With a local proposal for broadband infrastructure funding before an Industry Canada rural broadband initiative program selection committee, Ontario NDP leader and local MPP Howard Hampton is concerned the proposal will fall short of expected targets to provide high-speed Internet here.
Hampton believes the proposal is inadequate to meet the needs of the community and region in both the short- and long-term, and says more could be done by all levels of government to ensure more universal access to high-speed Internet service.
“What the federal government is providing is not adequate,” he said of the Industry Canada Broadband for Rural and Northern Development (BRAND) program.
The BRAND pilot project was announced last September and allocated $105 million for development.
“It’s more about public relations, it’s more about P.R. and making public announcements,” Hampton charged. “Not responding to the challenge of providing quality high-speed Internet service.
“Because the federal government proposal is inadequate, the province is saying let the private sector do it,” Hampton added.
“I want to be clear, there is no private-sector company that will provide [quality] high-speed Internet service to rural or Northern Ontario,” he stressed. “They’re in it to make money.
“This very much needs to be a public venture,” Hampton argued. “This needs to be a political decision. We need people to say we want our governments—municipal, provincial, and federal—to provide high-speed service.”
Provincially, there is a program to access public funds through the Connect Ontario initiative under the Ministry of Enterprise, Opportunity and Innovation.
That program—dubbed COBRA—encourages partnerships at the community level to develop business plans and build broadband infrastructure with COBRA providing partial funding.
But Hampton feels more can be done, especially since he’s concerned the local business plan submitted to BRAND falls short of the high-speed needs of the district.
“We need to do this right the first time,” he warned.
He and Jerry Korman, former consultant for the Rainy River Future Development Corp., are speaking up because the believe the planned remote broadband infrastructure proposed through Bell Canada will not provide true high-speed Internet to the region.
Korman, a telecommunications analyst in his own right, said claims by Bell that the service here after installation and activation of the remote DSL switch will be of high-speed standard can be debunked by documentation on Bell’s own Web site.
“Since I was involved in the process officially, now that I’m crying foul . . .,” Korman said, trailing off. “It’s very easy to prove by going to their URL they [Bell] can’t provide remote DSL service.
“I wouldn’t open my mouth if I didn’t have a leg to stand on.”
Korman pointed out that legally Bell is “off the hook” for any claims—oral or in writing—guaranteeing the speed or reach of their high-speed service by the service agreement located on their Web site.
“This Service Agreement,” reads the Web site, “including all documents and Your Service Provider’s [Bell Canada’s] policies referenced herein, constitute the entire agreement and understanding between Your Service Provider and you pertaining to the subject matter hereof and shall supersede and replace all prior agreements, understandings and representations, written or oral, regarding such subject matter.”
Korman said people need to learn to read the fine print and where to lay the blame when things don’t work out.
“It’s a shame, and you know who gets blamed,” he said, referring to local leaders who are proponents of the broadband proposal.
“I think the local folks are genuinely trying to do their best,” added Hampton. “I’m not blaming them.”
But misleading information, as Korman calls it, may cause an inferior broadband infrastructure to be built here, according both him and Hampton.
As reported previously in the Times, some areas in the Rainy River District will be able to access faster-than-dial-up service, though not true high-speed, 30-times plus dial-up, service through the proposed remote DSL system.
However, those areas would be within a maximum 3.7-km return loop of the Bell Central office.
Hampton explained that in Fort Frances, that would mean anyone living between the mill and Robert Moore School and the river and the train tracks would get the heightened service.
No one else in Fort Frances would be eligible.
He said the same problem would occur in other communities across the district, like in Emo, Stratton, and Rainy River.
“All of which is very expensive and doesn’t provide quality service over the entire region,” Hampton noted.
“What I would urge municipal reeves and representatives to think about is that if they get behind an inferior system and find you’re behind other jurisdictions, the government will say you had your chance,” Hampton warned.
“The federal and provincial government will say, ‘You signed on to this.’”
He explained that after a “few hundred million is spent putting up and inferior service,” the communities won’t have much luck going to the government and asking for more money to rip it out and replace it with a better system.
“As we go forward from here, whether a community has quality high-speed internet will determine its economic future,” Hampton continued.
“What’s in danger of happening here is there will be excellent high-speed service in International Falls and in Manitoba, but we’ll be stuck here with an inferior, third rate Internet service.
“This is one of those things where people need to start paying attention because it will effect our futures, both individually and collectively,” he stressed.
Hampton warned the quality Internet service is as important today as proper road access was 70 years ago.
“In the ’30s and ’40s, if you didn’t have a road, you couldn’t take part in the economy,” he said. “It was the same if you had no electricity in the ’50s and ’60’s or a telephone.
“If you don’t have a high-speed connection, you won’t be able to take part in the economy,” Hampton stressed. “That’s why it’s so important to do it right the first time.”
Hampton urged people to consider what other provinces are doing to provide broadband service to rural areas rather than trying to re-invent the wheel. He references the Prairie provinces the most since they most closely reflect the challenges faced by Northwestern Ontario.
“You see the governments of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and even Alberta seeing the importance of broadband,” he said. “With Ontario, you see nothing.
“What is going on in Manitoba is much superior than what is going on here,” he argued.
Hampton noted the government there, through Hydro Manitoba and the recently-privatized Manitoba Telephone Service, are implementing an aggressive plan to bring broadband service to rural and northern Manitoba.
“My understanding is that Manitoba Hydro had developed quite their own system of monitoring its services [and facilities],” said Manitoba government spokesperson Paul Vogt.
He explained this high-speed connection between many Manitoba Hydro facilities made for the perfect broadband backbone.
Vogt explained it was decided at first to utilize that system to connect provincial hospitals and enhance distance education but has become a way to bring broadband to rural communities.
Already many communities in Manitoba are benefiting from using the Manitoba Hydro system. Vogt said the hook-up is cheaper in the end because lines only need to be run from the nearest power station to the community rather than from the nearest city or national backbone.
“Symbolically, it’s a very important thing. It shows it’s possible the cutting-edge technologies can be part of leading-edge economy in rural communities,” he added.
Hydro One also uses fibre optic, broadband technology to link its hydro terminals. However, that technology isn’t province-wide.
Nancy Lunn, director of marketing for Hydro One Telecom, said the backbone in Ontario only goes as far north as Sault Ste. Marie. Where they have the backbone, they do sell “dark fibre” to third parties, but there are no plans to extend the backbone to Northwestern Ontario.
“We put the network in place because we needed it for the utility,” she said of the fibre optic backbone. “We’re not investing largely unless it’s needed on the power side.”
This means unless the power utility can justify replacing the current communication method of microwave towers north of Sault Ste. Marie, the fibre optic option won’t be available here.
“I recognize, as leader of the NDP, that we should be doing what Manitoba is doing,” said Hampton. “The government needs to take the lead.
“We need to be putting pressure not only on Bell but Ontario Hydro to provide the backbone,” he argued.
(Fort Frances Times)
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
