Thursday, July 20, 2023
Headlines Daily Digest
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Justice Department And Federal Trade Commission Seek Comment on Draft Merger Guidelines
Indigenous Digital Sovereignty: From the Digital Divide to Digital Equity
Broadband Funding
Digital Equity
Infrastructure
Wireless/Spectrum
Antitrust
Security
Platforms/Social Media
AI
Broadband Funding
The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, the US government’s $42 billion broadband grants program, requires recipients to provide a Letter of Credit for 25% of the grant award. Alongside the additional 25% match requirement, this capital barrier will shut out a huge number of internet service providers (ISP).The small and community-centered ISPs, minority and women-owned businesses, nonprofits, and municipalities that the program claims to be targeting will be most affected. These are the providers best positioned to connect un(der)-served Americans. There are alternatives that can safeguide taxpayer dollars while ensuring a wide pool of providers can participate in BEAD. Together, we must engage the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to explore these alternatives and ensure the ‘Equity’ is not lost from the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment program. Let’s be clear: the requirement comes with good intentions. Nobody wants to see billions of dollars of taxpayer’s money handed to providers that default on projects and fail to deliver the broadband so many desperately need. However, there’s a balance to be found to mitigate this risk while honoring the program’s aim to broaden the pool of awardees and fund community-oriented networks.
Calum Cameron is Communications Manager at Connect Humanity.
Fastwyre Broadband is aiming to expand fiber access in Western Alaska, with the help of two new US Department of Agriculture (USDA) grants totaling nearly $70 million. The funds came from the USDA’s recent round of ReConnect Round Four awards, in which the agency dished out $714 million to cover 33 buildouts in 19 states. In Fastwyre’s case, it’s using the money to deliver fiber to around 3,000 people and 75 businesses in several communities across Alaska’s Nome Census Area. Construction is expected to start later in 2023. In Alaska, Fastwyre provides service to more than 18,000 consumers and businesses across 23 markets, said Chief Strategy Officer Jim Patterson. Patterson said Fastwyre is “committed to strategic growth objectives that include opportunities for organic expansion and acquisition initiatives.”
The concept of “digital sovereignty” has become critical for not only Native American Tribes in their pursuit of affordable and robust internet access but also for non-Native partners in understanding the importance of partnering with Tribes. Dr. Traci Morris, executive director of the American Indian Policy Institute (AIPI) at Arizona State University, shared her knowledge on digital equity efforts in Indian Country, including the need for accurate data in Tribal communities, and what current funding means for now and future generations. Indian Country includes 574 federally recognized Tribes on 334 reservations, in 35 states, on 100 million acres of land. That, in a nutshell, gives an idea of the vastness of Indian Country and the monumental task of bridging the digital divide. Dr. Morris led AIPI’s efforts to gather end-user data prior to the pandemic to understand the digital divide in Tribal communities. AIPI found that 18 percent of reservation residents have no internet access at home, either wireless or land-based internet (cable, DSL, dial-up). 33 percent rely on cell phone service for at-home internet, and 49 percent utilize a land-based internet service provider (cable, DSL, dial-up) at home. 31 percent have spotty internet or no connection at home via smartphone. Of course, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the digital divide for everyone, and for Tribal communities, we have since learned that affordability, speed, types of access, quality of access, and location of access are major barriers. Each Tribe experiences unique barriers and defines their solutions.
