatingthedegreeofresistanceforeachunitdistancefromthe

featureorfacility

Withthepowerterm,p,setto1,thisequationsimplifiesto:

I=!

!!!

Figure2.3illustratestherelationshipbetweenthedistance(inkilometers)andthe

impedancetobroadbandadoption,accordingtothismodel.Alloftheinputsrelatedto

PhysicalConnectednessusethisgeneralequationtodetermineresistanceorimpedance

basedondistance,exceptthemeasureofroaddensity,whichisbasedonthesizeoftraffic

analysiszoneunits.


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Figure2-3.Relationshipbetweendistanceandresistancetobroadbandadoption

Toderivethismeasure,aspatial-datalayerrepresentingthephysicaldistance(in

kilometers)ofeachlocationinthestatetotheinputfacilityorfeatureisgeneratedand

thenusedtocalculatetheimpedancefigure.Impedance,orresistanceduetoseparationbydistance,isconsideredtobezeroatorwithinthefeature(oradesignatedbufferaround

thefeature).Forinstance,inthecaseofCAIs,impedanceiszeroatthesiteofthe

institution,increasingasafunctionofdistancetoit.Forarealfeatures(suchasmunicipal

boundaries),impedanceisconsideredtobezerowithintheboundaries,increasingasa

functionofdistanceawayfromthoseboundaries.

Todetermineanoverallscoreforimpedance,asummationofallinputimpedances,divided

bythetotalpossibleimpedance,isused.Basedonthefinalscore,eachlocationis

categorizedbasedonthresholdvaluesintoseveraldiscretelevels.MapA1inAppendix1

illustratesthelevelofconnectednesssummarizedforthenineinputfactors,symbolizedby

differentcolorsforeachoftheeightlevels.Thelevelsshownonthemapwereestablished

usingtheJenksNaturalBreaksClassificationmethod.

ConnectednessDataLayers

MunicipalBoundaries

Basedonthecurrentmunicipalboundaries,impedanceiscalculatedasafunctionofthe

squareofthedistancetoanygivenmunicipality,withareaswithinthemunicipality

havingzeroimpedance(i.e.,ahighlevelofconnectedness).

GrowthandAnnexationArea

Areasoffuturegrowthareidentifiedineachtownscomprehensiveplan.Withinthese

areas,impedanceiscalculatedtobeidenticaltotheimpedancefromthenearest

municipalboundary.Outsideeachgrowtharea,theimpedanceisthelesserofeither

theimpedancecalculatedformunicipalboundariesortheimpedancecalculatedas

functionofdistancetotheannexationzone.

4 6 8 10distance , km

.4

.5

.6

.7

.8

.9

impedance


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CountyGrowthZones

Eachcountyhasdeterminedareasinwhichgrowthistobeencouraged.Impedance

willincreasewithdistanceoutsidethesezones,asnotedabove.

AccesstoDARTRoutes

UsingabufferofmilesaroundaDARTbusroute,whichcorrelatestothedistance

peoplecancomfortablywalkin15minutes,thebarriertoaccesstopublic

transportationiscalculatedbasedondistancebeyondthislimit.

SewerandWaterDistricts

Publicsewerandwaterdistrictsarepowerfulfactorsinfocusingwherepeoplesettle

and,therefore,correlatetooverallconnectedness.Waterandsewerareasarebasedon

currentCertificatesofPublicConvenienceandNecessity(CPCNs)andotherservice-

areaboundaries.Impedanceisbasedonproximitytotheseexistingareasofsewer

provisionandpublicwateravailability.

CommunityAnchorInstitution(CAI)

Distancefromexisting,identifiedCAIshasadirectimpactontheabilityofpeople

withoutbroadbandserviceathometoaccesstheInternet.Impedanceincreasesbased

ondistancefromtheCAI.

