The story of a young network architect has gone around the world, following he created his own internettired of the abuse committed by companies in MichiganUSA.
Jared Mauch lives in a rural area called Scio Township and had only maintained a 1.5 Mbps line for decades, specifically since 2002. He consulted Comcast, a service provider internet (ISP), to be able to improve his line, but he asked for 50 thousand dollars to be able to move forward with the project. This was the trigger for a new company that has revolutionized connectivity in the field.
Jared Mauch and the history of his company
About five years ago this adventure began. While Comcast asked him for such a large amount of money, AT&T offered him download speeds similar to what he already had.
If he was going to spend that much money, he thought, why not make his own? ISP and help the rest of the neighbors in the small community? With this, and despite the difficulties he would face, he decided to start his own company: he bought a direct connection to the Advanced Communication & Data company and deployed a fiber optic network to the rural area.
Fulfilling the legal requirements of the Government, he founded Washtenaw Fiber Properties LLC, with 145 thousand dollars of his own pocket.
In addition to improving its line, it obtained its first 30 clients in 2021, later doubling that number.
Their plans start at $65 a month, for 50 symmetrical Mbps; $75, for 250 Mbps; and $99 for 500 Mbps. That includes an installation cost of $599, although early adopters got it for $199.
And the expansion came
The United States Government allocated 71 million dollars for projects in Washtenaw County, a situation that was beneficial for the internet project.
With the help of the municipality, its network is being expanded to some 417 addresses in the municipalities of Freedom, Lima, Lodi and Scio, with which it might have 600 clients.
Under the terms of the contract, Mauch will provide 100 Mbps symmetric Internet with unlimited data for $55 per month and 1Gbps with unlimited data for $80 per month.
Life has changed a bit for Mauch since he became a provider of Internet. “I’m definitely much better known to all my neighbors… I’m saved on people’s cell phones as ‘the guy with the fiber cable,'” he told Ars Technica. “The world around me has gotten a lot smaller, I’ve gotten to know a lot more people.”
We recommend you METADATA, RPP’s tech podcast. News, analysis, reviews, recommendations and everything you need to know regarding the technological world. To hear it better, #StayHome.