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Home My WebLink About12.B. Results of High Speed Internet Survey J'-. . 13. City of Shakopee Memorandum TO: Mayor and City Council Mark McNeill, City Administrator FROM: Kris Wilson, Assistant City A.dministrator .. SUBJECT: Results of High Speed Internet Survey DATE: July 14, 2006 Introduction During the month of May, the City of Shako pee and the Shakopee Public Utilities Commission surveyed residents regarding their current internet service.and whether the City should somehow become involved in providing high speed internet to local businesses and residents. The' survey results have been tabulated and discussed by the Telecommunications Advisory Commission. Discussion Response to the survey was better than anticipated. We received more than 1900 responses from residential customers ofSPU C. Receptionists at City Hall took on the tedious task of tabulating the results by hand, which consumed most of the month of June. It must be noted that this was not a scientific survey, and the results were tabulated byhand which opens the door for some unintended errors. Additionally, many survey respondents elected to answer only some of the survey questions, therefore we do not have 1900 responses to every question. The survey results do, however, provide some insight into resident's opinions regarding their current internet service and the question of whether the City should somehow become involved. The attached document provides the results for each survey question. Please note that the percentages are based on the number of responses to that particular question, rather than the total number. of surveys received. Some of the notable results include: }- 43% say they are satisfied with their current Internet service, while 57% are dissatisfied for some reason. By far the most common reason given for being dissatisfied is that it is too expensive; }- 48% say price is the most importaritfactor for them, 27% say speed, 21 % say reliabilityand only 3% saywireless access; ~ 62% say the City should offer residents high-speed Internet service, 24% say the City should encourage private companies to provide more options and less expensive service; and 14% say the City should stay out ofthe Internet business and leave it to the private sector; ~ 88% believe it is okay for the City to compete with private sector companies providing Internet service; ~ Respondents were evenly split on whether the City should become involved if it requires the use of tax dollars, with 51 % sayingyes and 49% saying no. It should be noted that businesses response to the survey was minimal in comparison to the response from residents. A total of71 responses were received from local businesses. Those numbers are also attached for your review. Telecommunications Commission Discussion The Telecommunications Advisory Commission discussed the survey results at their July 5 meeting. There was discussion of the fact that 57% of the respondents were dissatisfied with their current Internet service and that 86% believe the City should be involved in this issue to some extent. However, they also noted that only 1 % of respondents reported that the service they desired was unavailable in their area and most of the people that reported dissatisfaction with their current service were unhappy with the price :- a complaint likely to be found in relationship to many good and services. Additionally, few respondents placed a high priority on wireless access. Commission Recommendation The Telecommunications Advisory Commission recommends that the Council authorize appropriate staff to seek proposals from qualified consultants to prepare a complete feasibility study on the public provision of high-speed Internet service within the City of Shakopee. They further recommend that the feasibility study be structured in multiple phases, thus allowing the City to discontinue the study at specified points if the results at that point so suggest. The feasibility study ~ould include an examination of the market for providing Internet service in Shakopee, an exploration of various potential technologies and service delivery models, and an estimate of the cost of undertaking a publicly provided Internet service. Budget Impact: The 2006 Telecommunications Fund budget includes $27,500 for professional services related to providing high-speed Internet service. Requested Action The Council is asked to discuss the survey results, and if it so chooses, offer a motion directing staff to seek proposals from qualified consultants for the preparation of a feasibility study related to the public provision of high-speed Internet service. High Speed Internet Survey Results A.How oldar~ YOlI? 6% A.16-25 29% B. 26-35 26% C; 36-45 18% D. 46-55 14% E. 56-65 6% F.66-,-75 2% G.76-85 <1% H. 86 or over B. Are there school-age children living in your household? 