Thanks Keith! These are exactly the kind of stories we want to feature in this series. Will definitely include KIN in a future issue.

I moved to Canada several years ago and you should be made aware of KIN in Kaslo (https://kin.bc.ca) on the west side of the north end of Kootenay Lake. The boondocks of interior BC. Telus said it would be 10 years before fiber arrived. So, the community started a non-profit society to link with existing fiber lower down the lake and started putting fiber to all the houses in town. The business plan established permanent local jobs, low cost internet and easy accessibility. Soon Columbia Basin Trust (CBT) was on board with funding. The result is eye popping. Cost is half of Telus. The employees know everyone in town (950 folks). If there’s a problem, it’s resolved fast. Several major folks in town are web based. We’ve produced shows at the Langham Theatre that were broadcast over the web. There is quantifiable economic benefit from the new fiber.

Recently, KIN explored running fiber over to Riondel and other communities on the east side of the lake. My understanding is that that is next on the tick list.

It’s a great example of a rural community taking charge and dumping the big guys to provide better, faster, cheaper connectivity.

Metaviews is a paid subscription newsletter, but for the segments that we’re sponsoring, including this future fibre / micro-ISPs movement we will run the entire articles right here. This article is the complete version of the Metaviews one.