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Viodi View Newsletter – June 28th, 2006
Click here to learn more about Viodi’s Local Content Workshop
Still Independent…..
By Ken Pyle
[email protected]
Independent – a word that is bandied about all of the time when describing the mostly rural telcos discussed in this very magazine, the independent. I have been thinking about what independent means a great deal lately. It might be the recent fifth anniversary of Viodi that has triggered these thoughts. Often times, I imagine Viodi’s growing pains are similar to what the independent telcos went through during their years of struggle as they established telephone service in areas where no one else dared go.
Creating a telephone network from scratch was a risky proposition for these entrepreneurial individuals or groups of individuals. The fundamental thing that drove these pioneers was the desire to improve their communities. Independent Telcos’ customer first attitude remains strong today, as evidenced by the responses to various Viodi surveys where independent telcos repeatedly suggest that the number one reason for adding a service is to better their community.
Competition was never an issue, as it was never profitable to build two networks in rural areas. That’s changed in the past few years, as competition is coming from the expected sources, such as the offspring of Ma Bell, cable operators and wireless carriers, as well as new Internet-based operators that create applications which layer onto existing broadband networks.
How each telco adapts to this new market reality will be different and will depend upon its particular circumstances. There may be some that decide to take a “wholesale” model and focus on providing a high-quality last mile pipe, while others will decide to augment this pipe with full suite of telco-branded services; essentially deciding to become a media company at some level. Regardless of which path an independent telco follows, it will stay relevant to its community by acting like a start-up, thinking locally, adapting globally, and working together as an industry
John Wilson, formerly of Horizon Chillicothe and now an independent telecom consultant, put it best when he suggested that, “[Telcos] have to take a risk and get back to what the telephone pioneers did.” In other words, the mindset within an independent telco has to be that the future, while bright, is not guaranteed and that risks will have to be taken, mistakes made and plans quickly adapted to reflect an ever changing environment.
The independent telco’s inherent advantage is its connection to the communities it serves. Knowing the needs of the community allows an independent telco to fashion services and content into packages that the out-of-town competition is hard pressed to duplicate. Additionally, because the independent telco is typically the technology leader in its community, it has the opportunity to introduce and modify Internet and Interactive Television applications to meet the needs of its community.
Finally, independent telcos live up to their name in that they are all unique and have their own ways of doing things. The great thing is that independent telcos are free to provide what works best for their own community, but the challenge is that they don’t necessarily have the economy of scale of a larger organization. This may be the independent telcos’ biggest challenge and biggest opportunity, as the industry would be that much stronger if it can find a way to harness its collective brainpower without destroying the very independence that makes them a unique American institution.
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43rd Annual Summer Convention
The Homestead
Hot Springs, VA
July 15-19, 2006
A Must Attend Event for Anyone Interested in the Independent Telco Market
Happy Flag Day!
FTTX Network Architecture Seminar:
Understanding PON Design
ADC is pleased to invite you to an interactive seminar series focused on FTTX Network Architecture. This informative 2-1/2 day program provides highly in-depth, hands-on training on the issues that are important to
anyone deploying FTTX or considering it.
WHEN: July 18-20, 2006
Independent Local Content- Click Here to Learn More
Network PVRs Are Desired, But Operators Have Doubts
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