Coronavirus and Connectivity

The coronavirus is creating an 'enormous stress test' of America's internet

The US' internet and wireless networks are coming under immense pressure to deliver reliable connectivity as schools and businesses confronting the novel coronavirus have shifted their day-to-day operations out of the workplace and into homes, according to industry analysts and government officials. "This is going to be an enormous stress test for our communications networks," said Blair Levin, a former Federal Communications Commission chief of staff and author of the agency's 2010 plan to improve internet access nationwide.

FCC Waives Lifeline Rules to Help Keep Low-Income Consumers Connected

The Federal Communications Commission announced changes to the Lifeline program to assist program participants potentially affected by the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic and aid community efforts to slow its spread. The FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau waived the Lifeline program’s recertification and reverification requirements for participating low-income consumers for 60 days.

HHS Secretary Azar Announces Historic Expansion of Telehealth Access to Combat COVID-19

The Trump Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced unprecedented steps to expand Americans' access to telehealth services during the COVID-19 outbreak.

FCC Must Act Quickly As COVID-19 Threatens Healthcare, Education

The Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition asked the Federal Communications Commission to expedite affordable broadband solutions for unconnected Americans. The novel coronavirus is driving schools to online learning and increasing healthcare providers’ reliance on telehealth solutions.

The FCC should send Wi-Fi hotspots to schools to close the homework gap

The Federal Communications Commission should use its power in this emergency to provide schools with Wi-Fi hotspots to loan out to students who lack reliable internet access at home. It has the authority to do so under the Telecommunications Act. This law, now more than two decades old, directed the agency to set up a program to support internet service in schools across the country, through a program known as E-Rate. Today, E-Rate funds broadband for educational purposes in every state.

FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel on staying connected during a pandemic

A Q&A with Federal Communications Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel.

Asked, "What are the immediate short-term steps that the FCC and the broadband companies can take, and what are the medium and long-term steps that could help us be better prepared in the future?"

Our Internet Isn’t Ready for Coronavirus

Just as our public health system appears unable to cope with the spread of the coronavirus, our residential broadband, video conferencing platforms and VPNs are about to face unprecedented strain. That strain will have serious consequences, not just for the performance of our broadband networks but also for student access to education and the security of corporate data and networks. The performance issues might be worse in rural areas, where internet service is already less reliable than it is in big cities.

Coronavirus Fight Lays Bare Education’s Digital Divide

For all of China’s economic advancements in recent decades, the rudiments of connected life — capable smartphones, reliable internet — remain out of reach for large segments of the population.

Lessons From China on the Coronavirus and the Dangers of App Consolidation

While quarantined in her Wuhan apartment for days on end, the woman who calls herself “Sister Ma” suddenly found herself blocked from her account on WeChat, a platform used by more than 1 billion people in China. Without WeChat, she was cut off from communication with friends and family, the ability to order critical supplies, and contact with her children’s school. “My life is falling apart,” she wrote on a now-deleted but archived message on Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter.

Coronavirus Outrage Spurs China’s Internet Police to Action

As China tries to reshape the narrative of its fumbled response to the coronavirus outbreak, it is turning to a new breed of police that carry out real-world reprisals for digital misdeeds. The internet police, as they are known here, have gained power as the Communist Party has worked to seize greater control over the thoughts, words, and even memories of China’s 800 million web users. Now, they are emerging as a bulwark against the groundswell of anger over governance breakdowns that exacerbated the epidemic. Officers arrive with an unexpected rap at the door of online critics.

Tech shapes a new stay-at-home economy

As the coronavirus crisis forces daily life across the US into a new homebound template, the tech industry is swooping in to reshape how we shop, eat and entertain ourselves. Trends toward e-commerce, delivery services and online entertainment have long been underway, but this moment is accelerating them — and pushing the companies and industries behind them into a new position of dominance. The longer our public health crisis lasts, the more deeply these changes will etch themselves into the economy. As one of its side effects, the coronavirus pandemic could seal the fate of the digital ec

US Schools Deploy Remote Learning on Unprecedented Scale

Millions of US students will abruptly switch to learning remotely amid the coronavirus pandemic, pushing school administrators and teachers to establish on the fly ways to transfer the classroom to the home. Teachers are incorporating educational technology that has never been used on this scale while also dealing with the limitations of internet access in some homes.

More Providers Take Chairman Pai's Keep Americans Connected Pledge

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced that 116 more broadband and telephone service providers have taken his Keep Americans Connected Pledge. Chairman Pai launched the Keep Americans Connected Pledge on March 13 with 69 broadband and telephone providers across the country agreeing to take specific steps to help Americans stay connected for the next 60 days. March 16’s announcement means that 185 companies in total have now taken the Pledge. 

