Friday, June 16, 2023
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Today: Expect Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Infrastructure Program Grants
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Is the government’s ACP ‘Week of Action’ a doomed effort?
FCC Chair Rosenworcel Proposes to Examine How Data Caps Impact Consumers
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Today kicks off the Biden-Harris Administration’s Affordable Connectivity Program Week of Action. We have more than 300 organizations from across the country committed to raising awareness about ACP. The Internet is now the essential tool for communications in our modern world. It is essential for access to work. Access to education. Access to healthcare. Access to justice. And yet, here in America, millions of people across the country lack access to an affordable high-speed Internet connection or lack the means and the skills to use it. And the ACP is at the heart of the Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to make the dream of Internet for All a reality...But, our goal of closing the digital divide is at risk because ACP is at risk of running out of money. We cannot allow this program, which has widespread support, to fail. And now there is a new task in front of all of us: ensuring that ACP is on firm financial footing going forward.
The US Department of Education, Federal Communications Commission, non-profit group Civic Nation, and broadband operators joined hands to launch a “Week of Action” designed to boost sign-ups for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). But New Street Research’s Blair Levin said that the effort will be futile if Congress doesn’t allocate more funding for the ACP. The Week of Action is designed to push that figure higher and will include sign-up events hosted by operators, housing authorities, and healthcare organizations in several states. But a quick look at the ACP dashboard shows the program has already spent nearly half its funding in the year and a half since its launch. Analysts have already predicted that the ACP will run out of money sometime in 2024 and more enrollees would presumably mean the program will burn through its remaining money faster. At the moment, the prospect of additional funding remains elusive. Levin said the effort to sign up new households for the ACP is “great” but added that “the highest priority ought to be getting a permanent sustainable source of funding or, in the alternative, at least” a temporary extension. Operators who sign new ACP subscribers up today may very well be stuck in the unenviable position of having to send out notices to customers in six or eight months telling them the subsidy has run out and prices are about to go up. In addition to the bad look associated with such a move, disconnecting customers also comes with a financial cost. According to Levin, the fate of the ACP will not just impact customers who are already connected but also influence operator calculations about where to run new connectivity as part of the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program.
The US Department of the Treasury approved $119.9 million in federal funds for broadband infrastructure projects in Montana and $68.3 million for multi-purpose community facility projects in North Dakota under the American Rescue Plan Act's (ARPA) Capital Projects Fund (CPF):
- Montana is approved to receive $119.9 million for broadband infrastructure through the ConnectMT program, which the state estimates will serve 61,100 locations. The ConnectMT program is a competitive broadband grant program designed to fund broadband infrastructure projects in areas that currently lack access to reliable internet. ConnectMT prioritizes last-mile fiber-to-the-home (FTH) projects that will provide residents with affordable, high-speed internet. The plan approved by the Treasury Department represents 100% of the state’s total allocation under the CPF program.
- North Dakota is approved to receive $68.3 million for North Dakota’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) Multi-Purpose Community Facility Grant Program, a competitive grant program that will provide funding to establish CTE centers. CTE centers will expand educational and career offerings to post-secondary school students and adult learners as well as provide expanded access to telehealth in areas of North Dakota where these services are limited. North Dakota estimates this program will use the award to fund at least 12 CTE centers, serving more than 20,000 individuals annually. In addition to the broadband infrastructure plan approved in May 2023, North Dakota has now received 100% of its total CPF allocation.
This month, the Maine Connectivity Authority (MCA) released the state's draft Broadband Action Plan, which provides a roadmap for Maine's progress toward digital equity moving forward. The plan envisions a Maine where everyone, especially those traditionally underserved and facing more barriers to being connected, can take full advantage of the economic, educational, health, civic, social and other benefits that reliable, affordable, high-speed broadband can provide. Here, we break down the state plan, from Maine's statewide engagement process and findings to its digital equity goals and strategic path to achieving them.
