1. Monthly archive
  2. November 2019

November 2019

Are Big Tech acquisitions feeding antitrust probes?

As big tech companies collect startups from different industries like Easter eggs, are they unwittingly adding evidence to the antitrust investigations of the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission? While two of the four companies in question -- Alphabet’s Google, and Facebook — slowly begin to concede in public filings and conference calls they are subjects of regulatory scrutiny, they are brazenly scooping up smaller companies that extend their tentacles into new markets and collect more personal information.

Commissioner Starks Proposes Data-Driven 10 Year Look-Back of High Cost Program

Thank you to the Broadband Communities team for organizing a great event and inviting me here today to discuss an issue that I care so deeply about which is getting high-speed, affordable broadband to every person across this country.

Frontier Seeks Waiver from CAF Deployment Obligations in Navajo Nation

Frontier Communications requests that the Federal Communications Commission waive Frontier’s obligations under the Connect America Fund (“CAF”) Phase II model-based support program to reach its 80% year-end 2019 milestone in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah because it has not been permitted to build on the Navajo Nation for the past year. Frontier requires the use of the Navajo Nation public rights of way.

Sprint’s Lifeline issue hurts wireless service revenue

Sprint reported losing nearly 300,000 phone subscribers in the latest quarter alongside profit losses and revenue declines, and felt a negative impact from its issues with the government’s Lifeline program.

USDA Invests $3.8 Million in Rural Broadband for Virginia Families

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) invested nearly $3.8 million in high-speed broadband infrastructure that will create or improve rural e-Connectivity for more than 1,250 rural households in Virginia. Mecklenburg Electric Cooperative will use ReConnect Program funding to deploy a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband network capable of simultaneous transmission rates of 100 megabits per second (Mbps) or greater. The funded service areas include 1,254 households, two volunteer fire departments, and four educational facilities.

Rural businesses in Ohio face limited broadband access

If you walk into a retail store in southern Ohio, you might see a "cash only" sign sitting in the window. Cash, unlike credit card machines, does not rely on internet access to work. In an area with limited options for high-speed internet access, some businesses struggle with credit card machines. Up until five years ago, M&M Feed Supply, in Guernsey County, was one of those businesses. It had dial-up internet, which allowed them to use the machine, but only in the store where it could be physically connected.

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