Broadband Funding for Southern Minnesota
Blandin Foundation announces the availability of $740,000 in new grant funds for broadband development and promotion in southwest Minnesota with the re-launch of the Light Speed and Open Access Feasibility Fund programs. (http://tinyurl.com/5hwyol)

Pawlenty recognizes importance of local broadband expertise
Governor Pawlenty sent a letter commending Blandin Foundation, among others, for leadership in laying groundwork that led to the establishment of an 'Ultra-High Speed Broadband Task Force'. (http://tinyurl.com/5wpjul)

How does US broadband rank?
The New OECD report is out. The US is still ranked 15 in broadband penetration and 17 in broadband growth. (http://tinyurl.com/5th7xa) The Phoenix Center, however, uses a different methodology to spin the recent OECD numbers and the outlook isn’t so bleak. (http://tinyurl.com/59s6os)

Broadband Plans for Minnesota
The St Paul Pioneer Press published an Op-Ed piece by Blandin Foundation President Jim Hoolihan praising state leadership for creating a Broadband Task Force. He also offered some advice based on Blandin Foundation experience with broadband. (http://tinyurl.com/63f2jn) In the St Paul Ledger, Broadband Strategy Board Member and former Senator Steve Kelly advises Minnesota to remember to consider cost a factor in broadband to make it truly accessible. (http://tinyurl.com/5nxfqv)

FTTH Plans in the US
Arkansas is a step ahead of Minnesota in the broadband game. Last year they focused on assessing broadband, this year they are moving ahead with deployment plans. (http://tinyurl.com/6on7cs) Powell, Wyoming is moving forward with a public-private partnership for FTTH. (http://tinyurl.com/6r83m2)

Broadband Around the World
Reports in Ireland recognize the need for broadband to bolster economic development. (http://tinyurl.com/6cnhoz) Australia plans to invest $4.4 billion on a national fiber-optic network, to be built in partnership with the private sector. They are leaning towards an open access model. (http://tinyurl.com/5vtkon)

Time for Ipv6?
According to GovTech, we need to consider a new approach to Internet addresses to meet demand. An alternative addressing scheme is developed but we need to bite the bullet to implement it. (http://tinyurl.com/57gy7w)

Meet Danna MacKenzie-Asche
Danna MacKenzie-Asche, Information Systems Director for Cook County, Minnesota, is the featured Blandin Broadband Strategy Board member profiled in the Blandin on Broadband blog this month. (http://tinyurl.com/5lm7qj)

Blandin on Broadband is your source for up-to-date news and information about Broadband use, policy and trends especially in Minnesota. Subscribe today.

Bemidji
Jon Slusser, president of MTV Networks and manager of Spike Entertainment, advises businesses to embrace technology at the Bemidji Area Chamber of Commerce Awards of Excellence luncheon. (http://tinyurl.com/6nf6b7) Steve Wenzel, Minnesota state director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development agency spoke at Paul Bunyan Telephone Cooperative’s annual meeting about the impact of the 2002 Farm Bill on Minnesota’s rural infrastructure. (http://tinyurl.com/67gxcr)

Cannon Falls
The Cannon falls School Board has agreed to upgrade the district network from two T-1 Internet lines (at 1.5 meg each for a total capacity of 3 megs) to a 10 meg line. (http://tinyurl.com/5hghev)

Cook County
WTIP radio hosted a conversation on broadband efforts in the area with Blandin Foundation Community Coach Bill Coleman, Broadband Strategy Broad Member Danna MacKenzie, and Jack McDonald from Boreal Access. (http://tinyurl.com/6b43zq)

Detroit Lakes
A man is charged with child pornography after offensive files online are tracked back to his IP address. (http://tinyurl.com/6bhogq)

Duluth
Professor Tom Bornan from UMD talks about the disruptive influence of the Internet on K12 schools and the potential for a widening digital divide between affluent and poorer students as well as between urban and rural opportunities. (http://tinyurl.com/6qgv9c) 

Elk River
NorthStar Access, a telephone company offering local dial tone, long distance and Internet services such as broadband fast Internet (DSL) iZoom, is one of two businesses recognized as Elk River Business of the Year. (http://tinyurl.com/5n4j7a)

Isanti
Local editor wonders about state of news media in age of blogs. (http://tinyurl.com/6nns6e)

Lac qui Parle
More than 30 community leaders from economic development, local government, education, business and health care met in Dawson, MN to begin a discussion on broadband deployment and use. (http://tinyurl.com/5luf8l)

Mankato
Investigators use a computer and Google mapping to track criminal activity. Some worry about privacy rights. (http://tinyurl.com/6nro2z)

Monticello
Most of the FiberNet Monticello project has successfully moved forward including network engineering, construction planning and negotiating a management contract. However, they ran into issues when Bridgewater Telephone served a lawsuit against the City claiming that state laws do not grant the right to use revenue bonds for establishment of a telecommunications system. (http://tinyurl.com/5v42wq)

Morris
Alex Andersen, a UMM sophomore from St. Joseph, is working with the Morris Area Chamber of Commerce to develop a customized Google map highlighting Chamber businesses and other area attractions. (http://tinyurl.com/5pourl)

Paynesville
Paynesville Area Public Schools will allow students to surf the Web next year through a district wide wireless Internet.

St Paul
Incumbent telecommunications providers are starting to offer higher speed connections now that St Paul is looking into a municipal network. (http://tinyurl.com/6bypur)

Thief River Falls
Local Entrepreneur of the Year uses online marketing such as MySpace and FaceBook to promote bar and hotel to younger market. (http://tinyurl.com/686dkf)

Wadena
Wadena has partnered with Minnesota State Community & Technical College, Wadena Campus to offer a series of Internet training classes, "Internet 101 Being a Better Internet User" and "Open for Business, Internet marketing 101". Tri-County Hospital in Wadena has completed the installation of a fiber optic line to their satellite clinic in Henning. (http://tinyurl.com/5pncbo)

Waseca
The Waseca Municipal Airport now provides wireless access to the Internet. (http://tinyurl.com/58n3po)

Winona
The Light Speed project at group home and support system provider, Home and Community Options, Inc, is going well. eFile has been implemented in 8 sites. IP Video with two-way audio has been working. Training is nearly complete. The remote monitoring system is progressing. (http://tinyurl.com/6bltan)

(Many stories are gathered from local online newspaper. Unfortunately each newspaper has a different policy in regards to archive news and therefore we cannot guarantee access to all articles cited.)

June 3-4 - Strategy to Reality: Don’t Look Back (Minneapolis, MN) - a comprehensive IT-IA Security seminar. (http://www.ip3seminars.com/security/register.php)

June 6-8 – National Conference for Media Reform (Minneapolis, MN) - bold visions, new ideas and concrete solutions to building a better media system. (http://www.freepress.net/conference/)

June 18 - Online Community Unconference (Mountainview, CA) - a gathering of online community practitioners — managers, developers, strategists, tools providers, VCs — to discuss experience and strategies in the development and growth of online communities. (http://ocu2008.eventbrite.com/)

June 19 – TISP Conference (Minneapolis MN) – the focus of this conference is on the future. Where is broadband headed? (http://tinyurl.com/6f2c2j)

September 21-25 - Linking Communities at the Speed of Light (Nashville, TN) - the place to learn about the operations, financing, marketing and technology of fiber to the home services that are transforming communities around the world. (http://tinyurl.com/6dkvd5) 

Are you hyperconnected?  Do you know people in your community who are?

IDC, a strategic research firm, has conducted research for Nortel, on the trend towards hyperconnectedness.  According to IDC, a person is hyperconnected if they have fully embraced technology, using multiple devices and applications in both personal and business use.  These people connect using laptops, smart phones and other devices; they engage in Web 2.0 applications like VOIP, wikis and blogs, GPS technologies and social networking. The other categories of Internet users are Increasingly Connected, Passive Online and Barebones Users.

The primary point of the research is that while only 16% of Internet users are now considered Hyperconnected, with more adoption and demographic changes, the hyperconnected cohort will soon reach 40%. This shift means changes for companies as they manage their networks, technology policies, workforce attraction and retention policies and approach to working with customers.  Companies and organizations that fail to consider this shift in Internet use may be left behind in their sales, customer service and workforce.

Communities are increasingly focused on their network connections, including fiber and wireless technologies, to maintain and attract companies and people.  This research demonstrates that communities must also focus more broadly on the community culture. In your next community survey, at a community meeting or on a business retention call, you might take a minute to find out if your community is keeping pace with the changing world of technology.

I encourage you to check out my recent Blandin on Broadband (www.blandinonbroadband.org) blog posts on the Intelligent Community Forum (www.intelligentcommunity.org) event that I attended for information about what other cities and regions are doing in this area.