RoadDensity

Roaddensityisusedtocharacterizelocationsbasedontheiroveralllevelofroad

infrastructure.Themorephysicallyconnectedwithinaroadnetwork,themorelikely

thatalocationwillhaveaccesstootherinfrastructuresuchasbroadband.Insteadof

usingthegravitymodel,ascoringsystembasedonthemeasuredareaofModifiedGrid

polygonsisusedasaproxyforroaddensity.ModifiedGridgeographicunits(similarto

TrafficAnalysisZones)arerankedbasedonsizeandplacedintooneoffourdensity

categories.

DistancetoMajorRoadArteries

BasedonDelDOTslayerofmajorarteriesinDelaware,whichincludeinterstates,

federalroutes,andnumberedstateroutes,amilebufferwillbeestablished.

Impedancewillbedeterminedbasedondistancefromthisbuffer.

UrbanAreas

TheU.S.Census(2000)identifiesareasofurbanization(definedasUrbanAreasor

UrbanClusters),whichincludecensusblockswithadensityof1,000peopleper

squaremileormore,plusadjacentblockswithadensityof500peoplepersquaremile


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ormore.Impedanceiscalculatedbasedondistancefromthesedefinedurbanized

areas.

Demographics

Manydemographicfactorsofapopulationcorrelatewiththeadoptionofbroadband,

independentofthelevelofinfrastructureoritsprovisioninanarea.Whileresearchonthe

topicisstillfairlyyoungbroadbandadoptioninthehomehasonlybecomewidespreadin

thelast10to15yearsseveralstudiesindicatethatdemographicfactorsincludingage,

income,educationallevel,andethnicityhaveaneffectontheratesofbroadbandadoption

(AronandBurnstein,2003;LaRoseetal.,2007;FCC,2009).

TheapproachhereusesdemographicdatafromtheU.S.CensusBureauandothersources

torankcertainfactorsbasedonthedegreetowhichitisexpectedthattheywillconstitute

asystemicbarriertobroadbandadoption.Geographicanddemographicdatawerecompiledatthesmallestphysicalareaavailable.Centroids(pointscorrespondingtothe

centerofgravity)foreachgeographicunit(CensustractorCensusblock)weregenerated,

andrankingsassignedtoeachpoint.Theimpedance(i.e.,degreetowhichthedemographic

factorisabarriertoadoptionofbroadband)wascalculatedonascaleof0(noimpedance)

to1(highestimpedance),foreachpoint,basedonthedemographicparameter(e.g.,

medianhouseholdincomeofthepopulation).Arastersurface,representingimpedance

valuesforareasacrossthestate,wasthencalculatedbyinterpolatingvaluesfromthe

centroids.Ingeneralthefunctiontodetermineimpedancewas:

! = (1 !!),forcharacteristicswhereimpedancedecreaseswithrankvalue(Figure2.4a)and

! = (!!),forcharacteristicswhereimpedanceincreaseswithrankvalue(Figure2.4b)

Where:

I=impedance,withzeroindicatingnoimpedanceand1indicating

infiniteimpedance

f=demographicfactor,onascaleof0to1;basedonhighestandlowest

valuesofthepopulationvaluep=powerterm;determinestherelationshipbetweenthefactorand

impedancetoadoption(setto0.5).


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(a)

(b)Figures2-4aand2-4b.Relationshipofscaleddemographicfactor

(x-axis)toimpedancetobroadbandadoption(y-axis)

Toderiveafinalvalueforoveralldemographicfactors,impedancesweresummedand

dividedbythetotalpotentialimpedance.MapA2inAppendixAdepictsamapofthelevelofresistancetobroadbandadoptionbasedondemographicfactors.

DemographicDataLayers

MedianHouseholdIncome

UsingU.S.CensusAmericanCommunityService(ACS)datafor2005-2009,atthe

Censustractlevel,anindexvaluescaledbetween0and1basedontherangeofmedian

householdincomeinDelawareiscalculated.Thehighertheincomeinatract,thelower

theimpedancetoadoptionofbroadband.

Age65andOlderSinceresearchshowsthatratesofbroadbandadoptionpeakwiththoseinearly

adulthoodandfallsoffconsiderablywithage,thepercentageofthepopulationofage65

andaboveCensustractsisdeterminedusingACSdatafor2005-2009.

