Internet/Broadband

Lawmakers and lobbyists anticipate a major fight over antitrust bills meant to tame Big Tech before the midterms put an unofficial end to the legislative effort. The bills could remake how Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google operate and treat competitors — if they make it over the finish line.

State and local governments have enacted different types of legislation aimed at improving broadband availability. Two unstudied policies of interest are: (1) “dig-once” policies requiring state-funded construction projects to notify local internet providers about the opportunity to bury conduit for easier wire installation in the future, and (2) permitting policies requiring an expeditious response from local jurisdictions regarding the installation of broadband equipment.

Parks Associates announced new industry and consumer research on consumer attitudes, usage, and adoption of connected devices and services from its quarterly surveys of 10,000 US broadband households. The research quantifies the impact of the pandemic, reveals key insights on the type and brand of devices in use, and identifies preferred devices for different use cases in the home.

As state and local governments look ahead to applying for broadband grants that are part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, some governments are not waiting around for that new federal money to get started on their efforts to expand access to high-speed internet service.

It’s still very early in the ‘ballgame’ of broadband and low earth orbit (LEO) satellite broadband players haven’t gotten up to bat much yet, but recent performance for SpaceX’s Starlink service reveals somewhat underwhelming momentum. Starlink has a total of 145K subscribers across the globe, according to company engineer Jessie Anderson. That’s up only 5K subscribers from November 2021, according to CNBC.

It's been long known that trees can slow down some 5G signals. 5G has the potential to supercharge wireless networks, but its rollout has revealed a range of complex challenges.

Industry lawyers and consultants predict the recently enacted $1 trillion infrastructure measure is likely to create more investment opportunities for private-equity firms in areas they already favor, such as telecommunications, while doing little to expand their presence in the government-dominated transportation sec

Ting Internet geared up to tackle its largest market yet, striking a deal with Colorado Springs Utilities to become the anchor tenant on a city-wide fiber network the electric, water and gas company plans to build. The forthcoming fiber network will pass upwards of 200,000 addresses, with construction set to begin by Q3 of this year. Ting said it plans to hire a dedicated team to serve Colorado Springs (CO) customers and expects to begin providing service in the city in 2023.

AT&T opened enrollment for its discounted internet service plans that are being offered as part of a federal program designed to lower the cost of internet access for low-income Americans. Called the Affordable Connectivity Program, the initiative is overseen by the Federal Communications Commission and funded through the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law, passed in November 2021. AT&T said the benefits can be applied to a variety of eligible AT&T internet plans, as well as eligible AT&T and Cricket Wireless plans.

The Federal Communications Commission released draft rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program. If adopted, the released Report and Order would finalize rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program, which builds upon the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program (EBB Program), and will offer eligible low-income households discounts off the cost of broadband service and connected devices.