Massena doesn't need a third wireline network

In a recent article concerning the town of Massena's attempt to obtain federal funding for a municipal cable company, it was noted that the town's foray into the telecommunications business could impact every resident. I believe this is correct because if experience is any indication, town residents will be impacted through higher taxes or electric fees to help pay for a third telecommunications network in a town that already has broadband service from two wireline providers — Verizon and Time Warner (not counting satellite-based or wireless broadband services).

The article also notes that perhaps by building a third wireline network, jobs will be created and new employers will be attracted to the town. This may be true to an extent but the building of a third network will also reduce employment opportunities in Massena, as employees of Verizon and Time Warner will no longer be needed with the establishment of another quasi-governmental entity competing with private industry, an industry that pays a significant portion of the town's tax bill. Also perplexing is the notion that a new network will entice new businesses to locate in Massena when broadband service is already available. Would government- subsidized prices — subsidized by town residents — entice these new businesses?

It should be no secret that the telecommunications industry opposes such projects that are funded by taxpayer dollars. The industry does support attempts to bring broadband service to all New Yorkers. However, building a duplicative network backed by resident tax bills is not the answer and will only reduce the incentives for private industry to continue to upgrade and deploy advanced networks by siphoning away customers that help pay for such networks.

A study by Balhoff and Rowe in 2005 found that "financial performance of municipal fiber operations has generally been poor" and that "virtually all government owned networks to date have a negative net present value." Recent media reports abound with stories of municipalities abandoning attempts to build broadband wireless networks after the realization they could not build a less expensive network, nor could they offer services any cheaper than the existing providers. There is no reason to believe that the situation will be any different in Massena.

Additionally, wasn't the building of a network by the Development Authority of the North Country (DANC) supposed to solve the county's broadband dilemma? How many residents is that network serving in Massena and surrounding environs?

As reported in this paper, a recent survey completed by the county actually appears to show that the county is in pretty good shape when it comes to broadband availability. Fifty-two percent of respondents had high-speed service compared with a national average of 55 percent. According to the survey, only 11 percent did not have service, while nationally, 27 percent had no service. The survey showed that population centers had the most service.

Rather than building another duplicative network, town officials should look at creating incentives for private industry to expand existing networks to unserved areas or to provide training and other grants to residents who may not understand Internet technology and the impact it can have on their daily lives or even the means to afford a computer to take advantage of broadband services.

Robert R. Puckett

Albany

The writer is the president of the New York State Telecommunications Association.