{"id":7164,"date":"2012-04-17T13:26:03","date_gmt":"2012-04-17T17:26:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/new-hampshire\/?p=7164"},"modified":"2012-04-25T17:39:57","modified_gmt":"2012-04-25T21:39:57","slug":"wivalley-battles-hills-budgets-to-connect-monadnocks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/new-hampshire\/2012\/04\/17\/wivalley-battles-hills-budgets-to-connect-monadnocks\/","title":{"rendered":"WiValley Battles Topography And Budgets To Connect Monadnocks"},"content":{"rendered":"
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(Photo by Cindy Kibbe)<\/p>

Internet connectivity using a blend of WiFi and fiber optics is the 'only way that makes sense going forward' for rural communities, says Brian Foucher, founder of Keene-based WiValley.<\/p><\/div>\n

Brian Foucher traveled some 300 days a year for business. When the Harrisville, N.H., resident was home, he telecommuted to meetings around the globe, but found his Internet connection so poor his employer became frustrated. With a wife and young family at home, that kind of work life was quickly growing old.<\/p>\n

Foucher\u2019s initiative to solve his own Internet problems eventually evolved into a business, WiValley, Inc<\/a>. of Keene, which solved connectivity issues not only for Foucher, but for other Monadnock residents as well.<\/p>\n

Going The \u2018Last Mile\u2019<\/h3>\n

After successful pilots connecting several dozen rural customers, Foucher launched WiValley in 2008 with seed money from investors, some of whom were the recipients of connectivity from those pilot projects.<\/p>\n

Today, WiValley has installations in some 40 towns in southwestern New Hampshire, as well as six communities in eastern Vermont and five in northwestern Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

Depending on the topography, WiValley\u2019s systems have upload and download speeds up to 15 Mbps for residential customers and up to Gigabyte speeds for businesses \u2013 far surpassing dial-up connections, satellite and DSL.<\/p>\n

Foucher is quick to point out, however, that WiValley can’t solve everyone’s broadband issues because the technology to get higher speeds from fixed wireless signals requires line-of-sight connections to receivers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenge with our technology is the land, the hills and valleys,\u201d says Foucher. \u201cThe amount of trees is the other major factor. We might be able to connect one person, but their next-door neighbor might be behind a stand of trees that absorb the signals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Foucher’s company isn\u2019t the only firm tackling New Hampshire\u2019s so-called \u201cDigital Divide.\u201d\u00a0 Like WiValley, RadiusNorth Communications<\/a> in New Ipswich also provides wireless broadband to towns in the Monadnock Region<\/a>. The regions north and west of Concord also have slow Internet service or lack it entirely. North Country Internet Access<\/a> in Berlin and the Wireless LINC <\/a>project, a large-scale fiber optic network under development through a partnership between the Northern Community Investment Corporation<\/a> and Littleton Industrial Development Corporation<\/a>, are just two providers bringing broadband to the state\u2019s northern tier. Major carriers like FairPoint Communications<\/a> and Comcast<\/a> also have rural projects underway throughout the state.<\/p>\n

Politics And Priorities<\/h3>\n

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