Cities, towns and counties that lack adequate broadband have been left out of the economy, education and culture for many years. The gap between the “haves” and “have-nots” became terribly clear in the pandemic, when broadband became a lifeline to work, education, shopping and community participation.

Around the world, underserved communities of all sizes have taken concrete steps to change how ISPs evaluate the business opportunity there. The Intelligent Community Forum has identified 4 ways to do it based on 20 years of work with communities. This webinar, originally conducted on July 12, introduces you to one of the courses in our Community Accelerator program, and shares insights from experts in network funding and development.

Missed the webinar? Watch it on demand now!

Speakers

Robert Bell, Co-Founder, Intelligent Community Forum
Robert Bell is co-founder of the Intelligent Community Forum, where he heads its research, analysis and content development activities. He directs the multi-stage analysis of communities for the annual Intelligent Community Awards program and authors the in-depth profiles of the Top Seven Intelligent Communities that are core to ICF's mission. Robert developed and leads the Intelligent Community Master Class and Community Accelerator programs, as well as ICF's advisory services for communities, and is a frequent speaker at municipal and telecom events. 

Rob McCann, CEO, ClearCable Networks
Rob McCann is the founder of Clearcable Networks and the President of the Hamilton Technology Centre. He has been working with advanced broadband service deployments in mid-market and rural cable and telephone systems since 1998. He is responsible for building and maintaining technical, network, and application intelligence. Rob works closely with carriers, cable systems, municipalities, and network service providers in Canada, the US, and the Caribbean providing them with the technology, integration, and business practices required to effectively operate voice, video, and data services in the changing broadband service provider industry.

Paul Leedham, Chief Innovation Officer, City of Hudson, Ohio, USA
Paul Leedham does double duty as chief innovation officer and director of IT for the City of Hudson in the state of Ohio.  The city has built, owns, and operates a 60-mile fiber optic network (Velocity Broadband). This network provides a launch pad for innovation and his mission is to explore and identify the most rapidly emerging ways to leverage what the city has built, while continuously evaluating the organization in all aspects of IT, collaborating with other organizations and developing ways to improve the city through innovative methods.

More on the Community Accelerator online training course on broadband connectivity