The two agencies in charge of awarding billions of dollars of stimulus grants for broadband projects announced Thursday, Jan. 7, the launch of BroadbandMatch. On BroadbandMatch, users can post a profile and search for similar partners.
The Web site's aim is to bring together companies, nonprofits, state and local governments, and "expert" individuals who are interested in teaming together to apply for stimulus money.
According to the Web site, it was launched in hopes of creating "a stronger, more creative applicant pool" for the $7.2 billion set aside from the stimulus. According to a Gartner analyst who spoke with Government Technology this week, only $182 million of that total has been awarded so far.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the Rural Utilities Service, the two agencies in charge of managing the funds, discovered after the first funding round and subsequent awards made in December that many applicants were interested but had trouble finding complementary partners that might collaborate on an application.
And its apparent similarity to the popular Match.com and such dating sites isn't too much of a stretch.
"It's like a matchmaking service where interested parties can discover each other to pursue their mutual interests, said Rural Utilities Service Administrator Jonathan S. Adelstein in a statement. "It will help in locating community partners and establishing new relationships that will foster better broadband service in areas of the country that really need it."
The two agencies are expected to soon release rules for the final funding window for Recovery Act broadband grants.
