Wisconsin Senate Locks Eyes on Nixed WiscNet University Contract
"I know that you know this is a very difficult process and decision,” David Miller, UW senior vice president-administration and fiscal affairs, told legislators. “It isn’t as easy as flipping a switch.” He described the university’s ongoing efforts to separate its assets from WiscNet, which he called the most difficult part of the process, and its efforts to put together a transition timeline. “As we transition from our current vendor to provisioning our own network, we will have to address gaps,” UW said last week of the late-June announcement of the canceled RFP award (http://bit.ly/14YuhA3). “In doing so, solutions might include establishing peering relationships or issuing contracts for services, but unlike the recent RFP, it will not be all-encompassing.” The decision was to “avoid uncertainty” regarding the critical services, it said.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
"There were challenges -- protests, if you will -- to the RFP,” said Administration Vice Chancellor Darrell Bazzell, referring to the objections of AT&T and CenturyLink in May when UW awarded WiscNet the contract. The decision to rescind the contract “was not made lightly,” he added, saying UW officials thought of how doing so would affect stakeholders and WiscNet members. Miller emphasized the needs of high-speed broadband, particularly for research and other university endeavors with tens of millions of dollars dependent on it, and called maintaining such speeds “imperative.”
"The separation has already begun,” said WiscNet Executive Director David Lois, acknowledging the transition is “a bit of a challenge.” There is a staff transition plan “happening as we speak” and insurance policies in place, he said. Lois is “very confident” that WiscNet will still be able to meet the needs of its members once severed from the university, he added. Responding to a question on whether there’s a need for WiscNet, he said “absolutely yes” and called the network “critically important to the state,” with a “solid” business model and “strong” budget.
Republican state legislators questioned the network’s model and funding. Sen. Paul Farrow (R) considered whether WiscNet benefited from a competitive advantage in its arrangements with the university: “I would say yes.” State Rep. Sheila Harsdorf (R) asked officials whether there needed to be a different model for WiscNet. WiscNet’s separation from the university system will be complicated because about a third of its revenue comes from the system, Farrow said. Lois said that figure is “for the most part” right.
WiscNet distorted the market and hurt the private sector, said Bill Esbeck, Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association executive director. “They cornered the market” for schools, he said. The association is “certainly pleased” UW took the contract away from WiscNet, which will help lead to a “truly balanced playing field,” he added. Telcos are ready to step up and help any schools or institutions that may need their help, Esbeck said, noting efforts to match WiscNet pricing in certain instances. The association touted its effort to win back school districts from WiscNet, in a news release earlier this month (http://bit.ly/18J2A3y). The division of assets between WiscNet and UW will require “continued oversight,” said Esbeck.
"I think there is little to no evidence that we've caused harm to the telecommunications industry,” Lois said of WiscNet. “We focus very much on the public sector because there is strong need.” Entities like WiscNet exist in 40 states, said WiscNet Chairman Ross Wilson. He described the Wisconsin Public Service’s April broadband symposium (CD April 8 p8) and Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s emphasis on public-private partnerships. These partnerships are “complex” and can cause anxiety in some stakeholders but are important, said Wilson. “We have to do this with public-private partnerships.”