Portions of the $7.2 billion broadband stimulus at last are wending their way through the communications sector, creating much-needed economic progress for the industry.
Atlantic Tele-Network Inc., or ATN, for one, said on Monday that its Vermont subsidiary, Sovernet Communications, has landed $33.4 million in grants to build and operate a fiber-optic network in the Green Mountain State. And equipment vendor Occam Networks said it won the contract to work on Slic Network Solutions’ $5.2 million stimulus-funded fiber project in rural New York.
The federal government started distributing the second round of stimulus dollars in late June – with most of the subsidies going toward fiber projects. This week’s announcements from ATN and Occam build on that momentum.
Sovernet will construct 773 miles of middle-mile network that will transport data up to 1gbps and connect more than 340 institutions – from state offices to schools, libraries and health care facilities. Sovernet is partnering with the Vermont Telecommunications Authority, a body established by the state legislature to expand broadband and mobile wireless access throughout Vermont.
Meanwhile, Occam Networks will supply its multiservice access platform to Slic Network Solutions so the service provider can roll out triple-play services to unserved and underserved communities in New York’s remote western Franklin County. Slic Network Solutions will achieve that aim by deploying a fiber-optic network over 136 miles of cable across five townships and surrounding areas. Occam Networks didn’t say how much its contract with Slic is worth; Occam Networks is one of the vendors most active in helping rural operators carry out broadband stimulus plans.
On the whole, the broadband stimulus seems to be starting to fulfill the goal of bringing broadband access to parts of the United States that have lacked, or never had, such services. To that point, “the local communities are both excited and surprised that we are bringing broadband into an area that has never experienced the benefits of high-speed Internet,” Phillip Wagschal, CEO of Slic Network Solutions, said in a press release.
Nonetheless, it has taken a while for the billions to start circulating. Congress passed the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in early 2009; the intent was to create jobs and reignite an economy suffering from recession. Lawmakers set aside more than $7 billion for broadband deployments, and charged the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Rural Utilities Service with deciding which projects deserved money. Those agencies delayed the first stage of funds-distribution until late last year and just launched the second round a couple of weeks ago. All of the money must be doled out by Sept. 30.
