There’s One Lantern in the Old North Church

Doug Williams | February 29, 2008, 03:09 PM

Greetings and salutations, and thanks for reading my first JupiterResearch blog. Many more to come.

Word came yesterday from Verizon that the company is upping its broadband investment in Massachusetts by $200 million this year. That’s another 1% on top of the $20 billion commitment to rolling out FiOS. So what's the fuss?

A while back, Verizon told state leaders on Beacon Hill that the company would take its ball and go home if a statewide cable television franchise bill was not approved. It wasn’t, so Verizon stopped petitioning for new local franchises while it completed existing projects in the state. I’m guessing those in-progress projects must be nearing completion, because Verizon’s announcement states that it is planning to bring FiOS TV and Internet services to an additional 30 communities in the state. I am personally excited about this because my town is now on Verizon’s list of FiOS-worthy communities. Never mind that the company hasn’t yet negotiated a franchise arrangement with the local authorities in Marblehead, which allegedly was the cause for delaying further deployment in communities throughout Massachusetts over the past year.

Less personally gratifying yet no doubt of greater importance overall is Verizon’s announcement to roll out its DSL service to 23 communities in western Massachusetts that currently do not have access to broadband. Our survey data indicates that 29 percent of dial-up Internet access subscribers have not migrated to broadband due to lack of service availability. The FCC and individual states have begun investigating how to improve broadband availability in rural areas. It’s nice to see that Verizon has acted first in this instance…or have they? Back in August 2007, Governor Patrick announced plans for a $25 million broadband incentive fund that Verizon would likely look to tap, which could be the reason why these communities are only now getting their first taste of broadband. What will it take to bring broadband to the remaining handful of unserved Massachusetts communities?

Hope you got the Revolutionary War humor in the blog title. Marblehead does have its own Old North Church, but it isn’t the famous (sacred?) one.