Federal Broadband Policy Is Increasingly Being Recast Around Satellite

Another federal broadband subsidy may soon be restructured to account for the growing role of SpaceX’s Starlink. The low-Earth orbit satellite internet provider, having already gained legitimacy within broadband deployment programs administered by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, has also found a receptive audience at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The FCC recently tweaked a proposal to modernize its High-Cost programs to place greater emphasis on considering the emergence of satellite technologies. In a proposed rulemaking adopted unanimously on May 20 the FCC asked whether LEO satellite broadband should be treated as a sufficient substitute for terrestrial infrastructure in the most difficult-to-serve areas, and whether continued support for land-based deployments in those locations constitutes unnecessary “overbuilding.” In its proposal, the FCC claimed “nearly all” remaining U.S. locations without a fiber, cable or fixed wireless broadband connection are now considered to be served by “a LEO satellite provider.”