Reporting

FCC won’t delay vote, says net neutrality supporters are “desperate”

The Federal Communications Commission will move ahead with its vote to kill network neutrality rules Dec 14 despite an unresolved court case that could strip away even more consumer protections. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai says that net neutrality rules aren't needed because the Federal Trade Commission can protect consumers from broadband providers. But a pending court case involving AT&T could strip the FTC of its regulatory authority over AT&T and similar ISPs.

Donald Trump Jr. Communicated With WikiLeaks During Campaign

Donald Trump Jr. had multiple online conversations during the 2016 presidential campaign with WikiLeaks, the anti-secrecy group that released a hacked trove of Democrats’ emails, according to four congressional officials. Trump, the president’s son, in recent weeks handed over Twitter messages he exchanged with WikiLeaks to several congressional committees investigating Russia’s attempts to disrupt the election, according to the officials.

Civil Rights Groups Question Lifeline Changes

The National Hispanic Media Coalition, Color of Change, NAACP and the Benton Foundation are among the organizations concerned about proposed changes to the Lifeline program, which is on the docket for the Federal Communications Commission’s upcoming open meeting. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai -- who has long called for reforms to deter waste, fraud and abuse in Lifeline -- is seeking a vote at the agency’s Nov. 16 meeting on a major overhaul of the program, which subsidizes phone and broadband service for the poor.

US Said to Seek Sale of CNN or DirecTV in AT&T-Time Warner Deal

Apparently, the Justice Department has called on AT&T and Time Warner to sell Turner Broadcasting, the group of cable channels that includes CNN, as a potential requirement for approving the companies’ pending $85.4 billion deal. The other possible way for the merger to win approval would be for AT&T to sell its DirecTV division, apparently.

Rep Eshoo: FCC Broadband Deployment Committee Needs Local Input

Rep Anna Eshoo (D-CA) wants the Federal Communications Commission to tap into more state and local government input on broadband deployment, suggesting the FCC’s goal now is to serve industry and tie the hands of those local governments. That came in a letter Rep Eshoo sent to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and the other commissioners Nov 7. Rep Eshoo wants to see more state and local officials on the FCC's Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee (BDAC).

RDOF winner coalition tells FCC to grant more funds and amnesty

A group known as the "coalition of RDOF winners" has weighed in on whether the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should grant an amnesty period for providers to relinquish their locations awarded through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) in the interest of making those locations available for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program instead.

AT&T to deliver fiber-powered broadband to more than 530 customers in rural Lawrence County (IN)

Lawrence County (IN) announced a nearly $2.6 million public-private project with AT&T to expand AT&T Fiber to an estimated 530 customer locations in rural areas of the county. AT&T will invest more than $1.6 million, and Lawrence County will invest $950,000 in a project to provide fiber services to residential and business addresses in rural areas of west central Lawrence County. Extensive planning and engineering work for this project will begin in the second quarter of 2024. The network buildout is expected to be complete within two years.

NTIA approves Montana’s digital equity plan

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration approved Montana’s plan to expand digital access, skills and affordability as part of the federal $2.75 billion Digital Equity Act. Montana’s Digital Opportunity Plan listed barriers to digital access, which include broadband availability, service affordability, device access, and digital skills—with access and affordability being the top two. The plan is intended to serve as a guide for the state’s efforts to narrow the digital divide.

Electric co-ops want RDOF defaulters to pony up

As the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) considers pleas for more lenient Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) fines, electric co-ops are saying it's time for defaulters to own up. Internet service providers (ISP) have been defaulting on RDOF grants for years and have been struck with sizeable penalties from the FCC as a result.

Maryland Broadband Dashboard: 20 Providers Granted $239 Million Since 2019

The state of Maryland has created a useful online dashboard showing how much broadband funding it awarded between 2019 and 2023. Interested parties can check information by provider and by year. A total of 20 entities received grants during the five years covered by the dashboard, which was posted by the Maryland Office of Statewide Broadband. The 10 companies that were awarded the most money were

NTIA’s Evan Feinman Tries to Calm ISP Fears on BEAD Reporting, Low-Cost Service Requirements

Service providers shouldn’t let reporting requirements or a requirement to offer low-cost service stop them from applying for Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding, said Evan Feinman, BEAD program director for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The requirement to offer a low-cost service has become a particularly big concern as funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is set to run out. Many providers had seen the FCC $30-a-month ACP benefit for low-income customers as a means of meeting that requirement.

