The LinkWISCONSIN Initiative

Welcome to the LinkWISCONSIN website. Here you’ll find important news and resources related to our mapping and planning efforts.

Feel free to visit our site often for the latest in broadband-related news and resources. The following are a few of the most recent updates to our site:

• View a presentation given by the FCC's Broadband Adoption Task Force on the importance of broadband access and adoption.
• USDA announced funding to improve access to healthcare and educational services in rural areas, including three awards in Wisconsin. Funding is provided through the USDA Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Program.
• Read a Daily Yonder news story on how Three Lakes, Wisconsin, generated competition to get affordable broadband and now is maximizing its economic impact by drawing small businesses to town. (Town of Three Lakes Chairman Don Sidlowski is active on the LinkWISCONSIN Region 2 planning team.)



Public meetings have been held to launch Broadband Action Plans in the following regions:

Region 1 (Ashland, Bayfield, Burnett, Douglas, Iron, Price, Sawyer, Taylor and Washburn Counties) | Meeting was held Oct. 3 in Hayward

Region 2 (Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Oneida and Vilas Counties) | Meeting was held Nov. 9 in Eagle River

Region 3 (Barron, Chippewa, Clark, Dunn, Eau Claire, Pepin, Pierce, Polk, Rusk and Saint Croix Counties) | Meeting was held Oct. 12 in Eau Claire

Region 4 (Marathon, Portage and Wood Counties) | Meeting was held Nov. 8 in Stevens Point

Region 6 (Adams, Buffalo, Jackson, Juneau, La Crosse, Monroe, Trempealeau and Vernon Counties) | Meeting was held Oct. 4 in La Crosse

Region 7 (Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Lafayette and Richland Counties) | Meeting was held Oct. 5 in Fennimore

• Region 8 (Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Green, Jefferson, Rock and Sauk Counties) | Public meeting is scheduled for Jan. 31, in Portage.

Additional regional updates:

Region 5 (Brown, Calumet, Door, Florence, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, Marinette, Marquette, Menominee, Oconto, Outagamie, Shawano, Sheboygan, Waupaca, Washara and Winnebago Counties) has launched its plan and is starting to form localized Technology Leadership Groups.

Region 9 (Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha Counties) | A regional plan has been developed and is available on the Region 9 planning page.

Funding for LinkWISCONSIN

Funding for LinkWISCONSIN

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 made funding possible for broadband projects, including mapping and planning, infrastructure, public computer centers and sustainable adoption programs. States' broadband mapping and planning projects are made possible through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) State Broadband Data and Development (SBDD) grant program.

In Nov. 2009, Wisconsin received an approximately $1.7 million grant to fund the State's SBDD project years 1-2. An additional $2.82 million grant was awarded in Sept. 2010 to fund project years 3-5.

This project will serve as a catalyst for increased access to and use of broadband to better serve our citizens. With ubiquitous broadband, we can realize improved economic development, access to education and health care, enhanced public safety, improved government efficiencies, increased tourism, greater access to telework opportunities and more.

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Why LinkWISCONSIN?

Through initial research, we understand there are many reasons Wisconsinites do not use broadband. Perhaps the most commonly cited barrier is access: broadband must be available in order to adopt it. Where broadband is available, barriers to adopting it include high subscription costs, lack of broadband-ready devices, low awareness of broadband uses and concerns about privacy and security on the Internet. Through community collaboration and regional planning, this project will address these issues and many more.

In order to address expansion of this technology, we must first have a clear picture of where broadband currently exists in the state, and thus where our gaps in coverage are. Following a thorough assessment and inventory of key Wisconsin assets, we have developed an online, interactive tool revealing our broadband footprint. This tool, available on this site in August, will display detailed maps of broadband coverage in both rural and urban areas throughout the state. Ultimately, these maps will provide consumers with links to individual broadband providers in their area.

While consumers may use this content to identify and order broadband services, it is equally important for policymakers and Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Policymakers can identify and address barriers to expansion. ISPs can identify gaps in coverage and an estimated cost to fill them.

To this point, we have been unable to accurately articulate the levels of current and future demand for broadband services for Wisconsin businesses, households and community anchor institutions. By collecting and analyzing market data, we will be able to profile county-specific broadband service demands and complete a geographic analysis of that demand relative to available infrastructure.

Another challenge LinkWISCONSIN will address is the absence of coordinated regional leadership to plan and implement local sustainable adoption. Later this year, we will facilitate regional technology planning teams to develop effective, local strategies and regional broadband plans.

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Our Role in Addressing Broadband Challenges and Solutions

LinkWISCONSIN is not intended to replace or compete with other broadband efforts in our state, but rather to identify and work with new and existing projects that share our goal. Through collaboration, we can finally realize greater access to and use of broadband technologies to improve business opportunities and the quality of life for all Wisconsinites.