Milford, Delaware took a long look at whether or not to install its own citywide broadband network, reports Milford Live. After conducting an exhaustive study, the town determined that for a number of reasons, the plan was not feasible.
“We reviewed six key tasks in order to identify and evaluate the financial feasibility for the city to enhance the availability, affordability, reliability and capacity of broadband infrastructure for residents and businesses,” said Neil Shaw of Uptown Services, the company that researched broadband options for Milford. “That involves market research, product strategy, how you’re going to operate the business, what the technology strategy may be and then what the financial performance of the proposed business is across different scenarios.”
“So, we actually had a complete sample of 683 respondents to our survey out of 4,400 households selected,” said fellow Uptown Services representative, Dave Stockton. “The survey showed that 96 percent of Milford households subscribe to internet service at home with 77 percent using a wired connection. About eight percent use home internet, which is usually through a cellular plan while about four percent use satellite and another four percent have no internet.” Stockton noted that the majority of households received broadband services from Comcast, though Verizon and T-Mobile were also represented, and a few additional residents connected via Bloosurf or Starlink.
The survey results indicated that lower income residents tended to select less pricey wired connections, though most Comcast and Verizon users were unaware that they could likely qualify for discounts to further reduce their costs. The Affordable Connectivity Program taps into federal funds that would lower the average user’s bill by approximately $30 per month. The savings on the existing plan appealed to many consumers who said they were fine with their current service and were not inclined to switch to something new. However, others said that they would be willing to switch to a city-owned fiber delivery system if it were the less expensive option.
Uptown Services also took a look at available resources, noting that there were numerous poles in place that could easily support additional wireless equipment.
“In terms of where we are, the conclusion to this study is that you’ve definitely got an affordability of internet issue for many households,” Shaw told Milford Live. “But, unfortunately, the facilities-based WiFi strategy isn’t feasible and it’s not even close. It would have to be something that would be done as a substitute. The next steps would be to try to tap in more to the ACP benefits within the target community. Hopefully, collaborate with local providers to enhance their offerings and awareness campaigns for ACP. Partnering with a local school to gain a better understanding of student needs and maybe target some solutions to that. Maybe consider limited WiFi in public places with this technology we just talked about.”
Council members agreed that more public options should be made available. They also agreed that they needed to work harder to make residents aware of savings opportunities and ACP funding assistance to help lower household broadband expenses.
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