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0rank value

.2

.4

.6

.8

1.0

impedance

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0rank value

.2

.4

.6

.8

1.0

impedance


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CollegeDegree

Censustractsarecategorizedbasedonpercentageofthepopulationage25andolder

withacollegedegree(basedontheACS).Basedontherankedvalueofeducational

attainment,theimpedanceforeachtractisdetermined,withimpedancedecreasing

withhigherpercentagesofcollegegraduates.

VehicleOwnership

Accesstoavehicleisconsideredadeterminantinanindividualsabilitytouse

broadbandatCAIsorotherprovidersofaccess.Basedonthepercentageofhouseholds

inaCensustractowningatleastonepersonalvehicle(basedontheACS),impedanceis

determined,withhigherimpedanceascribedtoareaswithlowerratesofvehicle

ownership.

PercentageMinority

Sincebroadbandadoptiontendstobelowerinareaswithhigherproportionsofminorities,thepercentageofnon-whiteminoritiesareusedasariskfactorforlow

broadbandadoptionrates.U.S.Censusdataforthe2010DecennialCensusisusedto

summarizeinformationattheCensusBlocklevel,andimpedanceiscalculatedbasedon

therankingofminoritypercentage.

PopulationDensity

Populationdensityindicatesareasofhigherlevelsofurbanizationandthus

connectednesstoexistinginfrastructure.Broadbandprovidersaremorelikelyto

developbroadbandinfrastructureinareaswithalargepotentialcustomerbase,aswell

asareasclosetoexistingconnectivity.Impedanceisdeterminedbasedoncalculated

populationdensity,withhighervaluesassociatedwithlessdenselypopulatedCensus

blocks.

LevelofService

BasedonresearchconductedbyDTIanditssubcontractors,existingprovisionof

broadbandwasassessed,andaseriesofparameterswasdevelopedindicatingthelevelof

service.Byquantifyingthedegreeofbroadbandconnectivityinanarea,gapsinthelevelof

serviceprovisioncanbeidentified.Considerationstodeterminelevelofserviceincludegeographicextentofbroadbandbycommercialorotherproviders,classificationbasedon

thehighestadvertisedspeedofservice,numberofavailabletechnologies,numberof

competingproviderswithinanarea,andcostofservicebasedonadownloadrateperunit

price.StatisticsonactualratesofadoptionwithinaCensusunitwouldbeaninformative

metric,whichcouldindicatewithahighdegreeofcertaintytheactuallevelofadoption;

however,suchdatafromtheprovidercommunityhavenotbeenreportedatasufficient


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levelofdetailtobeuseful.ItshouldberecognizedthatthePlanningToolsabilityto

accuratelyevaluatethelevelofbroadbandserviceacrossthestateisaffectedbydata-

collectionmethodsaswellasdatagapsduetocontractuallimitationssuchasnon-

disclosureagreements.

Aswiththedemographicfactors,level-of-servicefactorsarefirstrankedonascaleof0to

1,andimpedancetobroadbandadoptioniscalculatedfromthis.CentroidsforCensus

blocksareusedasthebasisforinterpolatingasurfacerepresentingtheimpedance.The

functionsfordeterminingimpedancearegivenby(subsequentreferencestothese

functionswillbereferencedbytheletterinparentheses):

! = (1 !!),forcharacteristicswhereimpedancedecreaseswithrankvalue(Figure2.5a)(a)

! = (!!),forcharacteristicswhereimpedanceincreaseswithrankvalue(Figure2.5b).(b)! = (1/(1+ !!.!),forcharacteristicswhereimpedancedecreaseswithrankvalue(Figure2.5c).(c)

Where:

I=impedance,withzeroindicatingnoimpedanceand1indicating

infiniteimpedance

f=levelofservicefactor,onascaleof0to1;basedonhighestand

lowestvaluesoftherangeofvalues

(a)0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 rank value

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

impedance


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(b)

(c)Figures2-5a,2-5b,and2-5c.Functionsemployedtodetermine

impedance.ImpedanceiscalculatedforeachCensusblockcentroid,

andastatewidedatalayerisgeneratedbyinterpolatingthesepoints.

