County commissioners heard a pitch in February for a faster Internet service in Madison County.
Now, county residents are being asked to participate in an online interview about their Internet services.
Visit the county website at http://www.madisoncountyga.us/ and click on “Madison County Broadband Internet Survey” to participate.
Last month, Alan Fitzpatrick of Open Broadband presented an overview of “fixed-wireless high-speed Internet” for Madison County. He said his company provides Internet services up to 100 times faster than DSL to residents and businesses in rural areas. The base cost of service would be $40 a month for residents.
County commissioners seemed very open to the possibility. Local leaders have long heard complaints about slow Internet services from Windstream. Fitzpatrick said there’s no reason people in rural areas should be denied the Internet services available to city residents.
“This addresses the divide between rural and urban markets,” said Fitzpatrick, whose North Carolina-based company works with governments in his home state and in South Carolina. “…Citizens in Madison County can have access to the same or better speeds offered in Athens.”
Fitzpatrick said the company aims to reach many communities across the Southeast.
“Our intentions are to expand across the Southeast from Virginia to Georgia,” he said.
Fitzpatrick said Open Broadband “works in a public-private partnership model.”
“We bring fiber to the community, invest in the antenna infrastructure and provide the service,” said the Open Broadband executive. “Our partner is asked to provide space on towers and/or rooftop buildings and consider us for providing your Internet service. We pay local installers and will hire a local community representative.”
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