Sean Gonsalves

Jeff Bezos—along with newly minted trillionaire Elon Musk—has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD), a $42.45 billion broadband expansion program passed as part of President Joe Biden’s 2021 “Build Back Better” initiative.

Close to a 1,000 broadband-minded registrants attended a listening session on how to spend an estimated $21 billion in “non-deployment” funds states should have at their disposal from the federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program. Hosted by the National Telecommunication and Information Administration, the online listening session featured about 50 selected speakers. 

With the future of Affordable Care Act subsidies in doubt and skyrocketing healthcare costs burdening millions of American households, one powerful tool of modern medicine and technology is not being talked about enough: telehealth. Harnessing the wonders of modern telecommunication technologies, we can now deliver healthcare services at a distance—virtual video visits with healthcare providers, remote monitoring of chronic health conditions, accessing online health information, plus the secure transmission of electronic health records.

Legal analysts are questioning the recent assertion by National Telecommunications and Information Administration head Arielle Roth that the NTIA can legally withhold federal broadband deployment funds from states that have laws enforcing net neutrality or that have enacted affordable broadband legislation similar to New York’s Affordable Broadband Act.

Digital inclusion organizations are reeling after the Trump administration announced the Digital Equity Act grant programs, embedded in the bipartisan infrastructure law, was being cancelled months after federal grants had already been reviewed and awarded. The Wiscasset, Maine-based National Digital Equity Center was one of 65 organizations and public entities

Former Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program Director Evan Feinman talks about the turmoil brewing inside the BEAD program. What’s really behind the push for more satellite connectivity, the threat of sidelining state-led fiber projects, and the political forces stalling progress? Are we about to squander a once-in-a-generation opportunity? 

An impressive milestone is inching its way to completion in North Dakota.

As the federal government makes unprecedented investments to expand high-speed access to the Internet, unbeknownst to most outside the broadband industry is that nearly a third of the states in the U.S. have preemption laws in place that either prevent or restrict local municipalities from building and operating publicly-owned, locally-controlled networks.

The reasons why municipalities and cooperatives build community-owned broadband networks are numerous, often fueled by years of frustration with the spotty, expensive service offered by the big monopoly incumbents.

After two years enmeshed in the work of coalition-building, speed test data collection, and pushing state leaders to invest in better telecommunication infrastructure across Oakland’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods, digital equity advocates in the East Bay city are finally seeing the fruits of their labor pay off.