Starlink mobile plans hit snag as FCC dismisses SpaceX spectrum application

Starlink's mobile ambitions were dealt at least a temporary blow when the Federal Communications Commission dismissed SpaceX's application to use several spectrum bands for mobile service. SpaceX is seeking approval to use up to 7,500 second-generation Starlink satellites with spectrum in the 1.6 GHz, 2 GHz, and 2.4 GHz bands. SpaceX could still end up getting what it wants but will have to go through new rulemaking processes in which the FCC will evaluate whether the spectrum bands can handle the system without affecting existing users.

T-Mobile expands its Florida fiber ambitions with help from Tillman

Tillman Fiber is expanding its fiber networks in Florida, and it has confirmed that it’s “collaborating” with T-Mobile on the project. The fiber network expansion will serve four areas of the state, including the cities of St. Petersburg, Fort Myers, Naples, Pensacola, Miami, Palm Beach, Ft. Lauderdale and Kissimmee. We already knew that Tillman was working with T-Mobile in the Florida counties of Pinellas and Polk, which includes St. Petersburg and Lakeland.

CBRS spectrum comes into play with BEAD

Wireless internet service providers (WISPs) hit a homerun when federal officials clarified that areas covered by broadband running on Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) spectrum could be marked as served for purposes of BEAD. Many folks in the fiber broadband community are not familiar with wireless internet service and the rules regarding wireless spectrum.

Michigan aims to scrub coverage overstatements from its BEAD map

The Michigan High Speed Internet Office kicked off its BEAD challenge process this week, and it’s doing everything in its power to scrub the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) map of locations where providers are overstating their coverage. The state is receiving a historic $1.56 billion BEAD funding allocation—the fourth highest in the nation.

Google Fiber Offers Updates on GFiber Markets, Including Some Not Announced Before

Blink and it’s easy to miss Google Fiber news. In March, the company offered progress reports on multiple GFiber markets, including some that hadn’t been previously announced. On March 11, the company said it was working in Pocatello and Chubbuck, Idaho. On March 18, the company noted that service was available in an apartment and condo building in Hillsborough, North Carolina, which is near Duke University.

Rural FWA operators start to 'edge-in'

For rural operators, fixed wireless access (FWA) technologies have served well to "edge-out" and deliver services to areas that can't be reached by cable and fiber networks cost-effectively.

Colorado workers and internet service providers lock horns over BEAD labor bill

Are federal labor protections for broadband workers strong enough, or should state lawmakers intervene to give them a boost? That question is at the heart of a fiery debate raging in Colorado’s state house over a piece of proposed legislation that would codify additional rights for broadband workers. If passed, the bill would mandate that any company using federal or state money for broadband projects of over $500,000 would have to pay workers prevailing wages.

Cable internet service provider is fined $10,000 for lying to FCC about where it offers broadband

An Internet service provider (ISP) that admitted lying to the Federal Communications Commission about where it offers broadband will pay a $10,000 fine and implement a compliance plan to prevent future violations. Jefferson County Cable (JCC), a small ISP in Toronto (OH) admitted that it falsely claimed to offer fiber service in an area that it hadn't expanded to yet.

Elon Musk’s Starlink Terminals Are Falling Into the Wrong Hands

SpaceX’s Starlink touts its high-speed internet as “available almost anywhere on Earth.” In the real world, its reach extends to countries where Elon Musk’s satellite-enabled service has no agreement to operate, including territories ruled by repressive regimes. There are wide-spanning examples of Starlink kits being traded and activated illegally.

FCC rule against broadband digital discrimination goes into effect

The 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) required the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt rules to prevent and eliminate digital discrimination in regard to access to broadband, and those rules went into effect on March 22.

The Delaware Digital Equity plan has been approved. What’s next?

The Delaware Broadband Initiative hit a major milestone when its State Digital Equity Plan was formally federally approved, making the state officially eligible for millions in funding to execute it. The Digital Equity Plan was developed over months of stakeholder engagement, public meetings, surveys, polls and a public comment period. Delaware now expects to receive about $12 million in federal Digital Equity Act funds under the Internet for All initiative.

Millions of Americans could soon lose home internet access if lawmakers don’t act

As soon as May, more than 23 million US households––currently receiving Affordable Connectivity Program funding––risk being kicked off their internet plans or facing skyrocketing bills that force them to pay hundreds more per year to get online, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).