The Center for Digital Equity (CDE) at Queens University of Charlotte has released its first-ever Annual Collective Impact Report, showcasing the progress its digital equity work has made in bridging the digital divide in Charlotte (NC) communities. The CDE’s Annual Report highlights the collective impact of its partnership with residents, partners, and stakeholders in fervently addressing the needs of all people living in Mecklenburg County (NC). From July 2022 – June 2023, thehe CDE:
- Supported internet adoption for 10,000 households via the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) and the Your Home, Your Internet grant with INLIVIAN (formerly the Charlotte Housing Authority);
- Was chosen as the lead partner for the digital divide priority focus area for the Mayor’s Racial Equity Initiative (MREI) in Charlotte;
- Supported the distribution of 20,000 laptops in partnership with Charlotte Mecklenburg Library and E2D;
- Developed version one of a digital literacy journey map that will help residents better connect to personalized digital resources;
- Provided outreach to increase digital navigator ticket volumes through partnerships with Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools (CMS);
- Conducted digital literacy sessions using its Digital Navigator Program throughout the Greater Charlotte metropolitan area.
Infrastructure
Analysts Revise Telecommunications Lead Remediation Estimate to $4.4 Billion to $21 Billion
If telecommunications providers are required to remove decades-old lead-sheathed cable from their networks, the total bill is likely to be in the range of $4.4 billion to $21 billion, according to a new estimate from New Street Research. That’s a big drop from a preliminary New Street Research estimate of $60 billion. The revised estimate is based on new information provided by TDS Telecom, AT&T, and other industry sources about the extent of lead-sheathed cable nationwide and about likely remediation scenarios. The telecom industry hasn’t used lead-sheathed cable since the 1950s or 1960s, but the cabling has become a hot topic in the wake of allegations made by the Wall Street Journal. In a heavily researched series of articles, the WSJ argued that the cabling could pose a public health threat when the lead shielding degrades over time, whether installed on poles, in the ground or under water. Using the AT&T data and AT&T market share, New Street Research estimated the cost of any lead remediation that might be required for other telecom providers at between $7.1 billion and $14.3 billion, yielding a nationwide forecast, including AT&T and other providers, at between $13.7 billion and $21 billion. Remediation costs might be as low as $4.4 billion nationwide, however, if buried cabling does not have to be removed, the researchers note.
The Federal Communications Commission circulated draft rules to govern the lower 42 GHz spectrum (between 42 – 42.5 GHz). This is within the range of spectrum referred to as millimeter wave spectrum. This is one of the more unusual FCC spectrum deliberations because this spectrum is totally empty – there is nobody currently authorized by the FCC to use the spectrum band. The FCC is starting this deliberation with a clean slate. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel says that this gives the FCC an opportunity to come up with a spectrum-sharing model that will be easy for wireless carriers to use while maximizing the benefits for the public.The early draft rules ask the industry to comment on three different approaches to the use of the spectrum.
- A nationwide non-exclusive licensing approach, in which licensees would apply for a license and then register and coordinate specific deployment sites with a third-party database administrator.
- A site-based licensing approach, in which licensees would directly apply to the FCC for each deployment site.
- A technology-based sensing approach, in which operators would employ certain technologies to avoid harmful interference from other users of the spectrum – all coordinated locally without the use of a database administrator.
The Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are releasing a draft update of the Merger Guidelines (Draft Guidelines), which describe and guide the agencies’ review of mergers and acquisitions to determine compliance with federal antitrust laws. The goal of this update is to better reflect how the agencies determine a merger’s effect on competition in the modern economy and evaluate proposed mergers under the law. Both agencies encourage the public to review the draft and provide feedback through a public comment period that will last 60 days. The Justice Department and FTC protect competition through enforcement of the antitrust laws and other federal competition statutes. Since 1968, the agencies have issued and revised Merger Guidelines to enhance transparency and promote awareness of how the agencies carry out that charge with respect to mergers and acquisitions. The Draft Guidelines build upon, expand, and clarify frameworks set out in previous versions. At the outset, the Guidelines give an overview of 13 principles, or “guidelines,” that the agencies may use when determining whether a merger is unlawfully anticompetitive under the antitrust laws. These guidelines are not mutually exclusive, and a given merger may implicate multiple guidelines. The document then describes in greater depth the frameworks and tools that may be used when analyzing a merger with respect to each guideline.
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.
© 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
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Benton Institute
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