Comcast, Charter Seek Mass. Broadband Grants

six grant applications received in response to its request for proposals that closed Jan. 11, posting the applications on its website, an MBI spokesman said. The applications are under review and each individual town will decide whether to pursue a proposed solution with a private provider, he said. “The ultimate award of any grant funding from the MBI would be predicated upon many factors, including municipal feedback and approval by the MBI Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the MassTech Board,” MBI said. Comcast proposed to deploy new broadband plant and offer Xfinity internet services to Goshen, Montgomery, Princeton and Shutesbury. Comcast wouldn't normally consider deploying to the towns, said its proposal. “With the MBI’s support, the economics of deploying broadband infrastructure to these areas would be altered.” Charter proposed expanding broadband service to Princeton, New Salem, Shutesbury, Hancock, Egremont and Monterey. The towns are contiguous to existing operations, represent a manageable capital investment given other obligations, and can be built out in a “reasonable period of time,” Charter said in its application. The other companies that applied for grants were Crocker Communications, Fiber Connect, Mid-Hudson Data Corp and Westfield Gas & Electric. The Institute for Local Self-Reliance slammed the MBI program as favoring big firms. “Comcast will be subsidized to serve the slightly rural while those living farther away are effectively abandoned,” institute Community Broadband Networks Policy Director Christopher Mitchell emailed Monday. “But doing it in rural areas where they do not have to serve everyone is a travesty. This is screwy economics -- the way to serve everyone is to mix rural with more dense populations and require service to all. In this MBI model, the left behind will require still greater subsidies in the future to be serviced rather than using an intelligent one-time subsidy to solve the problem permanently.” Responding to Mitchell, MBI Board Chairman Peter Larkin emailed, “For nearly two years, the MBI worked on regional broadband network solutions with limited success. The new Last Mile framework, launched by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts last May is centered on a ‘flexible, responsive and community-based approach to prioritizing affordable and sustainable solutions.’ The new RFP matches that goal, providing unserved towns with information about potential private sector options to close the broadband gap and full control over whether to proceed.” The RFP said grant applications serving multiple towns will be favored, he said. “Our hope is that towns engage in this process, but if one opts out or is not covered by a proposal, the MBI will continue managing that town through the parallel ‘Last Mile’ Readiness Process.” In December, the MBI awarded grants to three town-managed projects, he said. Comcast and Charter didn’t comment.