Baltimore Broadband Coordinator: Municipal broadband a 'distinct possibility'

Baltimore City (MD) could eventually offer municipal Internet service as it seeks to expand high-speed access, said Jason Hardebeck, the first broadband coordinator said. Hardebeck is stepping into the new role of city broadband coordinator after receiving Board of Estimates approval on Aug 26. Hardebeck is a veteran of the technology and startup sectors who sold software company WhoGlue Inc. to Facebook in 2011 and then became executive director of the Greater Baltimore Technology Council. He more recently co-chaired Baltimore's Smarter City Task Force, which Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake called together to find ways to boost technology and broadband in the city. It was the task force that recommended the creation of the broadband coordinator position.

In taking on the role, Hardebeck will now oversee efforts to expand connectivity in Baltimore and make broadband access more affordable, Rawlings-Blake said. That could mean the creation of a municipal broadband system that has customers paying for city-run Internet service, which Hardebeck called a "distinct possibility." It could also mean convincing existing provides like Comcast to increase service, or it could mean offering incentives to bring new Internet service providers into the city, he said.