Greenville, S.C.: GUC eyes offering Internet via Powerlines !!!

GUC eyes offering Internet

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By Scott Batchelor
The Daily Reflector

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Greenville Utilities is looking at whether to provide customers with infrastructure for high-speed, broadband Internet, perhaps using technology that pipes the data over power lines.

Earlier this year, the city of Wilson announced plans to bring broadband service to residents through fiber-optic cable run into homes, said Tony Cannon, assistant general manager of Greenville Utilities.

That caught the attention of the utility's board of commissioners. The staff hired Greenville, S.C.-based Palmetto Engineering and Consulting to provide "an update on the market (for high-speed Internet) and what customers demands were and how they were being met," Cannon said.

Palmetto presented that report Tuesday night.

"They think that we've got good service in our area," Cannon said of high-speed Internet.

But there are some areas "that may not have broadband or Wi-Fi (wireless networking) or other services available," mainly in rural, less densely populated areas. The consultants said providing broadband Internet works best when the municipal entity seeks the improved welfare of subscribers and not just profit.

If Greenville Utilities decided to move forward with the idea, the agency "would not be a content provider," said General Manager Ron Elks. The utility would provide only the physical conduits over which Internet data travels, he said.

Cannon said that Palmetto's "bottom line was that the market is changing" and that "technology is developing beyond where it has been in the past."

One of those that Greenville Utilities might employ would be "broadband over power line," Cannon said.

That involves sending data over power lines into the electric wiring of a home or business. Residents could plug their computers into the wall socket to get power and the Web, he said.

But that is "very new technology, and there's still a lot of bugs that have to be worked out," Cannon said. A hubrid solution wouls likely provide the most flexibility, according to the consultants.

Palmetto made no recommendations Tuesday.

"What we've asked Palmetto to do is come back to us and tell us what the next steps would be as far as doing a deeper (market) needs analysis in the area ... (and) what, if any, role GUC could play in that," Cannon said.

The utility paid Palmetto $2,400 for the first round of help, said Cannon.

Greenville Utilities has about 135,000 customer accounts, the vast majority of them residential service, covering about 75 percent of Pitt County, he said.

Earlier this year, the city of Greenville rolled out wireless Internet service that covers much of the downtown area.