The
Camino Fiber Network Cooperative (CFNC), a telecommunications consumer cooperative
corporation, seeks volunteers to help it fulfill its mission of providing modern
Internet protocol-based telecommunications services in central El Dorado County
utilizing fiber optic to the premises (FTTP) telecommunications infrastructure.
Retirees
with business and telecommunications industry experience are especially
encouraged to lend their knowledge and skills to this vital infrastructure
project by serving as volunteer directors.
The
coop also needs volunteer website design assistance.
The
coop is currently conducting a survey of area residents and small business
owners on their satisfaction with existing telecom services and their current
and future needs.
The
survey is being conducted online and is available at the CFNC Web site
(http://www.caminofiber.net) by clicking on "CFNC Broadband Survey."
In
the coming months, CFNC will seek technical assistance funding to cover the
cost of retaining consultants for network engineering and business planning of
the project's initial build out phase.
CFNC's
review of California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) data found 11 El Dorado
County census tracts encompassing Placerville and surrounding communities
comprising more than 23,000 premises are underserved for broadband Internet
access under CPUC and federal guidelines.
Broadband
access falls sharply beyond Placerville city limits with unincorporated areas
of the county continuing to lack adequate access.
According
to the Federal Communications Commission, seven million U.S. homes are located
outside cable company footprints or unable to subscribe to DSL due to distance
limitations.
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__________________________________________________________________________________ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 7, 2010
Contact: Fred
Pilot fpilot@caminofiber.net
Geoff Brim geoff@caminofiber.net
Survey Data Show El
Dorado County Residents Dissatisfied with Telecom Services
Quality of service a key
motivator for considering community cooperative alternative
Initial
responses to the Camino Fiber Network Cooperative's El Dorado County
telecommunications service survey show most respondents are "extremely dissatisfied"
with their current services.
The Camino
Fiber Network Cooperative (CFNC), a recently formed telecommunications
cooperative, is conducting the survey to gain a better understanding of local
telecom services and needs in support of its mission to provide advanced,
Internet protocol-based telecommunications services utilizing fiber optic to
the premises (FTTP) telecommunications infrastructure in central El Dorado
County.
The survey is
being conducted online and is available at the CFNC Web site
(http://www.caminofiber.net) by clicking on "CFNC Broadband Survey."
Eighty six percent
of 53 survey respondents indicated quality of service as the main reason they
would purchase services from CFNC if offered.
A majority of
respondents expressed interest in purchasing a package of services including
Internet access, voice and video services.
"The
early survey data while limited nevertheless suggest El Dorado County residents
and small business owners want better options for their telecommunications
needs," said CFNC President Fred Pilot.
"The
Camino Fiber Network Cooperative offers a much needed alternative business
model to address this vital infrastructure issue," Pilot added.
CFNC's review
of California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) data found 11 El Dorado County
census tracts encompassing Placerville and surrounding communities comprising
more than 23,000 premises are underserved for broadband Internet access under
CPUC and federal guidelines.
Broadband
access falls sharply beyond Placerville city limits with unincorporated areas
of the county continuing to lack adequate access.
According to
the Federal Communications Commission, seven million U.S. homes are located
outside cable company footprints or unable to subscribe to DSL due to distance
limitations.
Fifty-nine respondents
to the CFNC survey indicated they have attempted to order cable or DSL but
found the services were unavailable at their location.
CFNC
representatives will be on hand at the annual Camino Clean Up Day sponsored by
the Camino Community Action Network on Saturday, May 15. Local residents will be able to complete the
survey at the event.
__________________________________________________________________________________ FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 27, 2010 Contact: Fred
Pilot fpilot@caminofiber.net
Cooperative invites Google to bring 1 gigabit fiber to El Dorado County
The Camino Fiber Network Cooperative (CFNC) is asking Google
to construct innovative open access fiber optic telecommunications infrastructure
to more than 23,000 premises in central El Dorado County.
CFNC, a recently formed consumer telecommunications
cooperative, proposed the project in response to Google's request for
information (RFI) from local governments and communities interested in serving
as locations to test deployment of ultra-high speed broadband networks capable
of providing Internet connectivity of 1 gigabit per second.
"El Dorado County is an ideal locale to demonstrate
fiber can be brought to all premises in a fully built out network that legacy wire
line telco and cable providers cannot offer due to the limitations of their business
models," said Fred Pilot, CFNC founder and president.
"For years, too many of the region's residents and
business owners have been unable to obtain even basic Internet access from these
providers. If constructed, Google's
fiber network would move them off the dial up, digital dirt road of the early 1990s
and onto the Internet fast lane of tomorrow."
The enormous capacity of Google's fiber to the premises
network would serve up Web sites instantly, offer crystal clear voice communications
and high definition videoconferencing and video entertainment to the large
number of El Dorado County homes and businesses that continue to struggle with
obsolete dialup and costly, slow satellite Internet connections.
The network's high bandwidth could also make possible new online
services that have not yet been developed.
Formed in 2009 with the goal of constructing consumer-owned and
operated fiber to the premises telecom infrastructure in Camino and other parts
of central El Dorado County, CFNC shares Google's goal to construct an open
access network.
Unlike the closed access wire line networks operated by
legacy providers, an open access network offers consumers the choice of
multiple, competing Internet service providers.
For more information and to view CFNC's response to Google's
1-gigabit open access fiber RFI, visit the CFNC Website at http://www.caminofiber.net.
__________________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 20, 2010 Contact: Fred Pilot fpilot@caminofiber.net
New telecom cooperative conducting broadband survey
The Camino Fiber Network Cooperative (CFNC), a recently formed telecommunications cooperative, is conducting a consumer survey in support of its mission to provide advanced, Internet protocol-based telecommunications services in El Dorado County.
The online survey will gather detailed information on existing and desired telecommunications services and their utilization. The survey, which requires less than 10 minutes to complete, is accessible at the CFNC Web site (http://www.caminofiber.net) by clicking on "CFNC Broadband Survey."
CFNC's review of California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) data found 11 El Dorado County census tracts encompassing Placerville and surrounding communities comprising more than 23,000 premises are underserved for broadband Internet access under CPUC and federal guidelines.
Broadband access falls sharply beyond Placerville city limits with unincorporated areas of the county continuing to lack adequate access. According to the Federal Communications Commission, seven million U.S. homes are located outside cable company footprints or unable to subscribe to DSL due to distance limitations.
The FCC's National Broadband Plan released March 16 established a goal of connecting 100 million households to affordable 100-megabits-per-second service to spur economic activity and create jobs.
To help achieve that goal, CFNC plans to construct fiber optic-based telecommunications infrastructure offering a menu of services including high speed Internet, Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) and high definition video and teleconferencing.
"Over the past decade, residents and small business owners in El Dorado County have lacked decent options for their telecommunications needs," said Fred Pilot, CFNC founder and president. "The Camino Fiber Network Cooperative offers a much needed alternative business model to address this vital infrastructure issue."
