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UTOPIA awarded $16M in broadband stimulus funding

By @ Aug 18, 2010 | 3 comments

WEST VALLEY CITY — The Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) today announced that they’ve been awarded just over $16 million dollars in funding from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. UTOPIA’s grant is anticipated to produce over 200 new jobs, complete an additional 20% of the needed network infrastructure, and provide growth in eight of UTOPIA’s 16 cities.

“The White House has joined national broadband leaders in recognizing the importance of UTOPIA’s model in providing fiber to communities,” said UTOPIA Board Chair Kane Loader, City Manager of Midvale. “This award is another big step in the series of successes UTOPIA, and its management team, have had in recent years. And it’s a bright indication of many more to come. Government built open fiber, with private sector service providers utilizing the network, is the telecom infrastructure of the future,” he said.

“Our grant application was strong because we’ve proven the need for the UTOPIA network through the innovative, sustainable model we completed in Brigham City,” says Todd Marriott, UTOPIA’s Executive Director. “This grant will accelerate our ability to expand the network and leverage the cities’ continued investment in the network; it proves the financing we’re seeking is more crucial than ever. But, just as importantly, this grant ensures that the UTOPIA network continues to expand economic development, education, public safety, telemedicine and other opportunities for these cities.”

The grant was awarded to begin connecting nearly 400 schools, libraries, medical and healthcare providers, public safety entities, community college locations, government offices and other important community institutions in sections of Perry, Payson, Midvale, Murray, Centerville, Layton, Orem, and West Valley City.

“We’re grateful for the cities that had the vision and foresight to participate in this application,” says Mr. Marriott, “and we’re thrilled to be able to congratulate them on their success.”

“This grant will help us bring the fastest Internet in the country to more West Valley City homes and businesses sooner,” said Mike Winder, mayor of the largest UTOPIA city. “I personally talked with several state officials about this project, as well as Vice President Biden and White House staff, and appreciate the support we received from the Governor’s Office of Economic Development on our application for federal funds and the trust the federal government has bestowed in West Valley City and the other cities of UTOPIA,” he said.

“This grant means that UTOPIA is finally coming into Perry city,” says Perry Mayor Jerry Nelson. “That’s a reality that has us very excited.”

National provider PAETEC joins the UTOPIA network

By @ Aug 12, 2010 | 0 comments

August 10, 2010 – The Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) today announced that PAETEC is the most recent service provider to join the fully-fiber, open access network. PAETEC offers business-class customers a comprehensive suite of data, voice, and IP services, as well as enterprise communications management software, network security solutions, and managed services. PAETEC serves over 84 of the top 100 Metropolitan Statistical Areas and has customers in all 50 states.

“We’re thrilled to have our first national provider join the network,” says Todd Marriott, UTOPIA’s executive director. “They have a solid reputation for value-add offerings and value-add service. Their unmatched quality in markets across the country will also be a tremendous benefit to customers on the UTOPIA network. And their decision to join the UTOPIA network is great validation of the improvements and growth we’ve seen over the last two years. The addition of PAETEC’s services to our already robust lineup is proof that open fiber networks just keep getting better – providing quality products and new, innovative services from scores of great providers.”

“PAETEC is the premier alternative to the incumbent telephone and cable companies, based on our nationwide footprint, breadth of products, and quality of service. And we’re excited to expand that footprint with UTOPIA,” says Arunas A. Chesonis, PAETEC’s CEO. “We’ve seen dynamic growth since we were founded in 1998 because we believe in basic values – providing unmatched cost-effective solutions and first-rate customer service. There are many reasons why customers initially select PAETEC; however, the relationship established is what keeps them with us. UTOPIA has these same values and we’re excited to expand our offerings to more Utah customers.”

Today’s announcement makes PAETEC the 12th provider on the UTOPIA network. UTOPIA connects fiber directly to customers’ homes and businesses, allowing them to receive unmatched clarity and speed without interruptions from copper wiring and shared connections with neighbors.

UTOPIA connects Utah’s fastest city

By @ Aug 5, 2010 | 1 comments

The Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) has made Brigham City, Utah, the fastest city in the state, according to the NetIndex report, released by Ookla. Brigham’s average download speed of 21.66 Mbps displaces Utah’s second-place city, Pleasant Grove, by almost 60%, approaches three times the state average of just over 8 Mbps, and gives Brigham City speeds in line with the top 5 fastest countries in the world.

