Rural Broadband: Ontario wants qualifying applications for reverse auctions

By Ahmad Hathout ONTARIO – The Ontario government announced Thursday it has launched a request for qualifications for a series of reverse auctions it hopes will set in motion its goal to connect the entire province to high-speed Internet by 2025. The qualification screening is intended to ensure bidders meet specified criteria in the hopes of facilitating a rapid build with minimal failure. Internet service providers will need to register at www.merx.com, a press release said. After qualifying submissions are made, the government will make a shortlist of candidates who will be invited to respond to a request for proposals on...