You may have read the news earlier this fall that CenturyLink has decided to rebrand itself. 

According to a news release on the CenturyLink website, the name CenturyLink will be retained for the company's traditional residential and small business customers. Lumen will be used for enterprise services.

What about that other name, Quantum Fiber? The news release indicates that Quantum will be the brand for CL's fiber-to-the-premise services. However your intrepid reporter, who is served by CenturyLink FTTP in Grimes, Iowa can attest that - as of today - they are still calling his services CenturyLink.

What's in a name? Well, a lot over the years with CenturyLink...I mean Lumen...I mean Quantum Fiber...at least here in the upper Midwest.

Northwestern Bell  --> US West  --> Quest  --> CenturyLink  --> ???

After more than a year of study, the Fort Dodge City Council has indicated their preference for a municipally owned and operated fiber utility over a public-private partnership.

The City's research into fiber has been operating on parallel tracks over the past several months. They hired HR Green to conduct a feasibility study that included cost estimates and a business case for two options: a full municipal build and a public-private partnership where the City would build and own a conduit network and work with a private company to provide service. At the same time, the City issued a Request for Information that received responses from two individual companies and a consortium of local independent companies in NW Iowa. Each of the three indicated a willingness to partner with the City on a project.

At a Council workshop last week, the Council was polled to see which way they were leaning, and all seven council persons indicated a preference for the full municipal model. City staff was directed to develp a plan to move along those lines.

CLICK HERE to read a story about the Fort Dodge fiber discussion at the Fort Dodge Messenger.