Frontier CEO Nick Jeffery said that the company believes it will be out of the copper business within five years. At the end of the first quarter of 2023, Frontier still had 9.9 million copper passings compared to 5.5 million fiber passings. But that oddly doesn’t translate into a greater number of copper customers, with 1.6 million fiber customers compared to just under 1 million copper customers. This demonstrates the extent to which Frontier has lost DSL customers over the last decade. Frontier shed some customers in the asset sale in the Northwest to Ziply, but most of the customer losses are from DSL customers fleeing to some other technology. Frontier's goal is to reach 10 million fiber passings by the end of 2025, so it will continue to overbuild copper areas with fiber. That should cover about half of the remaining copper passings. My guess is that Frontier won’t have to cut many DSL customers dead in five years. Between their own fiber expansion, the many grant programs, and fiwed wireless access, it seems likely that most of Frontier’s remaining DSL customers will be off copper by then.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) will announce the allotment of Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funds to the US states and territories in June 2023. And NTIA has indicated it wants areas that are unserved with broadband to receive the funds first. Jonathan Chambers, a partner with the fiber construction company Conexon, says that in terms of deploying fiber to unserved rural areas, deployments are going to be mostly aerial deployments as opposed to trenched deployments. This is because of cost: lashing fiber onto existing utility infrastructure over long distances is going to be cheaper than digging trenches to lay underground fiber. “It costs three to four times more to build underground than it costs to put on poles,” said Chambers.
As the production of fiber continues to increase, so do improvements to its physical properties. Service providers are buying more quantities of bendable fiber and looking towards the next generation of 200-micron fiber which will provide increased density and likely reduce material usage. “If you break it down, you’ll see that [North America] fiber demand has tripled since 2015,” said Greg Williams, Business Unit Director, Fiber Cable Systems, Prysmian Group. “And it’s doubled since 2018. We’re seeing steady growth year-over-year at an annual compound growth rate of 14% from 2013 to 2022.” Over the next seven years, Prysmian Group projects growth to continue at a rate of 7-10%. Projections include a slight dip in 2023 due to broadband providers working down their inventory from “panic-buying” in 2022 as a response to supply chain shortages. Over 50% of the fiber being purchased is Bend Insensitive Fiber (BIF), as defined under ITU G.657 standards, and Williams expects that amount to increase over time. “Fiber is not a technology where you just lay the cable straight and it’s always straight,” Williams said. “It bends during deployment. It bends through the lifetime of the installation. Whether it's indoors or outdoors, you’re going up and down poles, you’re making right and left turns, you’re avoiding grandma’s flower beds, fire hydrants, you name it.”
Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel asked her fellow Commissioners to support a formal Notice of Inquiry to learn more about how broadband providers use data caps on consumer plans. In particular, the agency would like to better understand the current state of data caps, their impact on consumers, and whether the FCC should consider taking action to ensure that data caps do not cause harm to competition or consumers’ ability to access broadband Internet services. Specifically, the Notice of Inquiry would:
- Seek comment to better understand why the use of data caps continues to persist despite increased broadband needs of consumers and providers’ demonstrated technical ability to offer unlimited data plans;
- Seek comment on current trends in consumer data usage;
- Seek comment on the impact of data caps on consumers, consumers’ experience with data caps, how consumers are informed about data caps on service offerings, and how data caps impact competition; and
- Ask about the FCC’s legal authority to take actions regarding data caps.
The FCC also opened a new portal for consumers to share how data caps have affected them here: fcc.gov/datacapstories. By sharing their data cap stories on their fixed or wireless broadband networks, consumers will help the FCC understand whether and how data caps impact access to broadband for all individuals. Data caps, or usage limits, are a common practice where an internet service provider (ISP) restricts how much bandwidth or data a consumer uses, though many broadband ISPs temporarily or permanently refrained from enforcing or imposing data caps in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society supports the FCC’s inquiry into data caps which limit the amount of access consumers have to data before they are charged surplus fees or cut off from service. There is scant evidence that such caps are necessary and their consequences can be especially disastrous for vulnerable populations. Data caps are particularly problematic for low-income individuals who may find themselves facing unexpectedly large fees at the end of the month as a result of surpassing a data cap. Data caps can create insurmountable barriers for low-income consumers trying to access life-changing services online, such as educational tools. Data caps can also be particularly debilitating for the deaf and hard-of-hearing consumers who rely on Video Relay Service (VRS) in order to communicate. Data caps can also limit access to telehealth services which otherwise reduce medical costs through video technology, support real-time treatment by first responders through the use of wireless devices, and enhance senior wellness and preventative care through telemedicine and remote in-home monitoring. In general, data caps are not popular with consumers, nor are they an effective means of managing network congestion. The Benton Institute hopes Chairwoman’s colleagues move swiftly to launch this proceeding.
Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Rosenworcel established the new Privacy and Data Protection Task Force. This FCC staff working group will coordinate across the agency on the rulemaking, enforcement, and public awareness needs in the privacy and data protection sectors. This will include data breaches – such as those involving telecommunications providers and related to cyber intrusions – and supply chain vulnerabilities involving third-party vendors that service regulated communications providers. FCC Enforcement Bureau Chief Loyaan A. Egal has been appointed by the Chairwoman to lead the Task Force. The new Task Force is made up of FCC staff from across the agency that handles topics including enforcement, equipment authorization, data breach reporting requirements, and undersea cables. The group met for the first time earlier during the week of June 12th, 2023.
Remarks of FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel to the Center for Democracy and Technology Forum on Data Privacy
On June 14, 2023, Federal Communications Commission Jessica Rosenworcel delivered remarks to the Center for Democracy and Technology Forum on data privacy, announcing a Privacy and Data Protection Task Force at the FCC. "First, we live in an era of always-on connectivity," said Rosenworcel. "Connection is no longer just convenient. It fuels every aspect of modern civic and commercial life. But too often this always-on connectivity—which has brought so many benefits—can mean a sacrifice of our privacy. Second, the monetization of data is big business. The cost of data storage has declined dramatically. The market incentives to keep our data and slice and dice it to inform commercial activity are enormous—and they are only growing." Rosenworcel continued, "Third, more money means more players. It used to be that in communications the relationship was primarily between a customer and his or her service provider. But the number of third parties participating in our digital age connections has multiplied exponentially." Rosenworcel stated the Task Force will have input in several ongoing efforts at the agency. These include an effort to modernize the FCC’s data breach rules and overseeing the investigations and enforcement actions that follow these data breaches. On top of that, the Task Force will help with the development of rules to crack down on SIM-swapping fraud. The Task Force will also play a role in our work under the Safe Connections Act. This was a law passed last year to help support access to communications for survivors of domestic violence. Finally, Rosenworcel announced that she is sharing a proposed enforcement action against "two companies that have put the security of communications customers at risk."
Comcast is pushing back on a Federal Communications Commission order that will require internet service providers to provide their customers with “broadband nutrition labels” indicating such things as what kind of speed they're getting and what fees they're paying. Comcast urged the FCC to make changes suggested in January 2023 in a joint cable-industry proposal. Rendered by a host of well-acronymed industry organizations—including NCTA–The Internet & Television Association, ACA Connects, CTIA, NTCA, and USTelecom—that proposal suggested that “the variety and quantity of fees that might apply to a broadband service depending on the customer’s location, the services provided, and the types of fees that may apply, adds a substantial amount of complexity to an exercise that is intended to simplify the purchasing process for consumers.” Chiming in with its gripe, Comcast estimates that it will need to create and keep up to date 251 separate broadband consumer labels to comply with the rules as of the initial compliance date. Note: It is still unclear as to when the order will actually take effect.
Altafiber, formerly Cincinnati Bell, has agreed to acquire the broadband infrastructure assets of Bridgewired, a Ohio-based company that operates a fiber optic network delivering gigabit Internet speeds to locations in portions of Warren County, Greene County, and Clinton County. The Bridgewired deal calls for Altafiber to acquire Bridgewired’s existing customer base, while Bridgewired will provide certain management services to Altafiber under a transition services agreement to be entered into at closing. Altafiber has invested more than $1.5 billion into its fiber network, which now reaches about four-fifths of greater Cincinnati addresses. Another recent Altafiber acquisition was Agile Network Builders, another Ohio-based company that leases wireless infrastructure assets to third parties and provides connectivity through hybrid fiber wireless data networks in Ohio, West Virginia, Indiana, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania.