Block-leveldataanalysisincludedGISprocessingtocalculatethemetricfromfieldsinthetabulardata.Areasinwhichservicewasnotavailableweregivenametricvalueof0.A

finallayerofimpedancetobroadbandadoptionwasgenerated,usingthesamemethodsas

describedinthesectionsabove.MapA3inAppendixAdepictsamapofthelevelof

resistancetobroadbandadoptionbasedonlevel-of-servicefactors.

Level-of-ServiceDataLayers

MaximumDownloadSpeedAvailable

Basedonprovider-reportedmaximumdownloadspeedwithinaCensusblock.Missing

blockswerenotincludedintheanalaysis.Impedancewascalculatedbasedonfunction

(a),previouspage.

CostperUnitDownloadSpeed

Basedonprovider-reportedmaximumdownloadspeedandrepresentativecostof

servicetypeasreportedbyDTIdocumentation,thelowestavailablecostpermegabit

persecond(Mbps)downloadspeedisdeterminedforeachCensusblock.Generally,

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0rank value

.2

.4

.6

.8

1.0

impedance

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0rank value

.6

.7

.8

.9

1.0

impedance


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thismeasureislowestforthefastestandmostcostlyservice.Thisspeedisrankedona

scaleof0to1,andimpedancecalculatedaccordingtoformula(b),page26.SeeTable1

foralistoftechnologieswithrepresentativespeedsandcostsofservice.

NumbersofBroadbandProviders

Thelistofuniqueprovidersforeachblockweretotaledandusedtogeneratethe

interpolatedsurfacebasedonfunction(c),page26.

NumberofTechnologiesAvailable

Thelistofuniquetechnologiesforeachblockweretotaledandusedtogeneratethe

interpolatedsurfacebasedonfunction(c).Technologiesweredividedintofourtypes:

DSL(assymetricandsymmetricDSLwereconsideredasasingletechnologyforthis

analysis),copperwire,cable,andfiberoptic.

DistancetoMiddle-MilePointMiddle-milepointsarefacilitiesthatlinkaproviderscorenetworktothelocalloops

thatconnecttolocalserviceareas.Distancetotheselocationswasusedasaproxyto

determinehowremovedalocationisfromthecoreInternetbackbone(see

impedancecalculationfunctionfromthesectiononPhysicalConnectedness,page20).

Technology Speed CostPerMo. CostPerMbps*

aDSL 768kbs-1.5mbs 20 13.33

aDSL 1.5mbs-3mbs 30 10.00

aDSL 3mbs-6mbs 40 6.66



sDSL 768kbs-1.5mbs 20 13.33

sDSL 1.5mbs-3mbs 30 10.00

sDSL 3mbs-6mbs 40 6.66

copperwire 768kbs-1.5mbs 41 27.33

copperwire 1.5mbs-3mbs 30 10.00

copperwire 3mbs-6mbs 45 7.50

copperwire 6mbs-10mbs 60 6.00

copperwire 10mbs-25mbs 70 2.80cable 10mbs-25mbs 70 2.80

cable 50mbs-100mbs 115 1.15

cable 50mbs-100mbs 115 1.15

fiber >1gbs 200 0.20

fiber 50mbs-100mbs 150 1.50Table2-6.Technologiesusedandrepresentativespeedandcostofservice,per

monthandpermegabitpersecond*approximate


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Validation

Itisintendedthatthisanalysisbepresentedtobroadbandplanninggroupsorganizedby

theInstituteforPublicAdministration(IPA)forfeedbackandtodeterminewhetherthe

factorsaffectingbroadbandpaintarealisticpictureofthesituationontheground.IPAhasconvenedthreeworkinggroups,includingmembersfromtheagriculturalcommunity,the

privatebusinesssector,andthegovernmentalandpublicservicesector.Feedbackwillalso

besoughtfrominterestedmembersofthebroadbandplanningandprovisioncommunity

beyondthethreeworkinggroups.Inparticular,itisanticipatedthatmorerefined

estimatesofthevariousfactorsaffectingbroadbandadoptionmightbedevelopedby

refiningthethresholdvaluesanddevelopingspecificdefinitionsforeachofthediscrete

levels.


