Incumbents smart to watch stimulus funding carefully

Incumbents choosing not to participate in the scramble for Broadband Stimulus money still need to pay attention to the process and how money is being awarded, since there is the possibility other entities could apply for, and receive, money to build broadband networks in their footprint.

That’s one conclusion reached by experts in Telephony’s most recent Webcast on the Broadband Stimulus, held Thursday, July 30, and available for replay here. Thomas Cohen, partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, Bob Tupper, consulting engineer with RVW Inc., and John Hoover, senior product manager with Tellabs, which sponsored the event, all encouraged incumbents, including telco, cable and wireless service providers, to pay attention to how stimulus money is being allocated.

Because the money is being given out based on aggregated census blocks, there is the possibility that a non-incumbent can aggregate part of an incumbent’s footprint into an application to meet the requirements for serving rural, remote, unserved or underserved areas, Tupper said. Under those circumstances, an incumbent has an opportunity to refute the claim, he said.

“There could be instances where an incumbent is providing service, but [that service territory] fits into another applicant’s definition of non-rural and under-served,” Tupper said. “There will be chances to refute applications for service areas, but those will be fairly limited.”

The agencies involved in the Broadband Stimulus funding – the NTIA and the Rural Utility Service – will publish a list of census blocks where applications have been entered, Cohen said, and incumbents who serve those census blocks need to be read to “assert why those areas are not unserved.”

Because both agencies are under pressure to get money out the door quickly and already are falling slightly behind, they are looking for help in determining which areas need broadband, Cohen said. The lack of coherent broadband mapping across the country remains a concern, he said. Some states, such as Virginia, have done a good job of mapping broadband availability, but broadband penetration rate information remains in the hands of service providers who are not all that eager to share data, Cohen said.

Hoover advised incumbents to adopt the “best defense is a good offense” strategy and consider cost-effective ways of upgrading their broadband service through retrofits, overlays and upgrades that don’t require massive deployment of fiber, but can incrementally boost bandwidth.

Applications for the first tranche of funding are being accepted until Aug. 14, and $1.2 billion will be given out for broadband infrastructure by NTIA in the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP). The RUS will be distributing $2.35 billion in its Broadband Initiatives Program.

Applicants should “stay close to Web sites” where the NTIA is constantly updating its FAQs page and further clarification is expected from the Office of Management and Budget on lobbying rules, and details such as prevailing wages for projects will also be available, Cohen said. The best place to track information is the http://www.broadbandusa.gov/ Web site.
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