Albany-based FirstLight Fiber, which now controls access to much of the state’s internet backbone, also is majority owner of a Maine-based internet service provider.
broadband
Posted inBusiness, Maine
In surprise sale, NY firm acquires company that runs part of Maine’s broadband network
Maine Fiber Co., which owns and operates the Three Ring Binder fiber-optic network, is acquired by Albany-based FirstLight Fiber.
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Posted inBusiness, Maine, News, Politics
Bill would curb data selling by Maine internet service providers
Lawmakers are scheduled to take up a measure Tuesday that would require Maine internet service providers to obtain consent before sharing customer data with a third party.
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Collins, King urge USDA to fund broadband in ‘geographically challenged’ areas
U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King have joined a bipartisan group urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to direct funding for broadband internet expansion to high-need rural areas. Collins, a Republican, and King, an independent, urged the USDA on Tuesday in a jointly written letter to set aside part of a $600 million rural broadband […]
Posted inFranklin, sj-web
USDA secretary, Bruce Poliquin hear needs of rural areas in Farmington
FARMINGTON — Representatives of several professions and nonprofit services from Maine’s rural counties met Wednesday with the U.S. secretary of agriculture and stressed the need for federal support for high-speed internet access, telehealth services and fighting opioid addiction. USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and U.S. Rep. Bruce Poliquin, R-Maine, participated in the discussion at Franklin Memorial […]
Posted inFranklin
Farmington selectmen hear broadband update from GWI
FARMINGTON — A Biddeford-based telecommunications company is hoping to bring broadband internet to parts of Franklin County within the next one to two years, and will be seeking to gauge interest from residents over the next few weeks. “This is something that will really allow the community to grow as it wants to grow,” said […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine ranks last in New England for internet access
BANGOR (AP) — A U.S. Census Bureau study ranks Maine last in New England for broadband internet access but finds the state is on par with national averages. The Bangor Daily News reports the study released Wednesday found that 80.7 percent of Maine households subscribed to broadband internet in 2016. That’s compared with 81.4 percent […]
Posted inRiver Valley
Rumford town manager: Broadband is future for downtown
RUMFORD — Town Manager Linda-Jean Briggs said bringing broadband service to The Island business district this summer is more important than completing a natural gas pipeline. Speaking from her office Friday, Briggs elaborated on her comments made to EnvisionRumford members July 19. She explained to the economic development organization that plans to install a natural gas […]
Posted inMaine, News
Microsoft and RTO Wireless to bring broadband to 125K in Maine
Microsoft and RTO Wireless are partnering to expand broadband internet service to more than 290,000 people in New York and Maine. A spokeswoman said Monday that the project will roll out over a seven-year period, reaching 165,000 people in New York state and 125,000 people in Maine. Shelley McKinley, Microsoft’s head of technology and corporate […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Power line project offers prospect of better internet in rural Maine
FARMINGTON — A possible benefit of the proposed $950 million hydropower transmission line between the Canadian border and Lewiston is the opportunity it offers to extend high-speed internet into more of rural Maine. Central Maine Power plans to include fiber-optic strands atop its transmission towers, with on-and-off ramps every 3 to 5 miles that would […]