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Appendices

Appendicesfollowonthenextseveralpages.


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Appendix1:FinalMapsShowingPredictedLikelihood

ofBroadbandAdoption

MapA1PhysicalConnectedness


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MapA2DemographicFactors


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MapA3LevelofService


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Appendix2:UsingthePlanningToolCaseStudies

Introduction

Typically,ithasbeendifficulttodirectlyquantifythepreciselevelofbroadbandadoptionduetothecostofconductingsurveysandthereluctanceofprivateproviderstofurnish

detailedbusinessdata.Thepresentmethodofquantifyingthelikelihoodofbroadband

adoptioninanareaofDelawareusesindirectfactorssuchasconnectedness,

demographics,andthelevelofserviceavailabletoinferthebarrierstothisadoption.Such

inferredadoptionbarriersaresupportedbystudiesnationwide.SincetheAmerican

RecoveryandReinvestmentActof2009(ARRA),therehasalsobeenanincreasedlevelof

fundingfor,andawarenessof,theneedsofunderservedsectorsofthepopulationand

geographicareas.Thefirstissuetoaddressistofindoutwherebroadbandaccessand/or

adoptionislackingandtothenaddressthecausesofthisdeficiency.

ThespatialanalysisdevelopedinthisPlanningToolisanattempttoidentifygeographic

areaswherephysicalandsocialbarriersaremostlikelyaffectingadoptionrates.This

sectionpresentssomescenariosforaddressingtheseneedsinareasacrossthestate,in

whichvariouschallengesandsolutionsmightapply.Threedistinctusergroupshavebeen

identifiedthebusinesscommunity(particularlysmallbusinesses),thegovernmental

sector,andtheagriculturalcommunity.Eachofthesehasadistinctgeographiclocation,

constituency,andneedsorissuesofconcern.Likewise,basedonthemappingconducted

forthePlanningTool,itisevidentthatdifferentareasofthestatehavewidelydiffering

challengestoadoptionofbroadband.Byunderstandingtheneedsoftheconstituentpopulationinanarea,basedonphysicalandsocialfactorsaffectingadoptionrates,aseries

ofbroadrecommendationshavebeendevelopedtomeeteachareasuniquesetofneeds.

Nationwide,thepercentageofhouseholdswithoutaccesstohigh-speedInternetis

relativelylow,dependingonwhatmeasurementsareused.Forexample,in2009the

percentageofhouseholdswithaccesstohighspeed(>4Mbitsdownloadspeed)was

between85and90percent(Elliot,2010).Adoptionrates,however,differwidely,

dependingonthesectorofthepopulationisconsideredandwherethosepeoplelive.

Minorities,theelderly,less-educatedpopulations,andthoseinruralareashavelower

adoptionrates,evenwherethereisavailability(Horrigan,2009).Theissueofdifferential

accessandbarrierstoaccesstypicallybecomesanissueforDelaware,inareasoutsidethe

metropolitancorridor(thenorthernportionofNewCastleCountyinDelaware),andin

areaswhosepopulationislesspronetomakeuseofavailabletechnologyduetoeconomic,

social,ordemographicfactors.Thefollowingsectionlaysoutsomebroadstrategiesthat

havebeenusedtobridgethesegapsinareasacrossthecountry.Next,severalscenarios


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arepresentedforvariousareaswithinthestateofDelawarethatfacedistinctchallenges

basedonimputedfactorshighlightedbythePlanningToolmaps(seeAppendixA).Then,

potentialstrategiestoaddresstheshortcomingsateachlocationarediscussed.

Strategies

Thefollowingpresentsomebroadstrategiesemployedinareasaroundthecountry,as

identifiedbyMixetal.(2009).Thereissomeoverlapamongtheseapproaches,anditis

unlikelythatasinglesolutionwillbeapplicableinallareasandatallgeographicscales.

SomecombinationoftheseapproachesislikelytobeappropriateinDelaware.

StatusQuo

Thestatusquoentailsnofurtherexpenditureorplanningeffortstoboostimplementation

andadoptionofbroadband.Thisapproachreliesonexistingandfutureprivateprovision

ofboththeinfrastructurerequiredtoimplementbroadbandconnectivity,aswellasthe

provisionoftheserviceitself.Thishastraditionallybeenthemodelformostareasofthe

country(andinDelaware),andhasresultedinafairlycompletelevelofcoverageat

reasonablyhighspeedsandreliability.Themaindrawbackisaresultingdivideinthe

coverageintoareasofhavesandhave-nots.Inareasofhighdemand,thisisanefficient

methodforquicklybuildingbroadbandpenetration.If,however,thebusinesscaseisnot

favorableforprovisionatagivenlocation,infrastructurewillnotbeextendedthere.

Likewiseifthereisnotdemandinanareaduetoeconomic,social,ordemographicfactors,

providerswillnotbelikelytoprovideservicewithoutfurtherincentives.

AggregationofDemand

Aggregationofdemandisastrategythatseekstoestablishaprocessbywhichthelevelof

demandinanareacanbebroughttoalevelthatwillbeconsideredprofitablebythe

providers.Thisprocessbeginsbydevelopinganeducationandoutreachefforttoinform

thepopulationofthepotentialinandbenefitsofaccesstobroadband.Organizationssuch

aschambersofcommerce,governments,andcitizen-actiongroupscouldhelpproviders

seethebusinesscaseforextendingservice.Thenextstepisassuringthattechnical

assistanceisavailable,bothtoadviseontechnologiesappropriateforprovisionofservice

andtocoordinateeffortsamongprivate,nonprofit,andgovernmentalsectors.Ongoing

coordinationandbuildingofacommunityofstakeholdersisessentialtoensurethat

implementationiscarriedoutsuccessfully.

BroadbandCooperatives

Astrategythathasseengreatsuccessinbringingprovisionofutilitiessuchaselectric

powerandwatertoruralandunderservedareasistheideaofacooperative,ornot-for-

profitorganizationwithprovidersasmembers.Whilethecooperativemightownsome

infrastructure(cablesandswitches)itself,itsprimaryroleisasabrokerbetween


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end-usersandprivateproviders.Theprovidergainsaccesstoalargegroupofcustomers

andcanleverageexistinginfrastructureandserviceagreements.Theend-usergetsaccess

toawiderrangeofprovisionoptionsatcompetitiveprices.Sincethecooperativeisquasi-

public,providersalsooftenrealizebenefitsintermsofstreamlinedpermittingandaccess

topublicrights-of-way.AprominentandsuccessfulexampleofthismodelistheMaryland

BroadbandCooperative,referencedinChapter1,whichservesallofMarylandandsome

portionsofneighboringstates.

LocalNetworkandInfrastructureProvision

Thepreviousstrategieshavetheadvantageofrelyingprimarilyonprivate-sector

investment,and,therefore,requirelesspublicinput.Providingpublicsupportfornetwork

andinfrastructureprovisionisastrategythathasseensomesuccessnationally,though,in

general,successtendstobelocalizedanddependentonproperplanning,technical

expertise,andpoliticalwill.Dependingonthenatureofpublic-privatepartnerships,this

optioncanbemoreorlesscostlytoalocality.Withproperplanning(includingidentificationofstakeholders,assessmentofneeds,implementationofappropriate

technicalsolutions,andrealizationofmaterialbenefitstothecommunity)thiscanbea

viableapproachinDelaware.Implementationofthisstrategycanrunthegamutfrom

installationofaWiMAXorWiFihotspotstotaxincentivesforcompaniesthatprovidehigh-

qualityaccesstotargetedareasorgroupstodirectsubsidiesfororganizations(e.g.,CAIs

suchaslibrariesandcommunitycenters)toextendpublicservices(e.g.,byprovidingmore

computers,expandingaccess,orincreasingconnectionspeeds).

