Jared Mauch, the Michigan man who built a fiber-to-the-home Internet provider because he couldn't get good broadband service from AT&T or Comcast, is expanding with the help of $2.6 million in government money.
When we wrote about Mauch in January 2021, he was providing service to about 30 rural homes including his own with his ISP, Washtenaw Fiber Properties LLC. Mauch now has about 70 customers and will extend his network to nearly 600 more properties with money from the American Rescue Plan's Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, he told Ars in a phone interview in mid-July.
The US government allocated Washtenaw County $71 million for a variety of infrastructure projects, and the county devoted a portion to broadband. The county conducted a broadband study before the pandemic to identify unserved locations, Mauch said. When the federal government money became available, the county issued a request for proposals (RFP) seeking contractors to wire up addresses "that were known to be unserved or underserved based on the existing survey," he said.
[...] Mauch's network currently has about 14 miles of fiber, and he'll build another 38 miles to complete the government-funded project, he said. In this sparsely populated rural area, "I have at least two homes where I have to build a half-mile to get to one house," Mauch said, noting that it will cost "over $30,000 for each of those homes to get served."
Previously:
Jared Mauch Didn't Have Good Broadband—So He Built His Own Fiber ISP
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Jared Mauch didn’t have good broadband—so he built his own fiber ISP:
The old saying "if you want something done right, do it yourself" usually isn't helpful when your problem is not having good Internet service. But for one man in rural Michigan named Jared Mauch, who happens to be a network architect, the solution to not having good broadband at home was in fact building his own fiber-Internet service provider.
"I had to start a telephone company to get [high-speed] Internet access at my house," Mauch explained in a recent presentation about his new ISP that serves his own home in Scio Township, which is next to Ann Arbor, as well as a few dozen other homes in Washtenaw County.
Mauch, a senior network architect at Akamai in his day job, moved into his house in 2002. At that point, he got a T1 line when 1.5Mbps was "a really great Internet connection," he said. As broadband technology advanced, Mauch expected that an ISP would eventually wire up his house with cable or fiber. It never happened.
He eventually switched to a wireless Internet service provider that delivered about 50Mbps. Mauch at one point contacted Comcast, which told him it would charge $50,000 to extend its cable network to his house. "If they had priced it at $10,000, I would have written them a check," Mauch told Ars. "It was so high at $50,000 that it made me consider if this is worthwhile. Why would I pay them to expand their network if I get nothing back out of it?"
Not the first to have need to do it themselves, but an interesting story.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by GloomMower on Friday August 12 2022, @06:16PM (4 children)
Does anyone know why it costs $30k to do 1/2 mile? Seems way above average per foot.
I've done 1/4 mile of coax for about $3k but was on private land, are there that many fees?
Maybe it is the conduit that is expensive? I used direct burial coax.
(Score: 3, Informative) by JoeMerchant on Friday August 12 2022, @06:23PM (2 children)
30 years ago, running electric service (still with some subsidies from the power company) cost roughly $1K per pole to the customer, with a pole every 250' or so. 1/2 mile would have been about $10K. Just straight inflation would put that up to $21K today [officialdata.org] and I'd bet that the cost of that kind of work and materials has inflated at least as fast as the CPI.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 2) by Nuke on Saturday August 13 2022, @07:34PM (1 child)
I was told only a few days ago by a telephone engineer (in the UK) that it costs £1000 to put up a pole. He was responding to my sugestion to re-route my line away from some troublesome trees. That would not have included the wire itself or the stuff at the ends of the line I suppose.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday August 13 2022, @08:43PM
Around here they "give you the wire and transformer for free" on smaller (sub $100k) projects. If your meter can is within 300' of an existing pole they will run an underground service at no charge - for new customers.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 12 2022, @06:52PM
Sounds about "normal" for services everywhere. Think it was about $30k (converted) for my parents to get fiber to the house that was about 400m from the road.
(Score: 3, Informative) by JoeMerchant on Friday August 12 2022, @06:17PM (4 children)
This is not a new story, electricity and phone service were rolled out to rural locations with the vast bulk of the funding coming from federal subsidies.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Friday August 12 2022, @06:46PM (3 children)
Except that in at least recent decades, what's actually happened is that broadband was not rolled out to rural locations with the vast bulk of the funding coming from federal subsidies.
