innovate arkansas

An advisory group working to improve statewide access to broadband Internet service is about to be another step closer to that goal, John Ahlen, president of the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority, said Thursday.

Ahlen was among state government officials, academics and members of the business community attending the fourth annual Breakthrough Solutions Conference on Thursday at the Hilton in Little Rock.

The Broadband Advisory Council, created by the state General Assembly, has released its first report with recommendations for moving the broadband initiative forward. Among those needs is about $750,000 to begin funding the first phase of broadband deployment.

No money was appropriated for the rollout during the last legislative session. But Ahlen said Thursday that the ASTA will be able to provide some funding.

"I think we have good news coming in the next few days," Ahlen said.

Ahlen did not provide details on the amount of funding available. He said the process for releasing those funds has begun, and that he expects to make a formal announcement after the board meets later this month.

Broadband A Necessity to Compete

Among the sessions at Thursday's conference was a panel on the need for statewide broadband access. Many see broadband access as a necessity to compete in the global economy.

Panelists participating in the discussion were Arkansas Capital Corp. CEO C. Sam Walls; Arkansas Broadband Advisory Council Chair James Winningham and University of Arkansas Community College at Hope telecommunications director Dave Phillips.

Winningham said that while money is an issue, those involved in the project shouldn't lose sight of the ultimate goal, which is making sure that everyone has the ability to compete, both academically and professionally.

"The person who is most important to me is the kid who lives at the end of the cotton field," he said. "His shot at accessing information ... absolutely depends on broadband. He cannot compete with the kid in town."

Connect Arkansas

The Arkansas Broadband Initiative gained ground last year when the state Legislature created the Broadband Advisory Council. Another group, Connect Arkansas, was also formed out of that legislation. It is operated by Arkansas Capital Corp. and studies broadband availability in Arkansas and how it compares nationally and internationally.

Each of the panelists is a member of Connect Arkansas, which plans to have its findings on broadband availability in Arkansas available for legislators during the next legislative session.

"I do not believe that you can overstate the importance of this project," Walls said.

Walls added that Internet service providers historically have been reluctant to release specific information about services areas and other proprietary information.

But providers are more willing to share that information with an entity such as Connect Arkansas, making an accurate study possible, he said.

Jim Dailey, a former Little Rock mayor, is a member of the Broadband Advisory Council. He said by phone on Thursday that after the report is done, he expects getting enough legislative support to secure funding.

"I think that once this mapping is done, it's really going to help to crystallize and make a lot more clear to everyone exactly what the real facts are," Dailey said.

So far, various reports have placed Arkansas anywhere from 17^th to 47^th in comparison with other states' broadband access.

Dailey said widespread broadband access would make the state more attractive when recruiting businesses.

And in addition to the competitive advantages broadband Internet will provide Arkansas businesses, the deployment of the service alone will create 8,000 jobs, he said.

"That represents billions of dollars worth of additional income to state," he said. "We are losing ground if we're not doing everything we can to be competitive."