33% A. Yes 67%.. B. No c. What is your household income? 9% A. $15-$30,000 14% B. $31-$45,000 19% C. $46 -$60,00 30% D: $61-$90,000 28% E. $91,000 or over D.What is your household size? 57% A. 1-2 people 39% B. 3-4 4% C.5-6 < 1% D. 7 Of more E. How many years have you lived in Shakopee? 44% A~ 1-5 21% B. 6-10 8% C. 11-15 27% D. 16+ 1, Do you currently have Internet service? 11% A. No 26% B. Yes, dial-up 20% C. Yes, DSL 43% D. Yes, cable modem <1% E. Yes, other: 2. If you answered "NO" to question #1, why not? 27% A. Do not want internet service 53% B. Too expensive 20% C. Other: 3. How much do you pay per month for Internet service? 9% A. $9.99 or less 11% B. $10-:-$19;99 19% C. $20-$29.99 16% D. $30-$39.99 39% E.$40-$49.99 6% F.$50 or more 4. Who is your Internet service provider? 19% A. Qwest 46% B. Time Warner 10% C.AOL 5% D. Earthlink 20% E. Other: 5. Are you satisfied with your current service? 43% A. Yes 37% B. No, service is too expensive 3% C. No, service is not reliable 16% D. No, service is too slow 1% E. No, desired serviceis not available in my area 6. Do you operate a home-based business that would benefit from high speed internet service? 18% A. Yes 82% B. No 7. Which of the Jollowing is MOST important to you? 48% A. Price 27% B. Speed 21% C. Reliability 3% D. Wireless Access 8. Do you believe the City should be involved in ensuring that high-speed Internet access is available at an affordable price? 62% A. Yes, the City should offer residents high-speed Internet service 24% B. Yes, the City should encourage private companies to provide more options and less expensive service 14% C. No, the City should stay out of the Internet business and leave it to the private sector 9. Do you believe it is okay for the City to compete with private sector companies if the City can provide the service at a lower cost or to currently unserved areas? 88% A. Yes 12% B. No 10. Would you support the City becoming involved if it required the use of tax dollars? 51% A.Yes 49% B.No n..At what price would you consider subscribing to a publicly provided Internefservice? 35% A.$15-$19.99 28% B. $20 - $24.99 19% C. $25-$29.99 "' 10% D.$30-$39.99 8% E. $40 or more High Speed Internet Survey Results Responses/rom Businesses (NOTE: actual #'s - not percentages) A. How many employees do you have? 38 A.1-5 24 B. 6 -20 6 C. 21-50 2 D.51-100 1 E. 101 or more B. How long have you been in business? 10 A. Less than 2 years 14 B. 2-5 years 11 C. 6-10 years 34 D.110rmore C. For your business, Internet service is: 5 A. Unnecessary 16 B. Nice to Have 11 C. Important 38 D. Essential 1, Do you currently have Internet service? 5 A. No 15 B. Yes, dial-up 20 C. Yes, DSL 21 D. Yes, cable modem 3 E. Yes, other: 2. If you answered "NO" to question #1, why not? 2 A. Do not want internet service 2 B. Too expensive 1 C. Other: 3. How much do you pay per month for Internet service? 4 A. $9.99 or less 4 B. $10-$19.99 16 C. $20-$29.99 10 D. $30-$39.99 14 E. $40-$49.99 15 F. $50 or more 4. Who is your Internet service provider? 12 A. Qwest 23 B. Time Warner 8 C.AOL 2 D. Earthlink 19 E. Other: 5. Are you satisfied with your current service? 25 A. Yes 20 B. No, service is too expensive 3 C. No, service is not reliable 9 D. No, service is too slow 3 E. No, desired service is not available in my area 6. Do you operate a home-based business that would benefit from high speed internet service? 29 A. Yes 31 B. No 7. Which of the following is MOST important to you? 21 A. Price 19 B. Speed 21 C. Reliability 3 D. Wireless Access 8. Do you believe the City should be involved in ensuring that high-speed Internet access is available at an affordable price? 36 A. Yes, the City should offer residents high-speed Internet service 17 B. Yes, the City should encourage private companies to provide more options and less expensive service 10 C. No, the City should stay out ofthe Internet business and leave it to the private sector 9. Do you believe it is okay for the City to compete with private sector companies if the City can provide the service at a lower cost or to currently unserved areas? 57 A. Yes 8 B. No to. Would you support the City becoming involved if it required the use of tax dollars? 34 A. Yes 25 B.No 11. At what price would you consider subscribing to a publicly provided Internet service? 18 A. $15-$19.99 12 B. $20 - $24.99 14 C. $25-$29.99 11 D. $30-$39.99 2 E. $40 or more