Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency

Using an active Ethernet infrastructure and operating at the wholesale level, UTOPIA is considered an open-access network and promotes competition in all telecommunications services.

2002 First feasibility study 2004 authorization of first bonds 2007 falls short of subscriber goal of 35%, reaching only 16% subscribership to service.

Though UTOPIA has extended an open invitation to Comcast, CenturyLink (formerly Qwest), and Frontier Communications, the incumbent service providers, all have declined to join the network.

[1] Because of these problems, UTOPIA asked its pledging member cities to extend the bonding period from 20 to 30 years and bond for additional to connect additional customers, complete unfinished sections of the network, and provide two years of capitalized interest payments.

By June 27, 2014 eleven of the cities will need to decide to move forward with a proposed plan to incorporate the expense of construction costs as a mandatory utility fee or not.

Beginning with the deployment in Brigham City in 2009, UTOPIA began a ftth ownership-like model of installation to the subscriber.

Even though leasing does not lead to owning the fiber portal as a house utility in the future, it has been wildly successful due to the low commitment.