As some states ease stay-at-home restrictions, mobile handoffs (the times when a data session moves from one cell site to another as users walk or drive around) are starting to return to near pre-COVID levels in some regions, according to the latest Verizon Network Report. The Carolinas and Tennessee region are 1% below a typical day while the Georgia and Alabama region is down only 5% and the Central Gulf Coast region is down only 9% below a typical day.
The connectivity and services built by information capitalists have become too important to be left any longer without public participation in determining the rules they follow. Critical nature of these digital services warrants public interest representation in decisions about their practices. Here are four ideas to incorporate public participation in establishing the rules for the critical services of the information era:
The 5.9 GHz band is at the center of several fights as the Federal Communications Commission considers opening the band for Wi-Fi after years of the spectrum laying mostly fallow. The week of April 20, the FCC adopted a plan to make 1,200 megahertz of 6 GHz spectrum, which is next door to the 5.9 band, available for unlicensed use. That was considered a watershed moment for the Wi-Fi industry, and while that was a complicated proceeding, the 5.9 GHz band has been described as even more so.
The Federal Communications Commission made it easier for individuals who have lost their employment during the coronavirus pandemic and who qualify for Lifeline benefits to enroll in the Lifeline program. Specifically, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau temporarily waived the requirement that consumers seeking to qualify for the program based on their income must provide at least three consecutive months of income documentation.
To evaluate how our members’ DOCSIS (Hybrid Fiber-Coax) and Fiber to the Home (FTTH) networks’ performed during the emergency, ACA Connects retained the strategy consulting firm, Cartesian, to perform an in-depth analysis. Cartesian found that despite the surge in Internet usage, our members’ networks continue to provide the same high-quality experience their customers have come to depend on. During the COVID-19 pandemic:
© 1994-2026 Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. All Rights Reserved.