Every year, telecoms get money to build out rural broadband, and instead of doing that, they just keep the money. And since they've bought Congress they keep getting the subsidies, and since they've bought the FCC they don't get into trouble for not doing it.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Friday August 12 2022, @07:05PM (2 children)
Yep, the FCC has been playing patsy with the broadband industry literally forever, and no amount of swamp draining seemed capable of improving that.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 13 2022, @12:04AM (1 child)
I have yet to see the swamp truly drained.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Saturday August 13 2022, @03:35PM
To be fair, nobody's really tried. Why would they, when they can make millions by not draining it?
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by HammeredGlass on Friday August 12 2022, @08:29PM (12 children)
"with the help of $2.6 million in government money."
fuck dammit shit
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 12 2022, @08:47PM (1 child)
What did you expect? ISP-MacGyver? That with some cat5 cable, a few pieces of bubblegum and a yellow rubber ball he would build an ISP out in the boonies for you? Redneck crafting ...
(Score: 2) by HammeredGlass on Saturday August 13 2022, @12:22AM
Of course not, man! You got to future proof it with cat8++ so that you NEVER need another wire run bill! Sign here ______________
(Score: 5, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Friday August 12 2022, @09:37PM (9 children)
Difference between this guy and Comcast is that he's actually delivering service for the money, Comcast just takes the government Billions and whistles a merry tune....
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 1, Troll) by HammeredGlass on Saturday August 13 2022, @12:23AM (3 children)
It's the Delaware way.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 13 2022, @02:25AM (2 children)
?? I don't understand what you mean.
(Score: 5, Informative) by tekk on Saturday August 13 2022, @05:58AM (1 child)
Just about every major corporation is falsely registered in Delaware for tax purposes. Hundreds of thousands of businesses are "headquartered" in this building: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporation_Trust_Center_%28CT_Corporation%29 [wikipedia.org]
(Score: 5, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Saturday August 13 2022, @02:03PM
It's not false, it's legal. Which is proof that our laws are corrupt.
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end
(Score: 5, Insightful) by FatPhil on Saturday August 13 2022, @07:18AM (4 children)
It's depressing that comedy from the 1970s is still on point to this day.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 3, Interesting) by canopic jug on Saturday August 13 2022, @08:31AM (2 children)
It's depressing that comedy from the 1970s is still on point to this day.
From the very early 1970s even: We don't care. We don't have to. We're the phone company. [youtu.be]. Her related sketched are still funny, too. Though younger crowds might not get all the references like "Milhous" aka Tricky Dick.
In the threads on another article, I had remembered that the phone companies / ISPs had been pocketing money intended for infrastructure since ht early 1990s. Reading a bit more, it turns out that they've been pocketing that money, without providing anything in exchange, since the 1980s or possibly earlier. I guess the only thing gained was the old Bell Labs. That's not a small thing but was about the only thing gained. It's around still though mostly in name only. Perhaps the only reason that Bell Labs was so productive and great was because it seems like the business managers may have ignored it, thus allowing it to get stuff done back then.
They still don't care. They still don't have to.
Money is not free speech. Elections should not be auctions.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday August 13 2022, @11:17PM (1 child)
Well crap. That video is blocked in the US on copyright grounds.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by anubi on Sunday August 14 2022, @04:15AM
As businesses use technology as a barrier to customers getting what they showed up for, it only encourages customers to adopt other technologies ( ad blockers, copyright violation enablers, vpn, whatever) to counter that frustration.
I am currently at odds with a fast food restaurant whose manager is insisting I load their app (and click "I agree" to several pages of terms and conditions) for a one time use discount coupon. It's a lot easier just to go to a street vendor that does not require me to do this.
It just seems to be a thing with business. It's a relaxation oscillator. When they start making a lot of money, they spend in on erecting barriers to entry at their customer, then cry because their customers go elsewhere.
Just what do they teach in business school these days?
"Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." [KJV: I Thessalonians 5:21]
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Saturday August 13 2022, @02:05PM
Be careful, man, the phone cops hear everything!
WKRP
Україна досі не є частиною Росії Слава Україні🌻 https://news.stanford.edu/2023/02/17/will-russia-ukraine-war-end