OpenCape Connections

OPENCAPE CONNECTIONS

April 2019

HELLO FROM THE CEO

Hello Friends, ~

Recently, the Cape Cod Wave published an online article entitled Could OpenCape Ever Compete with Comcast? Definitely Maybe. In it, State Representative Randy Hunt (R – Sandwich) and Barnstable County Administrator Jack Yunitz both highlight the merits and advantages of the OpenCape network while longtime customers Robin Orbison of CapeSpace and Erik Gura of Pie in the Sky each extol the incredible benefits of having our 100% fiber capabilities at their co-work share company in Hyannis and bakery/coffee shop in Woods Hole, respectively.

All of them mention the financial obstacles to hooking up to our network, and the article does a good job of explaining how build outs and connections cost so much and why only large businesses and towns can budget for that kind of infrastructure expenditure. Representative Hunt points out that even though our network is yards away from his home, he still can’t justify the thousands of dollars it would cost to connect residentially.

So, what I'd like to do in this note to all of you is to further illustrate the WHY of it all. Why should OpenCape be the internet alternative for not only municipalities, businesses and large institutions, but can and will be the answer for Cape Cod and the islands 200,000 plus residents?

As I said in the story, the difference between us and Comcast is that they have to deal with a legacy network that is NOT 100% fiber, while OpenCape has a state-of-the-art 100 percent fiber network, built specifically to move enormous amounts of data. We also have the redundancy and reliability that businesses and the Public Safety sector require to succeed.

But my point is also that the residents of our region deserve that same level of product and service! So many people are working from their homes, either full or part time, and the kind of entrepreneurial, media-based and artistic occupations that many Cape denizens pursue require the kind of powerful upload and download speeds that OpenCape provides.

Connecting every home on Cape Cod will require budgets well beyond what OpenCape can generate. Instead, our push is to engage towns, residents and small businesses to collaborate to make this work for them. It means speaking up about residential internet needs, breaking the monopoly of existent internet service, and encouraging towns to utilize their bonding authority to allocate funds toward connecting homes, like so many other Massachusetts communities have done.

By this time next month, we will have tools for you to employ to start making a difference in your own town. When we launch our new website in the next 2+ weeks, we will have a list of actionable steps you can take to lobby your local leaders, communicate effectively with your state level representatives, and build a community groundswell for residential service.

As I’ve always said, fiber is the economic driver to bring people to the Cape ~ and encourage them to stay. So, if the question is whether OpenCape could ever compete with Comcast? My answer is Definitely Definitely.

Warmly,

Steve

THE HOOK UP

It has been a busy few months and we keep adding new customers to our network. The most recent build outs and connections in progress include several in Woods Hole, including the US Geological Survey, Woods Hole Library, and two Community Preservation Committee buildings.

We've also connected the Eastham Elementary School and both the Orleans Fire Department and their Elementary School. We finished hooking up Coastal Acres in Provincetown, and two Provincetown Water Pumping Stations for the DPW and we are planning more projects in Hyannis.

Not only are we connecting the new Cape Cod Five HQ to our network, but we are also linking the 1575 Iyannough Rd office building that is across the street from the CC Five office.

The developer of this property had tremendous foresight in connecting his property to our 100% fiber network even before tenants are secured.

He, like many other savvy business people, realize that having the highest-speed and most reliable internet is a draw for all kinds of potential entrepreneurs. This kind of forward thinking is what drives new development here on Cape Cod, and OpenCape is proud to be an integral part of it.

COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

Earlier this month, OpenCape CEO Steve Johnston was the guest speaker at the monthly meeting of the Cape Cod Men's Club, held at the Doubletree Hotel, Hyannis.

The Cape Cod Men's Club (CCMC) is a social club of retired and semi-retired men whose primary residence is here on Cape Cod. Their monthly meetings include both a luncheon and a presentation on topics that are pertinent to the Cape Cod community.

The CCMC also offers a wide array of social and fitness activities to its members. In addition they work to support local organizations that assist veterans and provide for the less fortunate in the community.

"I was pleased to have the opportunity to address the members of the Cape Cod Men's club and explain more fully what OpenCape is and the role we are playing in the economic development of Cape Cod and the Southeastern Massachusetts region," says Johnston. "There were over 75 people there, including members of their own tech and investing committees, so there was significant interest in OpenCape's ongoing and future projects."

A team from OpenCape, including CFO Andrea Goode and Director of Client Services Angela Hurwitz, attended the most recent meeting of the Cape Cod Commission. They participated in the working sessions in which the Commission outlined their plans to implement Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy for Cape Cod.

The OpenCape delegation shared input on important infrastructure issues and how we see our network and services playing a key role in the future of Cape Cod.

We also support the Commission's desire to utilize new seasonal tax revenues to support significant infrastructure development, ie waste water treatment and broadband.

OpenCape was a Gold Level Vendor for the Cape Cod Young Professionals Shape Your Cape Summit, which took place on April 4 at the Seacrest Hotel in Falmouth.

Chief Technology Officer Janek Chrzanowski and CEO Steve Johnston were on hand at the one-day conference to share the OpenCape story and let the attendees know about how our 100% fiber network is helping to build an environment friendly to innovation and entrepreneurship.

We also gave away two themed prizes to a couple of lucky attendees who stopped by the OpenCape booth.

OpenCape relishes partnerships with community organizations such as CCYP, and looks forward to more collaborations throughout our footprint.

If you think OpenCape should get to know any other local community organizations, networking groups or economic development-focused committees, please let us know! Send your comments to : info@opencape.org.

TECHNOLOGY WORKS

OpenCape was out in force at the Cape Cod Technology Council's Annual meeting at the Popponesset Inn on April 24. Steve Johnston, our CEO, was the guest speaker for the event and he shared with the more than 50 members gathered that, to drive economic development for the Cape, Islands and Southeastern MA., it is imperative that we all put more emphasis on last mile connectivity.

He further stressed that it has become abundantly clear than we can not rely on the incumbent providers to solve our problems or even anticipate the needed support from the Commonwealth.

His talk inspired a lively discussion with Tech Council members which helped cement our organization's plans to roll out a comprehensive and user friendly toolkit.

Our goal is to help educate the community not only about our short and long term fiber connectivity needs, but also how we can effectively move forward to secure funds to implement them.

OpenCape Corporation

P.O. Box 1148

Barnstable, MA

02630-2148

www.opencape.org

508-362-2224

MAKE THE CONNECTION: