Small Town, Big Dreams, Bigger Broadband Success

Published: Aug. 22, 2011, 6 p.m.

b"Powell, WY was a great story to tell about one small town with a very big vision. Though their population was only 5,500 people, the community wanted a fiber network to help them regain economic viability. But private sector companies refused to do business with them because they saw no business case.\\n\\n Zane Logan, City Administrator of Powell, describes how the community built their own business case that was financially viable and put no taxpayer dollars at risk. With planning firm US Metronets, Powell developed strategy that has led to PowelLink (the city's fiber network) earning 30% market share. Listeners will pick up lessons on:\\n \\xa0\\n how to remove tax-payer risk and still own the network; re-thinking open access networks; \\xa0 effective marketing; and introducing competition into small markets.\\n \\xa0\\n Read this article for important background on PowelLink - http://bit.ly/iRXErh"