Comcast’s entry-level internet service was not fast enough for Lia Moniz’s two schoolkids, so she upgraded to a faster connection that costs her more than $80 a month. A new Comcast offer, Internet Essentials Plus (IEP), has the potential to make Moniz’s internet free. IEP has the most bang for the buck. It offers speeds up to 100 megabits per second downstream and 10 megabits up, with free cable modem and Wi-Fi hot spot rental, for $29.95 a month. This is covered by the $30 Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) benefit, so on the bottom line, it’s free. Even if you’re an existing Comcast internet customer. Even, in some cases, if you owe Comcast money on previous bills. However, it's problematic to sign up for ACP and IEP. When we tried to sign up, it was complicated and intimidating, but with a little trial and error, and about two hours, we qualified for ACP. Qualifying for Comcast’s IEP was worse. We were informed twice—erroneously—first by email and then by a Comcast help desk agent, that existing Comcast customers didn’t qualify. We corrected the error and navigated even more misinformation. Then we learned that while new Comcast customers could apply for IEP online, existing customers had to wait 48 hours and then call Comcast in person to enroll. In the end, though, we succeeded. The Comcast bill went from $64.87 a month to $0.

[David Isenberg is head of the advisory committee to FalmouthNet, a nonprofit that aims to bring a locally controlled fiber-optic internet network to Falmouth]

Fixed and wireless broadband customers cited price as the number one reason they would switch service providers in a new J.D. Power study. The report analyzes consumer sentiment and operator achievement across five categories: performance and reliability, cost of service, billing and payment, communications and promotions, and customer care. Ian Greenblatt, managing director at J.D. Power, said the first two categories alone account for nearly 60% of an operator’s score. "So obviously keeping the lights on is job number one. It’s got to work, it’s got to work all the time. Reliability is critical…followed by the cost of service,” he said. “How do I feel about the value I get for the dollars I pay? Does it feel like I’m getting the right deal, do I feel like I’m getting taken advantage of?” He added consumers seem most satisfied if their service cost $70 per month or less. After that “we see a meaningful drop off” in satisfaction, Greenblatt noted. Practically speaking, that means most consumers are shopping operators’ mid-tier plans. On the reliability front, Greenblatt noted there’s a huge satisfaction gap between those who experience intermittent internet signal problems and those who don’t.

In 2021, Congress and the administration agreed upon a bipartisan approach to bridging differences in digital investment and delivery. But now, even before a single dollar of the bill’s rural broadband deployment funding has gone out the door, governors in both red and blue states are rushing to pour tax dollars into an entirely different strategy they hope will solve the same problem, and a new Senate bill proposes to potentially spend billions more replicating these state initiatives nationwide. Even for Washington, DC, this bipartisan rush to ramp funding for “middle mile” networks is a bit of a head-scratcher. Most areas of our country already have an extremely robust middle-mile infrastructure. Private investment has jumped at the opportunity to meet this market demand, which is only growing as wireless providers build or contract to backhaul their data from cell towers to their core networks. And in those few places where federal subsidies may be necessary to fill middle mile gaps, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act's (IIJA) Middle Mile Grant Program is already committing $1 billion through competitive bidding. The first awards under that program won’t even be announced until February 2023, much less completed. Does it really make sense to dump additional stacks of taxpayer funding onto the bonfire before seeing whether the initial billion dollars can provide the promised heat? Let’s keep our eye on the ball and focus on getting the first $65 billion right before asking taxpayers to throw billions more after it.

[Michael O’Rielly served as a Commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission. He is currently a visiting fellow at Hudson Institute, senior fellow at the Media Institute, and president of MPORielly Consulting, LLC. He also sits on APCO Worldwide’s International Advisory Council.]

Comcast recently launched a TV ad and erected a dedicated website that takes aim at the capabilities and features of T-Mobile's 5G-powered home broadband service, charging that they come up short when compared to what's delivered via Comcast's wired broadband services. In what's expected to be the first in a series of ads either targeting T-Mobile's service or perhaps the broader fixed wireless access (FWA) sector, Comcast's tongue-in-cheek "Vampires" ad features a family of four in a therapist's office lamenting the performance of T-Mobile's offering. They complain that their speeds degrade during high-usage times during the day, forcing them to access the service during the middle of the night. While the TV ad uses lighthearted humor to mock T-Mobile's FWA services, the dedicated comparison site is more pointed. "We read the fine print. Here's how Xfinity stacks up against 5G home Internet," the website states, adding that T-Mobile's service "is 10-30x slower." The site continues: "Storms, mountains, cars – being inside – can slow down your speed." Comcast also digs into T-Mobile's policies to argue that T-Mobile "plays favorites" by prioritizing mobile customers over 5G home broadband users. The cable operator goes on to state that T-Mobile's FWA service isn't compatible with some live TV streaming services. Naturally, Comcast's website touts the speed and reliability of its own broadband network and notes that some broadband customers get Xfinity Flex, Comcast's 4K-capable smart home/streaming device, for no added cost.