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Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Idaho Falls Fiber begins pilot program signup

Screenshot from Idaho Falls Fiber web page
Idaho Falls Fiber has begun offering fiberoptic services to city residents within the identified boundaries of its pilot program. Anyone interested can visit www.idahofallsfiber.com or calling IFF Customer Service at 208-612-8725.

Idaho Falls Fiber has partnered for the rollout with four local internet providers: Direct Communications, Qwknet, SilverStar, and SUMO. Anyone in the pilot areas, on the city's south side, can visit the website and enter their address to determine fiber availability at their location.  Once a customer confirms availability, the sign-up continues by selecting a service package and provider.

“This is a milestone for Idaho Falls residents,” said Bear Prairie, general manager of Idaho Falls Power and Idaho Falls Fiber. “We’ve had great response from local internet providers and we’re now ready to roll this program out to the public. There has been a lot of support and interest from the community for this, so it’s an exciting time and we’re eager to start connecting customers.”

Once residents have signed up for service and selected their provider, Idaho Falls Fiber will schedule a site survey and appointment with the customer for the installation of the actual fiber to the residence.  Once the fiber is installed, the local internet provider will begin Internet service to the customer.

The Idaho Falls City Council approved the pilot program last September. “This kind of a public-private partnership is exciting," said Mayor Rebecca Casper. "It allows the city to focus on infrastructure, something we excel at and it allows local internet providers to offer services residents trust from companies they know. It captures the best of both worlds.”

The new website also provides pilot program area maps, information on how fiber optics works, billing and service details along with a wide variety of other frequently asked questions about fiber optics and the service.

As directed by the City Council, Idaho Falls Fiber will use data from the pilot program to examine the feasibility and costs associated with expanding high-speed fiber throughout the rest of the community.

“We are anticipating strong support and signups to join the network which will validate the demand in our community for this type of infrastructure,” Prairie said.