Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Kane County, Illinois, is hoping its fiber-optic network will attract more businesses looking for better connectivity. As it turns out, they've had the resources for some time but are now making more of an effort to market the benefits of their publicly owned network.

Sharing The Savings, Services, Speeds

In 2011, reports the Chicago Tribune, the county took advantage of road reconstruction and in a coordinated effort, Kane County and the Kane County Department of Transportation deployed fiber along one of its main thoroughfares, Randall Road. Since then, the county has expanded the network to approximately 47 miles, connecting county facilities in five area cities. Kane County contributed $1.5 million to the construction of the underground network that now offers 10 Gigabits per second (Gbps) capacity.

Since eliminating leased lines, institutions and facilities connected to the network have reported better performance, improved services, and significant savings. For example, Geneva School District 304 needed higher capacity to comply with new state requirements:

The district was paying $9.15 per megabyte for 500 megabytes, which amounted to $54,900 a month, he said.

The district was able get 1,000 megabytes for $24,000 per year through a provider on Kane County's fiber optic network — receiving double the service at half the cost, he said. [emphasis ours]

"From our perspective, it was a win-win," [County CIO Roger] Fahnestock said. "The reseller is working with them and are able to work with them and get this off the ground and get the school district what they needed."

The County hopes to draw in more economic development and increase competition. There are already several companies that take advantage of existing fiber to offer varying services, including connectivity for academic research, colocation and cloud storage, healthcare, and at least one provider that uses the network to provide backhaul in order to offer fixed wireless Internet access to residents and businesses. 

Approximately 30,000 businesses and residential properties in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska, will have access to gigabit Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) by the end of 2016.

ALLO Communications recently announced that is it ready to begin the first phase of its four-phase plan to bring better connectivity to the town of 269,000. ALLO will use the city owned network of conduit installed in 2012 to house its fiber and expand where necessary. 

The arrangement will bring a triple-play fiber network of video, voice, and data to the entire city by 2020. The minimum speed available will be 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) and a 1 gigabit per second option will also be available. Both tiers will provide symmetrical speeds so upload will be just as fast as download.

In addition to improving connectivity for residents, businesses, and anchor institutions, the network will improve public safety. When he announced the start of construction, Mayor Chris Buetler said:

“The city will also be able to utilize the fiber system to work with traffic lights and traffic flow. This will allow new smarter traffic flow, less idling cars and help eliminate pollution. This project is another example of public private partnerships and is evidence of how this process benefits the city and its people."

Lincoln is only one of several communities that understand the value of conduit for potential partnerships or for future municipal investment. To learn more about the history of the project, listen to Chris interview David Young and Mike Lang from Lincoln in episode 182 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast.

Approximately 30,000 businesses and residential properties in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska, will have access to gigabit Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) by the end of 2016.

ALLO Communications recently announced that is it ready to begin the first phase of its four-phase plan to bring better connectivity to the town of 269,000. ALLO will use the city owned network of conduit installed in 2012 to house its fiber and expand where necessary. 

The arrangement will bring a triple-play fiber network of video, voice, and data to the entire city by 2020. The minimum speed available will be 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) and a 1 gigabit per second option will also be available. Both tiers will provide symmetrical speeds so upload will be just as fast as download.

In addition to improving connectivity for residents, businesses, and anchor institutions, the network will improve public safety. When he announced the start of construction, Mayor Chris Buetler said:

“The city will also be able to utilize the fiber system to work with traffic lights and traffic flow. This will allow new smarter traffic flow, less idling cars and help eliminate pollution. This project is another example of public private partnerships and is evidence of how this process benefits the city and its people."

Lincoln is only one of several communities that understand the value of conduit for potential partnerships or for future municipal investment. To learn more about the history of the project, listen to Chris interview David Young and Mike Lang from Lincoln in episode 182 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast.

Approximately 30,000 businesses and residential properties in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska, will have access to gigabit Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) by the end of 2016.

ALLO Communications recently announced that is it ready to begin the first phase of its four-phase plan to bring better connectivity to the town of 269,000. ALLO will use the city owned network of conduit installed in 2012 to house its fiber and expand where necessary. 

The arrangement will bring a triple-play fiber network of video, voice, and data to the entire city by 2020. The minimum speed available will be 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) and a 1 gigabit per second option will also be available. Both tiers will provide symmetrical speeds so upload will be just as fast as download.

In addition to improving connectivity for residents, businesses, and anchor institutions, the network will improve public safety. When he announced the start of construction, Mayor Chris Buetler said:

“The city will also be able to utilize the fiber system to work with traffic lights and traffic flow. This will allow new smarter traffic flow, less idling cars and help eliminate pollution. This project is another example of public private partnerships and is evidence of how this process benefits the city and its people."

Lincoln is only one of several communities that understand the value of conduit for potential partnerships or for future municipal investment. To learn more about the history of the project, listen to Chris interview David Young and Mike Lang from Lincoln in episode 182 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast.

Approximately 30,000 businesses and residential properties in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska, will have access to gigabit Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) by the end of 2016.

ALLO Communications recently announced that is it ready to begin the first phase of its four-phase plan to bring better connectivity to the town of 269,000. ALLO will use the city owned network of conduit installed in 2012 to house its fiber and expand where necessary. 

The arrangement will bring a triple-play fiber network of video, voice, and data to the entire city by 2020. The minimum speed available will be 100 Megabits per second (Mbps) and a 1 gigabit per second option will also be available. Both tiers will provide symmetrical speeds so upload will be just as fast as download.

In addition to improving connectivity for residents, businesses, and anchor institutions, the network will improve public safety. When he announced the start of construction, Mayor Chris Buetler said:

“The city will also be able to utilize the fiber system to work with traffic lights and traffic flow. This will allow new smarter traffic flow, less idling cars and help eliminate pollution. This project is another example of public private partnerships and is evidence of how this process benefits the city and its people."

Lincoln is only one of several communities that understand the value of conduit for potential partnerships or for future municipal investment. To learn more about the history of the project, listen to Chris interview David Young and Mike Lang from Lincoln in episode 182 of the Community Broadband Bits podcast.