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The network is the brainchild of the forward-thinkers who formed the Olds Institute for Community and Regional Development. They were helped by the local government, which took a hand in ensuring it was brought to life. But when it was near completion, existing telecom companies declined the invitation to tap the network.

Rather than abandon the initiative, the Institute decided to take over the project. The group registered a community-owned and -operated Internet provider called O-Net. All told, O-Net cost the Olds Institute about $21 million, with the money coming from a provincial grant, a loan backed by the town, and a line of credit.

Mitch Thomson, the institute’s executive director, says it was money well spent because the network helps Olds retain and attract business. But what about the regular Joes of Olds? What about the people more apt to use their superfast Internet to YouTube Flight of the Conchords’ “Business Time” rather than conduct actual business? How have their lives changed since the future arrived?

Slipping the Shackles

One of the Olds Institute’s goals for O-Net was to attract new residents to town. Enter Dean Humphrey, an apprentice steam engineer and avid gamer. Last year, the 25-year-old left his basement suite in southeast Calgary for Olds, drawn by the promise of O-Net. Well, there were two factors: “Is there a Walmart and how fast is the Internet?”

This might seem a bit simplistic—what of high art, alchemy, self-discovery in the desert? That is, until Humphrey WoWs you with his logic. He had been paying Shaw $60 a month for 25 megabits on the download and 2.5 on the upload, but was experiencing bottlenecking for certain services, citing blurred quality, blocking and dropped frames when playing his favourite games. “If I wanted to get something that would allow me to stream HD in Calgary, I think I’d be paying over $200 a month,” he says.