Southern Maryland Broadband Study CCG Consulting, Inc. Table of Contents Page Overview of the Project.................................................................................................................4 Executive Summary.......................................................................................................................6 Section I – Needs Assessment........................................................................................................9 A. Surveys and Interviews ...........................................................................................9 B. Mapping Broadband Availability..........................................................................16 1. Calvert County Maps ......................................................................................20 2. Charles County Maps......................................................................................25 3. St. Mary’s Maps..............................................................................................30 C. Interviews with Incumbent Providers ..................................................................39 D. Broadband Products and Prices ...........................................................................44 E. Business Market Data...........................................................................................52 Section II – Industry Analysis.....................................................................................................56 A. Overview of the Communications Industry..........................................................56 B. Issues with Broadband Technology ......................................................................58 1. DSL..................................................................................................................59 2. Cable Modem...................................................................................................61 3. Wireless Broadband.........................................................................................63 4. Satellite Data ..................................................................................................64 5. Fiber to the Home / Business...........................................................................65 6. Broadband Over PCS.......................................................................................66 C. Existing Broadband Providers in the Counties .....................................................67 Section III – Technical Issues......................................................................................................70 A. How Much Broadband is Enough? ..............................................................................70 B. Why Broadband is Important .......................................................................................71 C. U.S. Broadband Standings vs. the World.....................................................................73 D. Broadband Technologies in Use Today.......................................................................74 1. Fiber Technologies.................................................................................................74 2. Copper....................................................................................................................77 3. Hybrid Fiber Coaxial .............................................................................................80 4. Unlicensed Wireless...............................................................................................81 5. Licensed Wireless ..................................................................................................82 6. Broadband Over Powerline....................................................................................84 7. Satellite Data..........................................................................................................85 E. Future Technology........................................................................................................87 F. Infrastructure Analysis..................................................................................................90 Page 2 Southern Maryland Broadband Study CCG Consulting, Inc. G. High Level Technical Design ......................................................................................97 Section IV – Business Plan Analysis.........................................................................................114 A. Business Plan Key Assumptions................................................................................114 B. Business Plan Results.................................................................................................118 1. Financial Statements ..............................................................................................121 Section V – Solutions and Recommendations .........................................................................132 1. Broadband Czar ..........................................................................................................133 2. Bring Broadband to Unserved Areas ..........................................................................135 3. Actively Promote Fiber...............................................................................................144 4. Rely on Partnerships and Swapping ...........................................................................145 5. Comcast Installation Fees ...........................................................................................146 6. Change Franchise Agreements ...................................................................................147 7. Verizon FIOS..............................................................................................................147 8. Patuxent Park Diversity ..............................................................................................148 Section VI – Implementing the Solutions.................................................................................149 A. The Task List .............................................................................................................149 B. The Major Tasks.........................................................................................................154 C. Time Line ...................................................................................................................160 Page 3 Southern Maryland Broadband Study CCG Consulting, Inc. Overview of the Project The Tri-County Council, representing Charles County, St. Mary’s County and Calvert County engaged CCG Consulting, Inc. (CCG) to study issues associated with broadband availability within the three counties. In its Request for Proposal and subsequent discussions, the Counties summarized the primary goals of the project as follows: 1. Identify the needs for broadband for the various segments of the Counties including large and small businesses, government, education, and residence / SOHO. 2. Identify the extent and the cause of broadband service deficiency today in the counties by the various market segments. 3. Analyze the existing network infrastructure in the Counties that could be used to deliver broadband. 4. Analyze the issues with delivering broadband with the incumbent providers – Verizon, Comcast and GMP. 5. Identify the most promising technologies that could be used today and in the future to deliver broadband to the Counties. 6. Look at specific network designs that could be used to bring broadband the unserved / underserved parts of these counties. 7. Develop a financial feasibility report which explores the potential for a commercially viable solution for bringing broadband to the unserved / underserved parts of the Counties. 8. Recommend specific solutions that will make broadband available to unserved / underserved parts of the Counties. 9. Discuss the proper role of government in solving the digital divide issues associated with broadband. 10. Make specific recommendations on other broadband related topics. 11. Provide timelines, task lists and analysis that would assist the Counties in implementing the proposed solutions. To meet these objectives we took the following steps: • We conducted interviews with key players in the three counties. We attended various meetings in the Counties where we met with key players and discussed the issues. We also received voluntary surveys completed by those who represented various key segments of the Counties. • We developed maps showing the current coverage of DSL and cable modem within the Counties. The broadband coverage maps were then sent to Verizon, Comcast and GMP for verification. • We interviewed Verizon, Comcast and GMP concerning their network, their current broadband products, plans for future expansion and other broadband issues. Page 4 Southern Maryland Broadband Study CCG Consulting, Inc. • We conducted generic market research on the location and density of businesses and residences in the three Counties. • We identified the technologies available today that support broadband and discussed the applicability of these technologies for the region. • We identified, to the extent possible, the existing broadband infrastructure in the Counties. • We performed a high-level engineering design of a wireless system that could deliver broadband to the unserved / underserved parts of the Counties. We explored both a basic design and a more robust network design. • We interviewed the experts in