broadband-plan-comment

BEFORE THEFederal Communications CommissionWASHINGTON, D.C.In the matter of ))A National Broadband Plan for Our Future ) GN Docket No. 09-51COMMENTS OF LAURENCE BRETT (“BRETT”) GLASS, d/b/a LARIAT, A WIRELESS INTERNET SERVICEPROVIDER SERVING ALBANY COUNTY, WYOMINGLaurence Brett (“Brett”) Glass, a sole proprietor doing business as LARIAT, a wireless Internetservice provider in Albany County, Wyoming, responds to the Commission’s Notice of Inquiry dated April18, 2009 with the following comments.1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARYLARIAT was among the first, if it was not the very first, of the world’s terrestrial, wireless highspeed Internet service providers (WISPs), which now number between 4,000 and 8,000 in the United Statesalone. With more than 17 years of experience in the deployment of wireless broadband and an ElectricalEngineer (MSEE Stanford 1985) at the helm, LARIAT provides high quality broadband Internet to a largeand growing service area in southeastern Wyoming, less than 5% of which has access to “wired”broadband options (e.g. DSL or cable modem service). It also competes gamely with much larger providers– including cable and telephone incumbents Bresnan Communications and Qwest – in the few more denselypopulated areas where these companies have deployed high speed Internet service. As a pioneer in the deployment of Internet service to unserved and underserved areas, LARIAT is1 In re a National Broadband Plan for Our Future, Notice of Inquiry, ...