The City of Ashland moved to improve local broadband Internet access in the late 1990s by creating the Ashland Fiber Network (AFN) and building a fiber optic ring inside the city boundaries. However, by 2006 the city faced difficulties servicing AFN's debt load, which was approaching $15.5 million. The city hired a new AFN director, Joe Franell, who suggested scrapping cable television service while retaining the more profitable high-speed Internet access. In October 2006, the cable television service was transferred to a local company, Ashland Home Net, while the City retained both the infrastructure and the wholesale Internet business.