HYANNIS, MA – On February 13, 2024, Regional fiber optic network powerhouse, OpenCape, will host an event called “Beyond the Dark: Local Communities Lighting our Digital Futures” at the Cape Cod Five Headquarters, 1500 Iyannough Rd, Hyannis, MA 02601. The event will feature a policy discussion, lunch, and hands-on workshop from noon to 3:00 p.m.
Keynote speaker Gigi Sohn, a well-known tech policy lawyer and advocate, will discuss “dark money” and its impact on the public interest in the telecommunications industry. She will share her personal experience of how the industry utilized significant resources to block her nomination by President Biden to serve on the Federal Communications Commission. Sohn will also discuss how the same players are working to limit choice and competition locally and how it will impact our future.
Joining Sohn will be Quentin Palfrey, Massachusetts Federal Funding and Infrastructure Director for the Healey Administration to discuss the Commonwealth’s efforts to attract and utilize federal funds to drive growth and economic developments. Sean Gonsalves, Senior Reporter and Editor at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance ILSR, will also speak at the event. Senator Ed Markey will also make a special appearance.
Community leaders, municipalities, administrators, department heads, and elected officials who support connectivity as a catalyst for education, healthcare, economic redevelopment, public safety, robust entrepreneurship, and a competitive future for the region are invited to attend. The event will include a hands-on workshop from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. to share information with town leaders and staff on how to apply for available grant funding to build or expand their local fiber infrastructure.
According to Steven Johnston, CEO and Executive Director of OpenCape, “Every day our local businesses and residents are becoming more reliant on their access to the internet. We are quickly coming to a crossroads; we must not allow monopolies to limit choice and competition. OpenCape’s mission
to ensure that every community, business, and resident has access to robust, reliable and affordable access regardless of their demographic or economic status.
For more information or to register for the event, please visit www.opencape.org.
OpenCape owns, operates and maintains a state-of-the-art, 650-mile, 100% fiber optic network that provides reliable and affordable broadband internet access for businesses, healthcare providers, educational institutions and municipalities across Cape Cod, the Islands, Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The Barnstable-based non-profit has launched several residential and Main Street business Fiber internet pilots, including Woods Hole, Falmouth, Hyannis, and Buzzards Bay on Cape Cod. Their goal is to foster and support community-led initiatives to drive growth and economic development, as well as meet unserved and underserved communities to help bridge the digital divide.
