Great news from D.C.: the government is doing the right thing with broadband mapping.
The grants announced today go to entities in four states, California, Indiana, Vermont, and North Carolina.
The NTIA said that each of the successful applications showed that the state and the agencies were working together, were going to provide verifiable data and not just rely on the telcos for self-reporting, and had resources equal to one-quarter of the grant money received, in an 80/20 grant/cash match.
I first wrote about Ofer Tenenbaum’s WISP, PNC.net, late last year. At the time, the company had 500 customers, was growing fast, and was profitable.
When I saw his name on the list of stimulus applicants, I got back in touch.
The stimulus has allowed him to consider a rapid expansion, using the best available equipment, and working with neighboring ISPs in the NorCal Broadband Access Consortium, which he leads. The Consortium aims to provide WiMAX to rural California counties of Lake, Glenn, Colusa, Napa, and Solano. PNC applied for a $3,136,103 grant and a $2,568,883 loan. The Consortium applied for about $200 million, Tenenbaum said.
Here’s how.