Wednesday, January 24, 2024
Headlines Daily Digest
FCC's Gomez ‘dismayed’ at ACP funding inaction
Don't Miss:
NTIA wants ‘the whole lifecycle of accountability’ to assess AI systems
Broadband Funding
Spectrum/Wireless
Artificial Intelligence
Platforms/Social Media
Labor
TV
Government Performance
Policymakers
Company News
Broadband Funding
Federal Communications Commissioner Anna Gomez, who was confirmed by the US Senate in September 2023, has joined calls to renew funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Nearly 23 million households nationwide rely on the program, which provides a discount of up to $30 per month toward internet service for eligible households and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands. “We are at a critical time for the program and I am dismayed that the commission finds itself with no choice but to initiate the wind down process,” said Commissioner Gomez. “A loss of funding will mean a loss of trust in this public-private partnership that could squander this opportunity to close the digital divide.” Commissioner Gomez said she remains hopeful the ACP will see renewed funding before the clock ticks out on the program, and applauded recent proposed legislation seeking to extend funding for the program.
Radio spectrum is critically important to the functioning of modern society but is a scarce resource in great demand. Ideally, it should be allocated to the most valuable uses in a country and used as intensively as possible. Yet, we are far from this, with spectrum use entrenched for decades and much of spectrum unused for much of the time. Changing usage is typically bureaucratic and glacially slow compared to the speed of innovation. We propose and explain a comprehensive policy framework based on the concept of Evolved Spectrum Usage Rights (eSUR) that enables change of use and innovation that can apply to all exclusive spectrum licensing. The proposed policy measures apply predominantly to commercial spectrum, but some elements might also help with public sector spectrum.
Artificial Intelligence
NTIA wants ‘the whole lifecycle of accountability’ to assess AI systems, agency head says
The head of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration said his agency is looking at how to create an auditing process to hold artificial intelligence systems accountable, as part of an effort to promote safe and ethical uses of the emerging technologies. NTIA Administrator Alan Davidson said “I think one of the things that we've seen is, like financial audits for the financial accounting system, there is going to be a role to play for audits in the AI ecosystem.” NTIA released a request for comment in April 2023 soliciting public feedback on how to mitigate the harms of AI, noting that it would use the input to help “draft and issue a report on AI accountability policy development, focusing especially on the AI assurance ecosystem.” The agency said it received more than 1,400 comments in response to its request. Davidson said the report examines “how can we as policymakers help build this ecosystem, whether it’s through things that we fund [and] things that we press people to adopt?” Davidson said NTIA is “going to look at the whole lifecycle of accountability, starting with the transparency and information that you need to be able to hold models accountable.”
One of the nice things about covering the frontier of technology — large language models, quantum, virtual worlds — is that they’re decidedly less partisan than most policy issues. That might be changing. A new round of polling about voters’ opinions of artificial intelligence reveals early partisan and demographic splits taking shape, all with the first election to take place in an AI-saturated media environment looming on the horizon. The poll conducted by AIPI, a recently formed nonprofit that describes itself as “dedicated to seeking political solutions to potential catastrophic risks from emerging AI technology,” surveyed just over 1,000 voters and found some stark topline results:
- 76 percent of voters prefer candidates who support regulating AI
- 55 percent want that approach to be bipartisan
- 61 percent either “strongly” or “somewhat” support the Senate’s current slate of proposals for AI legislation.
But dig deeper into the poll’s crosstabs and you see something all too familiar to American politics: Voters say they want bipartisan solutions, but have serious disagreements about what should be done and why.
In his annual letter, Bill Gates predicted that the United States is “eighteen to twenty four months away from significant levels of AI use by the general population” and that African countries are just a year or so behind that. The pace of AI development is breathtaking, with generative AI tools like ChatGPT forecast to have an adoption curve steeper than the smartphone. However, while many of us explore this new frontier of tech, much of the world is yet to even come online. Like every digital breakthrough before it—the invention of the web, the roll-out of broadband, the mobile revolution—the opportunities enabled by AI leaves those without internet access further behind just by staying where they are. Without urgent action billions of people around the world will be excluded from the benefits of this technological revolution while suffering its disruptions.
- The future of work: Plenty of ink has been spilled about how AI is transforming industry, revolutionizing product categories, and creating entirely new career paths. But if you’ve never been online, these new careers are out of reach, even before you take into account that 80 percent of jobs in the United States are posted online only. And while you won’t see the upside, you’ll certainly feel the pain, as automation and AI systems replace human roles and eliminate traditional jobs.
- Improving health for all: Gates’ letter describes how AI could literally save lives by improving healthcare in areas like treatment of high-risk pregnancies, assessing HIV risk, managing medical health records, and so much more. Leading philanthropists like Gates must urgently help ensure these opportunities are available to all—not just those who can afford them.
- Closing the homework gap: I’ve been blown away by the potential of AI tutors personalized to a student’s location and learning level. But these potentially game-changing educational tools are out of reach for the 1.3 billion children who don’t have home internet and are already struggling with the “homework gap.”
As Gates writes, “If we make smart investments now, AI can make the world a more equitable place. It can reduce or even eliminate the lag time between when the rich world gets an innovation and when the poor world does.” But if we do not make these investments, AI will not just be the newest digital divide: it will scale it exponentially.
[Jochai Ben-Avie is the Co-Founder and CEO of Connect Humanity.]