Scenarios

Eachofthefollowingsectionsdescribesanareaofthestateinwhichthereareparticular

challengestotheadoptionofbroadband.Whereoneormoreofthefactorsaffecting

broadbandadoption(physicalconnectedness,demographicfactors,andlevelofservice)

rankslowrelativetootherareas,certainstrategiesmaybeemployedtoovercomethose

barriers.Intheareaspresented,relyingonpuremarketforces(i.e.,thestatusquostrategy)

toadequatelyfulfilltheprovisionofbroadbandisnotlikelytobefruitful.Various

approachesforeachscenariopresentedarediscussed.Theseapproachesaretermed

tactics,todistinguishthemfromthebroaderstrategiesoutlinedabove;theyareconcrete

actionsthatmightbeconsideredtoaddresseachuniqueneed.

DowntownWilmingtonUrbanAccessDesert

DowntownWilmington(roughlybetweentheBrandywineandChristinaRivers,andeastof

Interstate95)ischaracterizedbyaCentralBusinessDistrictofmostlyhigh-andmid-rise

officebuildings,surroundedbyafairlydensepopulationofmostlylower-income,largely

minorityresidents.Asthestateslargestcityandcenterofmanymulti-nationalbusinesses,

thisareaisamongthemosthighlyconnected,withthehighestlevelofbroadbandservice


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inthestate.Thedemographicprofile,however,indicatesthattherearepotentiallyother

significantbarrierstobroadbandadoption.SeeFiguresA1-A3onthefollowingpages(38-

40)formapsoftherelativelikelihoodofadoptionbasedonthethreefactors.FigureA4on

page41illustratesthisscenariographically.


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FigureA1.Wilmingtonpredictedadoptionbasedonconnectivityfactors


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FigureA2.Wilmingtonpredictedadoptionbasedondemographicfactors


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FigureA3.Wilmingtonpredictedadoptionbasedonlevel-of-servicefactors


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FigureA4.DiagramshowingWilmingtonconnectivitystrengthsandchallenges

OutreachandEducation/StakeholderCultivation

Often,oneofthegreatestchallengesincultivatingdemandforbroadbandiseducatingthe

targetpopulationabouttheadvantagesforindividualsandthecommunityasawholethat

high-speedInternetaccessaffords.Acoregroupoflocalgroupsshouldbeidentifiedand

informationonthepossibilitiesofandopportunitiesforbroadbandpresented.In

particularthebenefitsintermsofjobaccess,jobtraining,distancelearning,accesstosocial

programs,andtechnicalskillsdevelopmentcouldbeofcriticalimportancetomany

residentsofthearea.Theinfluencethatexistingneighborhoodandcivicgroupsalready

havewithlocalresidentscouldbeleveragedtobotheducateandprovidetheaggregated

demandtoattractcompetitionamongserviceproviders.Aconnectedneighborhoodcan

thenbecomemoreofamagnetforresidentswhosuccessfullyadvanceintheireducationor

employmenthorizons;ifthosepeoplechoosetostayintheneighborhoodtotake

advantageoftheamenitiesandconnectednessaffordedbyproximitytothedowntown,

theycanserveasmodelsforfuturegrowth.

TechnicalAssistanceThereisaneedforongoingtechnicalsupportatalllevelsofgovernment,aswellas

coordinationamonggovernmentalandnon-governmentalagencies.Organizationssuchas

theDelawareEconomicDevelopmentOffice(DEDO),theWilmingtonDepartmentof

EconomicDevelopment,andtheUniversityofDelawaresInstituteforPublic

Administrationcanprovidetheseservices.Closecoordinationwithkeystakeholder

groupswillensurethatstepstakenareeffectiveandlong-term.


