Auvergne Regional Council Brussels RegioStars Awards 2010 Bridging the broadband gap in Auvergne: towards a 100% coverage

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels High and very high speed broadband access a key factor of territorial competitiveness 1.An engine for regional economic growth Building an innovative knowledge society Strenghtening economic competitiveness 2.A factor of attractiveness for newcomers Demographic decline: one of the key challenges in the Auvergne region High-Speed broadband access contributes to attract new populations and to maintain the presence of those already settled A factor of territorial cohesion

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels Regional context Many rural and sparsely populated areas = market failure No private operators willing to invest in High-speed broadband infrastructure Broadband gap/digital divide = social exclusion, economical development A public intervention was needed ! Key points of the project The public-private-partnership (PPP) The technical solution adopted: NRA/ZO An integrated approach at regional level and close partnership between 5 local authorities The Communication on the project High speed broadband and white areas in Auvergne

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels Why a Public-Private Partnership (PPP)? The Region was not objectively likely to define alone and in advance the technological means that could answer its needs or to establish the legal and financial framework of the project Need for a solution that allowed both the quick supervision of the procedure to designate the contractor and a balanced sharing of risks the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) turned to be the best solution

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels Project charasteristics Citizens can choose their operator / provider new lines eligible for DSL 860 km of fiber optics that will be re-used for VHS broadband lines benefited from an increase in broadband 99,6%* of households get at least a 512 Kb/s offer 85%: a 2Mb/s offer 47%: a 8 Mb/s offer 30%: a 20 Mb/s offer *the 0,4% remaining ineligible to DSL are proposed a satellite kit solution (financed up to 600 by Région/ department)

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels The project partnership: a key factor of success Financial partners : The French State Five local actors The regional Council The four « Départements » (Allier, Puy-de-Dôme, Cantal, Haute-Loire) EU : no ERDF, no project ! How worked the regional partnership ? A close cooperation throughout the process Different meetings of the steering and technical committees at all steps: to define the territorial scope to agree on the PPP and the technological solution proposed by the contractor to decide the sharing of costs ( 50% paid by the Region / 50% shared between the departments proportionally to the new DSL lines created)

The project budget Global cost = 38,5 M (exclusive of tax) 50% by the Région / 50% by the 4 Départements (subsidies and revenues generated by users excluded) Duration: 10 years TOTAL EXPENDITURES 22,4 M : Investments 14,3 M : operating costs 1,8 M banking costs SUBSIDIES 10 M : ERDF ,8 M French State 10,6 M : Departments co- financing REGION FINANCING 10,6 M : Regional council REVENUES GENERATED 2,6 M Auvergne Regional Council Brussels

The project Communication Inform and provide assistance to citizens A Hotline was created by the Region to inform citizens on the process, agenda, project details, providers available… A website was also created to inform the population: … and local authorities The local authorities whose territory was concerned by the project were all informed about the whole process to enable them to inform the population

Some examples of uses developped with regional partners… « Social Internet » : cooperation with training organizations dedicated to develop the Internet access and individual uses among the population Implementation of new Visio-Public devices spread in rural areas, to facilitate access to public services Development of digital workspaces in schools to improve the relationship between parents, pupils and teachers But ALSO… Many local actors directly benefited from the new DSL lines eligible: farmers (to get european subsidies, e-commerce websites), home nurses (teletransmission of documents), bed and breakfast and touristic units (central reservation units) …

Auvergne Regional Council Brussels Next step ! Towards very high speed Broadband Principles of the future regional Scheme : an integrated regional partnership involving: - the Regional Council - the four departments - the six metropolitan areas Favouring territorial cohesion and territorial equalization (between densely populated areas and rural areas) Single out economical development 2 main priorities : « FTTH » (Fibre To The Homes) for business parks, schools, universities and public sites increase in broadband for individual and professional use, around business areas concerned with FTTH

Thank you for your attention! Sophie Rognon: François Teppaz-Misson: Auvergne Regional Council Brussels