Platforms/Social Media
Republican Attorneys General back Texas and Florida social media regulations at US Supreme Court
Social media companies should be treated as utilities such as telephone or telegraph companies, a group of states led by Republican attorneys general told the US Supreme Court. In a friend-of-the-court brief, 19 states and the state legislature of Arizona wrote that the Supreme Court should uphold laws passed by Texas and Florida that restrict companies including Meta, YouTube, X and others from moderating the content that their users post online. Contested state laws forcing social media companies to carry all online speech are constitutional because tech platforms enjoy “hyperconcentration” of economic power, the group argued. The brief reflects broad conservative support for laws that have been presented as “anti-censorship” but that the tech industry has argued violate the First Amendment rights of social media companies to manage their own, private spaces. The high-stakes case could determine the future of social media moderation and online political speech and is expected to go to oral argument in February.
The Internet powers education and the economy, supports our health and well-being, and connects us to our neighbors and those we love. Four agencies are leading the historic effort to connect the entire nation and provide Internet for All. This case study captures insights from the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). NTIA knows that meaningfully connecting everyone in America requires more than Internet access alone. All people and communities must also have the skills, technology, and capacity needed to reap the full benefits of our digital economy, which cannot be achieved through a one-size-fits-all approach. To accomplish this, NTIA is implementing programs funded by the Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), both enacted in 2021. The CAA established the Office of Minority Broadband Initiatives (OMBI) and authorized the Connecting Minority Communities (CMC) Pilot Program. This case study details some of the successes and lessons of the OMBI and CMC.
Federal Communications Commissioner Geoffrey Starks announced that Milla Anderson has joined his office as Policy Advisor. Ms. Anderson previously served as Policy Advisor for Rep. Ann McLane Kuster (D-NH), where she managed the Congresswoman’s work for the Communications and Technology Subcommittee on the House Commerce Committee among other roles. Prior to her service in the House, Ms. Anderson served on the legislative teams for Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Senator Doug Jones (D-AL). Ms. Anderson joins the office after the recent departure of Morgan Bodenaraian, who now serves as Policy Director and Counsel for the Congressional Black Caucus and its Chair Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV).
Talking BEAD, Economic Development and the State’s Middle Mile Network with Arizona’s Broadband Director
“We’re set up to attract, expand, and create new businesses and job opportunities while at the same time be unimpeded by government red tape and mandates,” said Sandip Bhowmick, state broadband director and vice president of infrastructure at Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA). Arizona’s broadband office is housed within the ACA, a unique government organization overseen by a public-private board of directors and chaired by the Arizona governor. With the hefty BEAD investment on the way, Bhowmick explained that Arizona is much better prepared than it would have been even just a few years ago. After running a feasibility study prior to the pandemic, worked with the Arizona Department of Transportation to create the Smart Highway Corridors System. To-date, nearly 204 miles of the middle mile network have been completed, with an additional middle mile network of 197 miles is currently being built to Flagstaff from California. Bhowmick espoused that the new fiber infrastructure and middle-mile fiber network is a foundation for BEAD to deliver maximum impact in Arizona.
Verizon Communications reported strong fourth-quarter and full-year 2023 results highlighted by total wireless postpaid net additions, fixed wireless net additions and increased wireless service revenue. Total broadband net additions of 413,000, represented the fifth consecutive quarter that Verizon reported more than 400,000 broadband net additions. Total broadband net additions included 375,000 fixed wireless net additions, bringing the subscriber base to over 3 million. In fourth-quarter 2023, more than 80 percent of Consumer fixed wireless gross additions were in Verizon's first 76 C-Band markets. Verizon is ahead of schedule to achieve its goal of 4 to 5 million subscribers by the end of 2025. As of the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, Verizon has 10.7 million total broadband subscribers.
The first residents and businesses to connect to GoNetspeed’s fiber internet network in Manchester, Connecticut will be brought online this spring, according to the Alabama-based provider, which said 10,700 locations in total will be connected when all is said and done. Construction on the project is expected to begin in February, according to a January 22 release from the company. GoNetspeed Chief Operations Officer Tom Perrone said GoNetspeed’s network is intended to grow with the Hartford County community while adapting to Manchester’s needs. GoNetspeed currently offers services in Maine, Alabama, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and West Virginia.
The two biggest cable companies in the country have clearly bogged down. In the third quarter of 2023, Comcast lost 18,000 broadband customers while Charter gained 63,000. There are a number of reasons for the sudden slowdown. At the top of the list is probably prices. Both Carter and Comcast charge significantly more than their fiber competitors. The other new competitor is fixed wireless access cellular wireless from T-Mobile and Verizon. We don’t know how much traction these companies have in competing against cable companies, but the two companies have added over 7 million customers in the last two years, while Comcast and Charter have stagnated. Both companies have historically thrived on the combination of customer growth and revenue growth from rate increases. But, both companies face a serious earnings challenge in the next few years as competitors chip away at customers.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org), Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org), and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
© Benton Institute for Broadband & Society 2023. Redistribution of this email publication — both internally and externally — is encouraged if it includes this message. For subscribe/unsubscribe info email: headlines AT benton DOT org
Kevin Taglang
Executive Editor, Communications-related Headlines
Benton Institute
for Broadband & Society
1041 Ridge Rd, Unit 214
Wilmette, IL 60091
847-220-4531
headlines AT benton DOT org
Share this edition:
The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society All Rights Reserved © 2023