Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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FCC Officials and Members of Congress Urge Action on the Affordable Connectivity Program
New Jersey Receives Approval for $180 Million in Federal Funds to Support Critical Capital Projects
Internet providers have left rural Americans behind. One county is fighting back
Digital Equity
Broadband Funding
State/Local
Broadband Service
Platforms/Social Media
Artificial Intelligence
Security
Company News
Digital Equity
The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) and the Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA) announce the availability, under the terms of the 2023 IPCS Protective Order, of the preliminary Incarcerated People’s Communications Services (IPCS) Database (2023 IPCS Database). The FCC staff developed this database to help analyze data and other information that IPCS providers submitted in response to the Commission’s 2023 Mandatory Data Collection. That analysis facilitates the Commission’s implementation of the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act of 2022. The preliminary 2023 IPCS Database contains IPCS providers’ confidential information, including cost and revenue information. The preliminary 2023 IPCS Database also includes geocoding information on facility locations added by the FCC staff to facilitate outside parties’ review of the data submissions. Making this preliminary database available at this time will allow interested parties whose counsel and outside consultants comply with the terms of the 2023 IPCS Protective Order to rely on a common dataset in evaluating the Commission’s proposals in this proceeding, while ensuring providers remain protected against the unwarranted disclosure of their confidential information. FCC staff will continue to refine this database to ensure that it accurately and reliably accounts for the data and related information submitted by providers.
On Monday, March 18, 2024, Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel, FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, and Congresswomen Yvette Clarke (D-NY) urged action to continue the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). The event, held on the steps of City Hall in New York City (NY), was convened by Congresswoman Clarke and featured remarks from Starks and Rosenworcel, along with Congresswoman Grace Meng (D-NY) and a number of housing, labor, and broadband equity advocates from organizations like the National Urban League, Public Knowledge, NYCLU, and the Communications Workers of America Local 1101. “I was thrilled to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Congresswoman Clarke to raise awareness of the urgent need to refund the Affordable Connectivity Program and to support the Affordable Connectivity Plan Extension Act," said Starks following the event. "Over 23 million American households stand on the precipice of losing access to a vital program. We must act now to refund ACP."
Broadband Funding
In letter to FCC, Altice USA says it will not deploy broadband in some Louisiana Rural Digital Opportunity Fund areas
Altice USA was awarded Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (“RDOF”) funding to deploy 100/20 Mbps service to 18 census block groups (“CBGs”) in Louisiana. Now Altice notifies the Federal Communications Commission of its plans to surrender its awarded RDOF areas in Louisiana. Altice had begun connecting unserved locations in its RDOF areas. By relinquishing these CBGs now, however, Altice is ensuring that remaining unserved areas are eligible to receive federal funding to support symmetric gigabit speeds through programs like NTIA’s Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (“BEAD”) Program. Altice understands that it will no longer be entitled to receive further RDOF support for the surrendered CBGs and that it may be subject to the applicable non-compliance rules. Altice reserves and retains its rights to seek relief from any penalties, including waiver of the Commission’s rules, as well as seek other relief as may be necessary.
State/Local
New Jersey Receives Approval for $180 Million in Federal Funds to Support Critical Capital Projects
Governor Phil Murphy (D-NJ) announced that the State of New Jersey has been approved for a total of nearly $180 million through the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Project Fund (CPF) to support a wide range of infrastructure projects that promote public health and safety, digital connectivity, and equitable access to critical services. The CPF, a component of the American Rescue Plan, is designed to provide crucial funding for enhancing the quality of life, economic vitality, and resilience of communities across the United States. The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has been approved for $50 million to create and administer the New Jersey Broadband Infrastructure Deployment Equity (NJBIDE) program, which will connect areas with limited or no access to reliable broadband internet. An additional $5 million allocated to New Jersey will go to other projects that address the digital divide by providing the public with easier access to devices and the internet at public-facing state agencies.
Congress is spending $65 billion to connect the rural United States to the world. Orangeburg (SC) knows the stakes better than anywhere. Like hundreds of rural counties across the US, Orangeburg is ignored by commercial broadband service providers who think it’s not profitable to lay fiber optic lines in the area. In the absence of service from companies like AT&T, Comcast, Verizon and Charter, counties and small towns in rural America could build broadband networks for their residents themselves, which can make the difference between prosperity and poverty. But large telecom corporations have also successfully lobbied at least 20 states to block municipalities from competing. The problem of rural internet access pits one democracy against another: local governments against state power. It also addresses information equity – the idea that someone in the rural US should have the same ability to participate in the country’s digital economy as someone in a big city. A digital democracy cannot abide unequal digital citizenship. Orangeburg – mostly rural, Black, and poor – started waging war against state regulations earlier than most rural communities, aided by one hard-headed local engineer and a congressman who has spent the last two decades trying to convince Congress that rural America is worth it.
Speed is but one thread in the tapestry of connectivity and user experience. To address bandwidth-constrained households, some ISPs and vendors are exploring alternative routes to enhance network performance. Traffic prioritization tools within the home, for instance, offer a potential solution for the bandwidth-constrained. The key to driving user adoption of tools like this is to make the interface easy to use, and automate where possible. Speed has become “less relevant,” said OpenVault CEO Mark Trudeau, now that the industry has reached multi-gig levels. Operators have done a good job of upgrading their networks to the point where they've got head room for “many, many years ahead,” and they don't really need to keep increasing speeds at the rate that they have been. That said, he also cautioned we exactly don't know when the "next killer app" is going to come out and raise bandwidth needs. None of this is to say bandwidth isn’t still important. And OpenVault represents a lot of cable operators, which sometimes tend to downplay bandwidth speeds.
Platforms/Social Media
Supreme Court Wary of States’ Bid to Limit Federal Contact With Social Media Companies
A majority of the Supreme Court seemed wary on March 18 of a bid by two Republican-led states to limit the Biden Administration’s interactions with social media companies, with several justices questioning the states’ legal theories and factual assertions. Most of the justices appeared convinced that government officials should be able to try to persuade private companies, whether news organizations or tech platforms, not to publish information so long as the requests are not backed by coercive threats. The dispute was the latest in an extraordinary series of cases this term requiring the justices to assess the meaning of free speech in the internet era. The case arose from a barrage of communications from administration officials urging platforms to take down posts on topics like the coronavirus vaccines and claims of election fraud. In 2023, a federal appeals court severely limited such interactions. The Supreme Court put that injunction on hold last year while it considered the administration’s appeal. If it were to go into effect, said Brian Fletcher, a lawyer for the government, it would prohibit all sorts of speech, including public comments from the press secretary or other senior officials seeking to discourage posts harmful to children or conveying antisemitic or Islamophobic messages.
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.
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