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DirectAssistance

City,county,orstategovernmentscanassistlocalneighborhoodgroupsorothernonprofit

organizationsthroughdirectgrantsforcomputerworkstations,buildingspace,or

extensionofhoursand/oraccesstofacilities.Wilmingtonalreadyhasarichnetworkof

CAIs,whichcanformthebackboneofaconnectedcity.Assessmentofeachofthese

facilitiesiskeytodeterminewhetherthecapacityissufficientforthedemand,bothcurrent

andfuture,andifthereareanyissuesorshortcomingsthatneedtobeaddressed.

Examplesoflow-costoptionsforextendingtheefficacyofCAIsataddressingdisparitiesin

broadbandaccessincludeextendinghoursofoperationofcertainfacilities,providingmore

workspaceorcomputers,augmentingsecurityatsites,assuringhigh-qualitydata

connections,andencouragingmoreopenpublicaccesstolocationssuchasseniorcenters

andfirestations.

IncentivesforProviders

Tostimulateinvestmentbyprivateserviceprovidersregulatorsmayofferincentives,ofteninexchangeforexpeditedapprovalsofbusinessplansorotherconsiderations.Therecent

offerbyComcasttoprovidelower-costservicetonewcustomerswhomeetaneeds-based

testaspartofadealtoacquireNBCUniversalisanexampleofthis.

WesternKentCountyRuralIsolation

WesternKentCountyisaprimarilyagriculturalareawithsomelargetractsofforestanda

relativelysparsenetworkofroads.Thoughnotphysicallyfarfromthestatescapital,the

areaisrelativelyisolated,withthelowestlevelsofexistingbroadbandserviceinthestate

(seeFiguresA5andA7).Withsomeexceptions,thebarriertobroadbandadoptionbased

ondemographicprofileisnotsignificant(FigureA6).Sincetheareaisquitesparselypopulated,thereisaverylowavailabilityofCAIstofulfillthedemandsforInternetaccess

forthosewithoutconnectivity.


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FigureA5.WesternKentCountypredictedadoptionbasedonconnectivityfactors


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FigureA6.WesternKentCountypredictedadoptionbasedondemographicfactors


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FigureA7.WesternKentCountypredictedadoptionbasedonlevel-of-servicefactors


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OutreachandEducation/StakeholderCultivation

Sincethereisalowpopulationdensity,developingabroadbaseofaggregateddemandand

stakeholdergroupswouldbeachallenge.Outreachefforts,therefore,shouldbe

coordinatedbyexistingchannels,suchastheDelawareDepartmentofAgricultureandthe

UniversityofDelawaresCooperativeExtension.Dependingontheagriculturalsector(e.g.,

poultryoperations,graincrops,fruitandvegetablefarming,etc.)theremaybevarying

levelsofawarenessofandadoptionofInternettechnologiestoaidbusinessventuresand

meetpersonalneeds.Therefore,educatingeachsectorofthepotentialandopportunities

forleveragingcommunicationandtechnologiesisapriority.Sinceaggregatingdemand

wouldlikelynotresultinrobustprovisionofconnectivityonthepartofprivatecompanies,

andsincethecurrentneedsofthecommunitymightbeadequatelyservedbythelevelof

serviceaffordedthroughwirelesstechnologies(e.g.,3Gand4Gmobileservice),useof

smartphonedevicesshouldbeconsideredaviableapproachtoaugmentingbroadband

penetration.Asthesetechnologiesmature,coverageisincreasinglybecominguniversal,

andspeedsapproachingorexceedingthresholdssetbytheFCCforclassificationasbroadbandconnectivityarebeingrealized.Therefore,theutilityofthesedevicesandthe

potentialapplications,particularlyforagriculturalapplications,shouldbestressedinany

educationandoutreachefforts.ConnectivitychallengesandopportunitiesinwesternKent

CountyarevisuallydepictedinFigureA8.

TechnicalAssistance

GroupssuchasextensionservicesatuniversitiesandthroughtheDepartmentof

Agri

stimulating broadband adoption

Documents