The AAMDC is pleased to have released Connecting the Dots: Alberta Rural Broadband Coverage Study on January 16. Connecting the Dots outlines the state of rural broadband coverage in Alberta and demonstrates that while there have been improvements in recent years, there is still an accessibility gap between rural residents and their urban counterparts.

This report is an update to the 2009 Gap Analysis Report that examined a similar issue, though this second undertaking has stronger methodology and was completed with more comprehensive response rates. Through an in depth data collection process, areas were analyzed on a township by township basis to determine coverage. These smaller areas were then aggregated to produce summaries of coverage for all areas of the province. Your municipality now has access to maps displaying coverage for your area. A county by county breakdown can be found on page 22 of the report and maps plotting the coverage within the districts can be found in Appendix A.

The report can be downloaded from our website here, and the news release can be found here.

Coinciding with the report release, the Government of Alberta announced the Final Mile Broadband Initiative. The goal of the program is to ensure that 98 percent of all Albertans have access to high-speed internet. The news release highlighting the program can be found here.

The flagship program of this initiative will be the Final Mile Community Program where municipalities who plan to provide high-speed internet in their communities can apply for provincial funding support. The program will fund up to 75 per cent of a project and is targeted to areas that are currently determined to be unserved, based on the collected information in the AAMDC study.

The AAMDC welcomes the support for rural Alberta, as this is the first step in addressing the internet divide between urban and rural areas. The first step is accessibility, and then a discussion can begin on speed and price inequities.

Attachment:  Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

WHY DOES THIS MATTER?

• The government news release states that currently 6 per cent of Albertans are estimated to not have access to high-speed internet. Some could conclude 6 per cent is not a large number, and therefore this is small issue. However, in the last federal census, it was determined that a little less than 20 per cent of all Albertans live in rural Alberta. This means that about one-third of all people living in rural Alberta are without access to high-speed internet service.
• Access to internet-based services that urban populations can take for granted is vital to ensure the long-term ability of our rural areas to compete in global markets, maximize economic development opportunities, and keep young people in rural areas.

WHAT IS HIGH SPEED INTERNET?

• High-speed internet, or broadband, is defined by this study as being 1.5 Mbps download. While this is not generally accepted within large urban centers to be high-speed, the first step is accessibility, and then the discussion can begin on speed and price inequities.

HOW WAS THE DATA COLLECTED?

• The process for collecting the data began with approaching all municipalities and internet service providers for coverage information. Information was also gathered from a number of different data locations, best displayed in Figure 2 on page 15 of the study.
• After data collection took place, a verification process took place, confirming locations of Access Points throughout the province.
• This data was then transferred into a software program that mapped the estimated reach of coverage from each access point, taking into consideration the type of land cover in the area.
• From there, the maps were overlaid with township maps and each township was determined to be either served or unserved.
• The township-by-township coverage information was then aggregated to determine coverage information for municipalities, first nations and metis settlements.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO ACCESS THE PROVINCIAL GRANT?

• The grant was designed for municipalities, first nations and metis settlements to access. Though, they can choose to partner with private businesses and not-for-profit organizations.
• Program application forms must be submitted by March 31, 2012, with a second, more in-depth project proposal required by December 31, 2012. More information on the program guidelines can be found here.

Attachments:

01 18 12 AAMDC Releases Study and the Province Announces Funding Program on Broa