Brigham City’s upload speeds blow away the offerings elsewhere in the state; UTOPIA customers in Brigham City see an average upload speed of 26.08 Mbps; the second-place ranking of 4.18 Mbps and the state average of 2.56 Mbps pale in comparison.

“It’s rewarding to see tangible results of our efforts in Brigham City so quickly after completing our city-wide buildout,” says Todd Marriott, UTOPIA’s executive director. “UTOPIA, the city, and its residents pioneered a new broadband effort in the United States last year and now they’re seeing the fruit of their efforts. UTOPIA’s superior, fully-fiber, symmetrical broadband connection opens new doors to innovation and access that they simply didn’t have before. I’m anxious to watch Brigham City over the next several years, because I’m confident this is just the beginning of the benefits that will come from this essential infrastructure.”

“I couldn’t be happier with my UTOPIA connection,” says Paul Roberts, a Brigham City resident. “The quality and price are great for the extreme speeds that are delivered. The community-owned UTOPIA network is something I can get behind, knowing I will always have a choice of providers, enough bandwidth for my needs, and the network is operated by people who are invested in my needs and not investor’s pocketbooks.”

The NetIndex report uses data gathered over a six-month period from speedtest.net and pingtest.net and requires 1000 unique IP addresses before a city will be ranked. Ookla is the global leader in broadband speed testing, in part because their broadband measurements offer a much more robust understanding of how much bandwidth is available. The site measures broadband speed and quality using a sophisticated method to completely "fill the pipe," giving a more accurate understanding of a computer’s capabilities via the broadband connection.

Brigham City is one of UTOPIA’s 16 member cities. UTOPIA connects fiber directly to customers homes and private-sector service providers use the network to offer Internet, voice, video and other services to customers. Brigham City was the first UTOPIA city to deploy a user-financed connection model to build fiber throughout their city.

UTOPIA's new plan

By @ Jul 20, 2010 | 12 comments

A Salt Lake Tribune editorial gives the paper's take on UTOPIA's growth model. Their conclusion? "Under the circumstances, they may have little real choice but to press on with the new business plan."

UTOPIA’s new plan

Updated Jul 16, 2010 05:29PM

UTOPIA is trying to reinvent itself. The fiber-optic telecommunications system, owned by 11 Utah cities, still is bleeding red ink, but its managers say they have a new business plan that will turn red ink to black. All they need is a little reorganization, a little more time and a little more capital: up to $60 million.

We would love to believe this is possible, mostly because the cities are on the hook to repay $500 million to retire UTOPIA’s bonds over the next 30 years if the enterprise can’t generate enough operating revenue to do the job. But we remain skeptical.

The business lost $51 million in fiscal 2009, is expected to lose $25 million in 2010 and is projected to lose another $20 million in 2011. Though the losses are declining, which represents progress, they still are losses. The system has about 10,000 customers; it needs 15,000 to break even.

Nevertheless, the optimists point to rising demand for bandwidth to enable services like streaming video in homes and high-capacity communications for business. They say their system, which delivers fiber-optic cable to the customer’s door, is in the best position to provide it. Their competitors, mainly Qwest and Comcast, use copper wire or coaxial cable in the final link to the customer’s home, so they cannot provide the same speed and reliability.

The question for the 11 cities, then, is whether to back even more debt, up to $60 million, to market the system and build it out in phases. They would target clusters of customers who are willing to sign long-term contracts or pay the $3000 upfront to bring fiber-optic cable to the home or business, as Brigham City has done.

To facilitate this, the sponsoring cities would create a new organization, the Utah Infrastructure Agency, to issue new debt. It would not be saddled with the system’s existing debt. The cities also would create municipal utilities to collect installation and service payments directly from customers, rather than relying on service providers to bill for those fees and remit them to the cities.

UTOPIA is unique in that it builds and operates the system, but it does not provide service, such as telephone, television and Internet access. About a dozen private providers do that over the UTOPIA system. (UTOPIA is an acronym for Utah Telecommunications Open Infrastructure Agency.)

Instead of pumping more money into it, the cities could try to unwind the business, but that would leave them with little more than long-term debt. Not a happy alternative. Under the circumstances, they may have little real choice but to press on with the new business plan.