Repeating Telecommunications History

I believe we can’t ignore the history of our industry if we want to avoid the worst of it from happening again. There are a variety of factors that led to the rural mess that created the need for BEAD and other broadband grant programs. I think the downward trajectory started with the divestiture of AT&T into AT&T as a long-distance company and large regional telephone companies. The newly-formed company lobbied hard to be able to make profits over and above the low, but steady profits that could be earned by a regulated utility. The lobbying worked, and regulators across the country deregulated the big telephone companies from their many obligations. The companies ran with the power that came from deregulation. The changes were mostly, but not always, gradual. Verizon was the abruptest and decided early on to divest itself of its rural networks. Eventually, the other companies joined Verizon, cutting back on maintenance, leaving positions open, and slowly backing out of rural markets. We are now poised to do it all over again. We have a gigantic broadband grant program that clearly favors big companies over small ones, companies that can use equity instead of debt for grant matching, and companies with the resources to pursue giant multi-county grants. Watching this cycle repeat itself will give me fodder to write about how we screwed it all up again—but I’d much rather be writing about rural success stories.