DISH says it is providing 5G service to 70% of the US population and has launched more than 15,000 5G sites and therefore has met a key Federal Communications Commission buildout milestone related to its acquisition of Boost Mobile. DISH faces additional buildout requirements two years from now, however, and some question whether the company will be able to meet those requirements, citing funding and timing constraints. The company says that it has continued to add functionality and markets to its voice over new radio (VoNR) service, which it claims is the first service featuring the technology in the US. The service now covers more than 70 million people through Boost Mobile and Boost Infinite. The rollout will continue, the company says. The FCC required DISH to meet several conditions, including provisioning of 5G to 70% of the US by June 14th, 2023, as a condition of its purchase of Sprint’s Boost Mobile prepaid business. Sprint had to divest Boost Mobile as a condition of its acquisition by T-Mobile. Some people would argue that a provider needs to cover more like 95% of the country to have a nationwide network. But DISH does have an agreement with AT&T to use the AT&T network in areas where it lacks its own infrastructure.
All five major social media platforms—Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Twitter—received low and failing scores for the second consecutive year. The platforms continue to fail at enforcing the safeguarding of LGBTQ users from online hate speech, fail at providing transparency in the use of LGBTQ-specific user data and fail in expressing commitments to protecting LGBTQ users, specifically, policies and commitments to protect transgender, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming users from being targeted. Twitter is the most dangerous platform for LGBTQ people.
Sens. Hawley, Blumenthal Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Protect Consumers and Deny AI Companies Section 230 Immunity
Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) introduced the No Section 230 Immunity for AI Act. This new bipartisan legislation would clarify that Section 230 immunity will not apply to claims based on generative AI, ensuring consumers have the tools they need to protect themselves from harmful content produced by the latest advancements in AI technology. For example, AI-generated “deepfakes” – lifelike false images of real individuals – are exploding in popularity. Ordinary people can now suffer life-destroying consequences for saying things they never said, or doing things they never would. Companies complicit in this process should be held accountable in court. The Act would:
- Amend Section 230 by adding a clause that strips immunity from AI companies in civil claims or criminal prosecutions involving the use or provision of generative AI.
- Empower Americans harmed by generative AI models to sue AI companies in federal or state court.
The drumbeat of artificial intelligence (AI) corporate chieftains calling for government regulation of their activities is mounting. As Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Richard Durbin (D-IL) observed, it is “historic” to have “people representing large corporations… come before us and plead with us to regulate them.” There are three challenges for AI oversight: dealing with the velocity of AI developments, parsing the components of what to regulate, and determining who regulates and how:
- Challenge #1 - Velocity (AKA The Red Queen Problem): In Lewis Carroll’s 1871 surrealistic classic Through the Looking Glass, the Red Queen tells Alice: “Now here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run twice as fast as that!” It is an appropriate admonition for oversight in the fast-paced AI era. Keeping the corporate AI race from becoming reckless requires the establishment and development of rules and the enforcement of legal guardrails. Dealing with the velocity of AI-driven change, however, can outstrip the federal government’s existing expertise and authority.
- Challenge #2 - What to Regulate: Because AI is a multi-faceted capability, “one-size-fits-all” regulation will over-regulate in some instances and under-regulate in others. The use of AI in a video game, for instance, has a different effect—and should be treated differently—from AI that could threaten the security of critical infrastructure or endanger human beings. AI regulation, thus, must be risk-based and targeted.
- Challenge #3 - Who Regulates and How: Thus far in the digital age in the US, it is the innovators who have made the rules. This is in large part because the American government has failed to do so. OpenAI’s Sam Altman endorsed the idea of a federal agency dedicated to AI oversight; as well as Microsoft’s Brad Smith and Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg. The challenge facing the US Congress is to be as expansive and creative in their thinking about a new agency and its operations as the innovators of the digital revolution have been in the doping the creations necessitating such a body. Methods to regulate AI may include licensing, risk-based agility, or emulating management practices from digital companies.
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 David L. Clay II (dclay AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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