Social Media, Connectivity & Communications

It is especially critical that each taxpayer dollar spent in this state to further the nation’s broadband goals does not in any way create unintended consequences that would inhibit the ability of Montana’s telecom cooperatives to continue their aggressive broadband deployments in rural Montana.

As Facebook becomes an ever more important source of traffic to other Web sites, the two companies’ rivalry is certain to sharpen.

The Santa Clara chip-maker says the Light Peak system it is developing with other companies would connect home electronic equipment with fiber-optic cables, which initially could send data at 10 gigabits per second, speedy enough to transfer a full-length Blu-ray movie from one gadget to another in about 30 seconds.

Technology experts and stakeholders belive that
innovative forms of online cooperation could result in
more efficient and responsive for-profit firms, nonprofit
organizations, and government agencies by the
year 2020.

The Agriculture Department says homes, businesses, schools and libraries in parts of North Dakota and Montana will benefit. High-speed Internet also will be provided to tribal government facilities.

For weeks, local governments have tried to outwit and outplay each other to win ultra high-speed Internet connections as part of the popular "Google Fiber" project.

"People are hungry for faster connections."

"We want Google in our community doing a project; that’s an economic driver right there," said Karen Byrnes, community development director. "We want to help them."

Friday is the last day people can nominate Missoula for a Google pilot project offering "ultra-high-speed" connections. To do so, go to http://www.ci.missoula.mt.us and click on the "Nominate Missoula for the Google Fiber Project" box on the left. Buchanan said the deadline to vote is 6 p.m. MDT on Friday

The City of Bozeman is asking people to spread the word about the city’s bid.