February 2023

NDIA and Common Sense Media Highlight Community Perspectives on Digital Discrimination

In the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Congress recognized that digital discrimination is a real and present problem for many people and charged the Federal Communications Commission with developing rules to prevent and eliminate it. NDIA and Common Sense Media submitted comments in response to the FCC’s recent Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the forthcoming digital discrimination rules. Examples of discriminatory practices to look out for: Pricing, Performance, Customer service, Network maintenance, Contract terms and conditions, and Marketing.

Sponsor: 

Center for Data Innovation

Date: 
Thu, 04/06/2023 - 10:00 to 11:00

Law enforcement agencies are concerned about Apple’s new end-to-end encryption protections for iCloud, arguing more warrant-proof encryption compromises their ability to protect the global public. When talking to The Washington Post, an FBI spokesperson even called for “lawful access by design” to effectively put a backdoor in otherwise secure products and services.



Sponsor: 

Information Technology & Innovation Foundation

Date: 
Mon, 03/20/2023 - 10:00 to 11:30

When the Federal Communications Commission’s allocation of C-Band airwaves to 5G carriers elicited safety concerns from the aviation industry, failures in the U.S. allocation process caused the disagreement to boil over until mass flight cancellations became a pressing possibility. Wireless carriers voluntarily agreed to postpone their scheduled deployment and implement temporary mitigation measures, which averted a worst-case scenario.



Sponsor: 

Gigabit Libraries Network

Date: 
Thu, 03/02/2023 - 08:00 to 09:00

In response to Covid-19 pandemic on top of the years loing backlog of promises to connect the unconnected, Congress has appropriated 10's of $billions for an array of broadband internet expansion and inclusion programs as "Connectivity for All: Broadband and Beyond"

"Lawmakers are now seeing internet connections as a must-have, not a nice-to-have," says Kathryn de Wit, Director, Pew Charitable Trusts Broadband Access Initiative.

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act - $65 billion. Major programs fueling broadband deployments:



Biden-Harris Administration Announces More Than $175 Million in Internet for All Grants to 61 Minority-Serving Colleges and Universities

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) awarded more than $175 million to 61 colleges and universities as part of the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CMC). These new awards cover colleges and universities in 29 states and four territories. With these grants, all funding from this Internet for All grant program has been awarded to 93 universities.

Sponsor: 

Broadband Breakfast

Date: 
Wed, 03/01/2023 - 13:00

A live online preview session ahead of the Big Tech & Speech Summit. One week before the main event, the conference moderators will present a preview of what to expect. Covering the newest developments in the world of Big Tech — including the recent opening arguments in Gonzalez v. Google and Twitter v. Taamneh — and set the stage for timely discussions on content moderation, privacy and competition.



Fiber Networks as Community Development

Why don't local governments view an internet service provider (ISP) that is going to build a fiber network in the same way that they view other economic development opportunities? Local governments roll out the red carpet for a business that is considering building a factory that will bring jobs, and sometimes offer a cash incentive to coax a new employer to build in the community. These kinds of incentives come from the traditional economic development playbook: new jobs bring prosperity. To be fair, local governments sometimes make concessions to an ISP that is going to build fiber – but

Sponsor: 

Broadband Breakfast

Date: 
Thu, 03/09/2023 - 09:00

The full-day program is available for $299, with breakfast and lunch included in the price. Registrants also receive unlimited access to the event videos and two months' complimentary membership in the Breakfast Club.