The document discusses plans for a rural broadband network in Eastern Ontario. It aims to address gaps in infrastructure, speed, and cost of broadband for rural residents by creating a private-public partnership to build a high-capacity network. The network would connect over 95% of residents with at least 1.5 Mbps broadband and 85% with 10 Mbps through a combination of fiber and satellite infrastructure to promote economic development and skills training in the region.

1. Rural Broadband &
Eastern Ontario Regional network
Cloud Computing for the Masses
Cybera Summit 2010
Laura Bradley, P.Eng
Actionable Intelligence inc.

2. Agenda
• Eastern Ontario BB project
• Why - Economic Development
• Broadband Gaps
– Infrastructure
– Speed
– Price
• How – Private Public Partnership
• Next Steps

3. The Eastern Ontario Warden’s Caucus
Area Is >:
- 109 countries
- 9x PEI
- Equal to Nova
Scotia
- 50,000 sq kms
- Rugged
Topography
1,093,000 Citizens
- Home 10 FN
3

4. Eastern Ontario

5. Rural Citizens
Communicate, Collaborate, Contribute

6. EOWC Broadband Objective
• Have a high capacity broadband network that
would provide vast majority of citizens with
affordable, reliable and fast internet
• Leverage the other investments that have
already been made in rural broadband
• Extend into areas where Rural Connections
could not
Farther and Faster

7. Why?
• Economic Development #1 priority
• Lost of over 12,000 full time jobs in less then 3
years
• Skills were focused on manufacturing – less
knowledge workers or IT oriented
businesses/skills
• Inability to deliver new jobs and new skills
Transform Economic Base of EO

8. Skills Development
• Old World skills have been relied on for
decades
• Lack of jobs in IT and software creates less
training, creates less education focus and less
opportunity
• Need to set the foundation to develop the
new skills and use of technology to reach our
goals

9. Gaps – How big are Rural gaps?
• Physical Gaps – infrastructure
• Cost gaps – rural residents tend to pay
more
• Speed gaps – dial up, satellite, 1.5Mbps,
3 Mbps
Pay More, Get less

10. Infrastructure Dial Up
Gaps USB Sticks
Fixed Wireless
Satellite
DSL
Bell/Rogers Treed Area
DSL
Rogers
DSL
Poor
USB/wireless
DSL Area
Bell Rogers
DSL DSL

11. Cost Gaps
• Purely business case issue
• Fewer users results in less potential revenue
yet the costs to deliver are relatively high
• ISPs measure in $ per subscriber and
analysis is based on households per square
kilometer
Minimal Business Case
Government Intervention is a must

12. Speed Gap
• To date most government programs to
deliver to citizens have set 1.5Mbps as their
benchmark
• Goal has not changed in more then 7 years –
entire lifecycle of technology in this industry
• Rural Communities are not provided
equivalent options
Disparity based on where we live
- Hindering our ability to grow and compete

13. Growing Bandwidth Demand
Rural Areas need speed!
Need for Speed – Information Technology & Innovation Foundation, March 2009

14. Brief Look at History
• Ontario – Rural Connections
– 1 year Program 2007 & 4 Year Program 2008
– Invested more then $35M in rural broadband
infrastructure
– Focus on building i/s and awareness
• SuperNet
– Build backbone to MUSH and ISPs will connect
– Placed fibre to large number of communities where
facilities did not exist
– Spurred competition
Still gaps – coverage and affordability

15. EORN Philosophy
• Large backbone - scale 20 + year
investment
• Drive fibre transport as close to user as
economically feasible
• Target 85% of population for 10 Mbps to
the home
• Target 95% for at least 1.5Mbps – contract
for affordable satellite infill – terrain &
density
Targets for coverage, speed and prices

16. The Backbone
• 160 POPs of Gigabit Ethernet – 10G backbone
that can scale to 100G
• Access connections of 10M,100M or 1G
• Leverage existing asset base and increment to
provide greater reach
• DWDM transport technology
• Partnership with Bell/Bell Aliant
Build for Future – release constraints

17. The Access
• Last mile – 10Mbps to the home
• Broken into zones based on POP locations &
timing
• Use household density and current definition
of served (1.5 Mbps) to define priority areas
• Technology neutral – we define service
requirements not technology delivery
Reaching Citizens is essential

18. Satellite
• Try to reach as close to 100%
• Areas where no business case – household
density is too low
• Infill areas challenged by severe terrain
• Contract to make sure services are affordable
and that users receive minimum service
specification
Users want affordable services

19. Bell Map

20. Next Steps
• Finalize the contract with the preferred
satellite vendor
• Issue access RFPs to match POP
activations to ensure that citizens can
obtain the 10 Mbps objective
Provide 21st Century Infrastructure

21. Rural Broadband
• Vision in Context
• Strategic & Scalable Networks
• Economic Feasibility
• Reliability, Speed and Affordability for
Citizens
Thrive in 21st Century