The future of broadband

Posted by Gordon
Wednesday, 14 February 2007

Richard, Chair of 3C, mentioned Neunen as a possible model for installing a broadband carrying fibre optic network in Hebden

What a good idea, what a fabulous idea.

Of particularly interest to me is the demographics, Neunen is a nice place to live for people retiring from nearby Eindhoven (go to www.flashearth.com, and take a look around, more interestingly take a similar look at Hebden!!). It's about five fields away from the outskirts of Eindhoven which looks about twice the size of Halifax.

So most householders are older.

For whatever reason, they're not into computers or technology so much as wanting to take any opportunity to create a service for themselves, owned and run by themselves for their own benefit. There's no early adopters of new technology here, the penetration of computers and the internet into the community isn't very high, so what drove the 97% agreement to own their own fibre optic network between eight thousand individual household decision makers?

Can't help but think it's the innate group consciousness built into the human psyche. Mind you, that could just be me being a romantic dreamer. No, let's go with group consciousness theme.

Quote from report by Rob Curry on 3-C site

“The 'Us' feeling and the communications pillars were remarkably successful in Nuenen with 97% initial sign up and over 80% retention after the initial contracts ran out. It's hard to argue that with fewer than 50% of the Nuenen population owning a PC that people were swayed by the prospect of the technology; instead it seems that people were concerned to 'control their own destiny' and not be left with the crumbs that KPN or their glacial government might provide them. “

With the visionary qualities of the lead guy, a guy called Kees Rovers, this 97% of eight thousand householders agreed with him to use the money they already spent, in a way that would benefit not just each individual in the community but also, the group as a whole.

Now that is a concept close to my own heart . . . re-directing our buying power to the the benefit of the individual and the group. Let's do that in Hebden

Now that is worth knocking on every door when necessary.

Broadband access to the internet over our own fibre optic cable network, is a mouthwatering proposition. It will unleash such online creativity amongst the householders and those people who live in Hebden that we'll wonder how we ever managed without it.

Others will follow in our footsteps . . . mind you, that's the idea . . . the more the merrier.