In this anti-big tech moment, the slogan “break them up” is simple, catchy and has been adopted by some politicians and other observers to capture the emotion of the era. Unfortunately, “breaking up” large tech platforms is often not a good solution to the economic harms created by large firms in this sector. Washington cannot just break up big tech, or any company, solely because it is large or has a high market share.
While the Federal Communications Commission reports that 90 percent of Iowans have access to advanced broadband, others, including Microsoft, argue that measurement of access is grossly overstated, as only about 30 percent of Iowans actually use broadband. While a state utilities board rules on natural gas and electricity rate increases proposed by investor-owned companies and local officials are accountable for a customer’s water and wastewater bill, Iowa broadband exists largely in the private sector.
Gov Ned Lamont (D-CT) went to Stamford (CT) to sign a bill he had pushed for all session long. The new law cuts the red tape in locating the 5G transmitters on state-owned facilities. The need for 5G antennas to be closer to the ground like on a utility poll presents a technologically difficult problem in downtown areas like in Stamford and other cities where the utilities are underground and along the Metro-North railroad line.
The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau proposes to publicly release the list of Common Language Location Identification (CLLI) codes for price cap incumbent local exchange carrier (LEC) wire centers that have alternative fiber within a half-mile (nearby alternative fiber). This list of CLLI codes is based on an analysis of highly confidential information submitted in response to the FCC’s 2015 special access data collection (2015 Collection) which has been incorporated into the record of this proceeding. Affected parties will have ten (10) business days from the
At the beginning of 2019, our Community Broadband Networks team visited North Carolina as part of the Let’s Connect speaking tour. While preparing for the trip and after returning to Minnesota, we researched and mapped Internet access and broadband funding in the state.
Slow speeds, bad coverage and expensive service. These are just some of the concerns contained in nearly 300 public comments on Rural Broadband Pilot Program proposed by the US Department of Agriculture. The proposal follows a promise to farmers by President Donald Trump in January 2017 to deliver a faster, more reliable internet to rural areas. The President followed the promise with an executive order to spur a broadband expansion in regions of the US where connectivity is spotty at best. But little has been done since.
© 1994-2026 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.
