Croydon's
Quest for High Speed Croydon’s
quest for high-speed internet continues. Currently residents of Croydon
rely on dial-up or satellite services. Although satellite is faster than
dial up, it is slower than DSL and is subject to weather conditions.
Many of Croydon’s residents cannot afford the costs associated with
Satellite services. Where
the problem lies is with internet growth. Most computer program updates
are available only via the internet, and at dial-up speed it is not unheard of for
updates to take two or more hours. It also makes various types of files
hard to send or receive. It is also difficult for residents who run
small businesses from their homes and need reliable and fast internet
access. Early
in 2008, Croydon Selectman James Harding mailed Fairpoint a petition signed by
residents asking the company to install high-speed internet in
our town. Croydon’s Selectmen report that they were in contact with
Fairpoint's Al
Guimont who said that high-speed internet would not be available for
residents until 2010. I
tried contacting Guimont to check on the original timeline. Guimont
works out of South Portland Maine. My calls to his contact number were
unanswered, followed by a disconnect. My call to the business office in
South Portland produced little information except, according to Candy Sue,
that Fairpoint is having difficulties keeping up with current operations. Although
the office would not give out Mr. Guimont’s phone number, they did
email him on my behalf asking him to contact me. She informed me that he
would not be back in his office until Monday, and that anyone wishing to contact Mr.
Guimont to request internet services from Fairpoint can email him at aguimont@fairpoint.com.
Cornish had some success with their residents contacting him. |
Comcast
provides high-speed internet service to Newport and Grantham. Since we
are between each town, I called Comcast's 800 number to get information
about whom to contact regarding Croydon receiving cable and internet.
The representative informed me that I could get Comcast’s internet,
cable and telephone service for $114 a month, plus a $300 rebate. All I had to do was to give him my credit card number. I explained to
him that Croydon did not have Comcast in the town. He assured me, he was
not giving me false information. I
put in an order for internet services on Comcast's web site, giving all
information required. The screen instructed me to wait for a service
representative to finish my order. "Carol" informed me via a chat platform
that services are not hard-lined in Croydon and I should contact Warner
Cable, Hughes Satellite, or Wildblue Satellite. I asked her for a number
to a DSL Coordinator to see what is necessary for Croydon to get
hard-lined for Comcast services. Carol instructed me to call
888-633-4266 and to have the agent set up a construction ticket for
the area Comcast Field Coordinator to contact me regarding building our
hard line. She informed me to keep the ticket number for him to resurvey
the area again, adding that he would contact me within three
weeks. The
company is owned by Bill Thompson, and I spoke with his son, James, who
is Vice President of Operations. He said that Iamnow.net
uses a Motorola Canopy to transmit wireless signals. The system is the
type used in Arizona and New Mexico where there are miles of nothing, and
signals travel for two miles. He said that although trees and the
granite in our mountains bring the signal to a dead stop, it is still
possible to provide the system at a profit to small communities. The company is currently seeking to serve communities that are underserved or considered too small by larger players. James commented that he left a corporate job in Manchester to join his father in the family business in 2006 and feels he is making a difference in people’s lives. Iamnow.net is looking forward to having contact with the Croydon Selectboard and the Croydon Selectboard informed me they would contact the company.
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Contact: ken.s+sunacom.com (replace "+" with "@") |