T-Mobile herds 600 MHz spectrum from other providers for COVID-19 response

T-Mobile worked with a variety of other providers to rustle up additional 600 MHz spectrum to help it meet increased customer demand for wireless broadband, as people are forced to work and learn from home. The companies that have agreed to contribute spectrum are Dish, Comcast, NewLevel, LB License Co, Channel 51, Omega, Bluewater and TStar License Holdings.  

Internet connections could stumble for some if too many family members try to videoconference at the same time

The US internet won’t get overloaded by spikes in traffic from the millions of Americans now working from home to discourage the spread of the new coronavirus, experts say. But connections could stumble for many if too many family members try to videoconference at the same time. The core of the US network is more than capable of handling the virus-related surge in demand because it has evolved to be able to easily handle bandwidth-greedy Netflix, YouTube and other streaming services.

As schools close due to the coronavirus, some U.S. students face a digital ‘homework gap’

As K-12 officials in many states close schools and shift classes and assignments online due to the spread of the new coronavirus, they confront the reality that some students do not have reliable access to the internet at home – particularly those who are from lower-income households. Here are key findings about the internet, homework and how the digital divide impacts American youth:

So We’re Working From Home. Can the Internet Handle It?

As millions of people across the US shift to working and learning from home this week to limit the spread of the coronavirus, they will test internet networks with one of the biggest mass behavior changes that the nation has experienced. That is set to strain the internet’s underlying infrastructure, with the burden likely to be particularly felt in two areas: the home networks that people have set up in their residences, and the home internet services from Comcast, Charter and Verizon that those home networks rely on.

Senator Markey Leads Colleagues In Letter to Chairman Pai Calling on FCC to Ensure All Students Can Remotely Continue Education During Coronavirus Emergency

Sens Ed Markey (D-MA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Brian Schatz (D-HI) led thirteen of their colleagues in calling on the Federal Communications Commission to temporarily allow schools to utilize E-Rate program funding to provide Wi-Fi hotspots or devices with Wi-Fi capability to students who lack internet access at home. This action would help ensure that all students can remotely continue their education during the current public health emergency.

‘It shouldn’t take a pandemic’: Coronavirus exposes Internet inequality among US students as schools close their doors

In states like Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Washington, educators say they are feeling firsthand the sting of the digital divide — the historically hard-to-erase gap between those who have speedy, modern-day Web connections and those who do not.

FCC Grants T-Mobile Temporary Spectrum Access During Coronavirus

The Federal Communications Commission granted Special Temporary Authority to T-Mobile U.S.A. to use additional spectrum in the 600 MHz Band to help it meet increased customer demand for broadband during the coronavirus pandemic.

Why It’s So Important for Broadband Companies to Ditch Data Caps Right Now

As the coronavirus forces people indoors, internet usage is sure to increase for entertainment, work, and accessing information and services. For low-income households that already struggle to obtain adequate broadband access, being even more reliant on the internet may exacerbate the pre-existing challenges of living in a virtually connected society. “This situation is highlighting the digital divide and all the inadequacies of the current structures in place to provide universal broadband service,” says Olivia Wein, staff attorney at the National Consumer Law Center.

FCC Commissioner Rosenworcel On Broadband Companies' Pledge To Keep Americans

The coronavirus demands swift and decisive action. We know that more Americans than ever before will need internet access for work, education, and healthcare. We also know that this crisis will expose hard truths about the scope for the digital divide. That is why today’s pledge by a number of broadband providers is a welcome first step. But we will need to do more to keep the country connected. Here are three things that the FCC can do next: First, we need to get to work to connect schoolchildren.

FCC Commissioner Starks Statement on Broadband And Telephone Companies' Pledge To Keep Americans Connected

More and more Americans are being asked to support the public health effort by staying h home. That means taking our daily activities—work, school, medical care, and connecting with loved ones—online. But for the tens of millions of Americans without broadband access at home, that’s simply not an option. Closing the digital divide has always been my top priority as a Commissioner; today, it’s more essential than ever to our safety and our economic security. I applaud the broadband companies that have decided to make changes to their business practices to support the response to COVID-19.

Verizon will help customers and small businesses disrupted by impact of coronavirus

During this unprecedented period challenging the world’s health and economy, Verizon announced March 13, for the next 60 days, it will waive late fees that any residential or small business customers incur because of their economic circumstances related to the coronavirus. In addition, the company will not terminate service to any residential or small business customers because of their inability to pay their bills due to disruptions caused by the coronavirus.  Verizon also signed onto the Federal Communications Commission’s new “Keep Americans Connected” pledge.