Rhode Island is wired.
By most accounts, the state is far ahead of the national curve in getting fiber optic cable to the biggest parts of the state. According to Terry Mercer, a spokesman at the state Public Utilities Commission, it has to do with Rhode Island’s size.
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“Percentage-wise, it’s probably one instance where being smaller is better,” he said.
The area’s largest installer of line is Cox Communications. With its branch Cox Business Service, the company brought fiber optic technology to Providence’s Jewelry District last year, and is currently wiring Quonset Point.
Cox’s New England Media Relations Manager Leigh Ann Woisard said the Cox Business Service branch has helped a great deal in the company’s wiring endeavors.
“They’re the arm of the company that really keeps pushing this forward,” she said. “They’re the ones taking the risks.”
Cox is not the only one in the fiber optic game, however.
Joseph Hammang, director of science and technology at the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, said that although Cox wires 96 percent of the homes in Rhode Island, there will be competition moving in soon.
“There are other providers who are expressing interest in the areas that Cox has already invested in,” he said. “American Broadband has made it clear that they’re going to go to East Bay, and they’ve invested $150 million to $180 million in the infrastructure in the state.”
John Wolfe, vice president of government and public affairs for Cox, said the competition is something he looks forward to because it helps put Rhode Island on the cutting edge map.
“Rhode Island leads the nation in terms of broadband availability,” he said. “It’s a huge asset to this state as far as businesses coming. And it’s the only state that can boast a nearly ubiquitous competitive broadband network. Other places you go you can only choose between the network or the incumbent phone company’s network.”
Tony Peduto, vice president and general manager of American Broadband, said he is looking forward to getting down to business. With a hearing at the end of this month for a construction certificate, and a public hearing in late February, that company plans to wire 20 cities and towns in Rhode Island.
“We’re going to compete with Cox straight on,” he said. “People have gotten frustrated with their cable companies for excessive rates, and once we get in the home we offer Internet, cable, phone service and we offer discounts for each rate.”
Cox, which has always offered cable services, and recently added Internet services, began to offer telephone service in Providence this past November.
Cox Digital Telephone was initially offered last winter in Cumberland, Lincoln, North Smithfield, Woonsocket, Cranston, Johnston, North Providence, Pawtucket, East Providence, Central Falls, North Kingstown, Jamestown, South Kingstown and Narragansett.
Mark Scott is the vice president and general manager of Cox Business Services.
“We are eager to offer competitive phone service to the businesses of Providence,” he said in November. “Regardless of the size of the company we can offer affordable telecommunications solutions to help businesses in the city meet their customers’ needs.”
Hammang expressed a little frustration about the two Rhode Island communities that are not wired; New Shoreham (Block Island) and Foster. He said it is going to take a big corporation that wants to move into one of those areas to convince the companies doing the wiring that those areas are not as remote as they seem to think they are. He said the company would probably have to negotiate with a telecom provider to bring in broadband if the company wanted to move to either of those areas.
“We are not losing companies because of lack of broadband access though,” he said, “and with the aggressiveness of companies like Cox, and with additional competition with the likes of American Broadband, we think it can only get easier and easier to get access in this state.”
