WHAT IF…
our schools were full of children?
young families were flocking to our towns?
our region was the go to place to start a new business?
What if we had the network of the future now?
The Smart Phone has changed the world.
Everyone has one. Everyone now needs broadband networks to use them. Broadband has become as critical to life as roads and electricity. But networks from our telephone and cable television carriers do not connect everyone; nor are they migrating to next generation technology—fiber optics to the home with gigabit speeds.
We have to treat broadband like we treat roads.
Broadband now is a community responsibility. To have universal connectivity with the latest technology some or all of next generation networks must be owned by municipalities, just like roads. We advocate a business model that parallels roads: the municipality owns the wire on the poles, like roads, private partners install wire to the home and all network electronics, like driveways and garages.
The payoff is huge.
If we do this soon, we would be leading our state to the gigabit highway. Much follows. We can create high tech jobs that bring young people back to our region. We can attack the digital divide. We can push education to the top. We can insure a real future for health care. We can become a center of innovation in many fields. Homes values will appreciate. We can reduce costs for home entertainment and communications. We can even boast—first is first.
Twenty-five communities have a plan.
Northwest Connect represents 25 towns in northwest Connecticut with a plan for a next-generation regional network. We also have begun programs for economic and community development such a network engenders. This web site tells our story. It gives our plan; it gives our reasoning; and it offers breadth and depth on many facts and issues that enter any discussion of our work. We are poised to move soon; engineering could began in one town as early as fall of 2019.
Why a Gigibit Highway?
One Gigabit = 1000 Megabits = 1,000,000 Kilobits = 1 Billion Bits
The FCC defines broadband now as 25 mbps; it was only 4 mbps three years ago, and a small fraction of that—200 kbps—before 2010. The speed that defines broadband will keep on rising. 4K television requires 30 mbps per stream; 8K requires 90 mbps. The Internet of Things means more and more devices like security systems, Ring doorbells, GEneva washing machines, and “smart” refrigerators that are “always on”; they will create steady traffic and reduce speed capacity available for everything else like laptops, cellphones, TVs, Xboxes, Fitbits, online PC shopping, and homework searches. Virtual reality and holographic video conferencing will not work over today’s networks. Only a Fiber to the Home network will be able to handle it all.
Say “Yes” to shaping our region for the future.
We need your support. This is a community project, not just the project for Northwest Connect. Vote “yes” here for our region’s future. Sign up for our newsletter. Become connected to one of our innovation committees. Learn about what we are doing (we have a wealth of information here). Contact our state representatives to make the changes needed for universal broadband in our region. It matters to all of us.