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Uploaded: Friday, February 20, 2009, 12:13 PM

PUBLIC AGENDA: City Council, negotiation discussion for city-wide broadband system  

Listen to the Palo Alto City Council meeting live when the council is in session (usually Monday nights at 7 p.m.) via the KZSU Webcast.

Posted by YSK, a resident of the Old Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 20, 2009 at 1:32 pm

Would the broadband be free to residents, less expensive or comparable to Comcast, faster than Comcast, or just another exorbitant bill upon which they can tax us to death?

Posted by fireman, a resident of another community, on Feb 20, 2009 at 1:53 pm

I go with the Taxed to death part. also it is a way for them to move money around without you knowing.

Say it is going here, when it really is going there.

That is how the budget works in Palo Alto.

Posted by Oversubscribing, a resident of the Community Center neighborhood, on Feb 20, 2009 at 2:04 pm

They'll pay for this by increasing our utility bills, then transferring the money over to the general fund.

Just another good reason for them to move forward with their next increase in July, 2009.

Posted by Walter_E_Wallis, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Feb 20, 2009 at 7:37 pm
Walter_E_Wallis is a member (registered user) of Palo Alto Online

Will this work against the interest of the fiber net?

Posted by Wilson, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 20, 2009 at 8:28 pm

Alameda Sells Its Telecom Operations To Comcast!

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Web Link

Comcast Acquires Alameda Muni Operation For $15 Million

Sale, Covering 9,500 Video Customers, Takes Effect Today

By Linda Haugsted -- Multichannel News, 11/21/2008 11:42:00 AM

The Alameda, Calif., City Council has agreed to sell its municipal cable operation to Comcast Corp. for a price that nets out to $15 million.

The sale of the municipal operator, which serves 9,500 video and 6,600 data customers, takes effect Nov. 21.

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This is another of the Municipal Telecom operations that has gone under over the past few years.

Wonder if anyone at City Hall (like Valery Fong) is going to point this out to the City Council?

Given that Comcast is will be offering 100mbs service to major markets this year, and nationwide in the months to follow, and one can only wonder why the City Council believes that a non-name fiber system is going to make money?

Admittedly this is not a muni operation, it is hard to believe that it will not look very much like one before it is all over.

Posted by Anonymous, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Feb 20, 2009 at 9:25 pm

Please, not more of this fiber to the home nonsense.

Here are the DOSCIS specs. 3.0 networks are just being rolled out now. Looks as if coax can do just fine.

Version Downstream Upstream

1.x 42.88 (38) Mbit/s 10.24 (9) Mbit/s

2.0 42.88 (38) Mbit/s 30.72 (27) Mbit/s

3.0 4channel +171.52 (+152) Mbit/s +122.88 (+108) Mbit/s

3.0 8channel +343.04 (+304) Mbit/s +122.88 (+108) Mbit/s

Posted by Walter_E_Wallis, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Feb 21, 2009 at 2:24 am
Walter_E_Wallis is a member (registered user) of Palo Alto Online

Sure, coax can do fine - and there is no need for more then 3 or 4 computers in the country [IBM] or what possible use can there be for more than 64K of memory? [Gates].

Posted by bruce, a resident of the Crescent Park neighborhood, on Feb 22, 2009 at 11:31 am

Is it my imagination of has the idea of Internet, in some way to wire Palo Alto been floating around for about 20 years now?

All this talk ... it reaminds me of the cable todo and gives me a "Blagoivich" feeling, like someone is waiting to get paid off before anything can move forward.

Get it done City of Palo Alto. I lived in Mountain View for a bit before I moved here, they have free wireless Internet there ... what is the hold up in Palo Alto.

It is sickening that the soul of innovation and cleverness that brought us Silicon Valley is leached on by politicians who hold us all back so that they can get paid, or talk endlessly and do nothing while getting elected .... is this malaise countrywide now, do nothing and collect job security and a bonus out of it,

GET INTERNET DONE, JUST DO IT.

Posted by Walter_E_Wallis, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Feb 22, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Walter_E_Wallis is a member (registered user) of Palo Alto Online

Palo Alto lagged neighbors ten years getting cable because they wanted to get it right. Seen any Co-op trucks around lately?