Daily Digest 3/21/2022 (Donald Edwin Young)

Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
Table of Contents

Digital Inclusion

National Broadband Growth is Slowing  |  Read below  |  Doug Dawson  |  Analysis  |  CCG Consulting
Benton Foundation
Does your wireless company participate in the Affordable Connectivity Program?  |  Read below  |  Grace Tepper  |  Analysis  |  Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
New Suspension and Removal Rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program To Have Major Impact on Participating Providers  |  Read below  |  Shawn Chang, Edgar Class, Charles McKee  |  Analysis  |  Wiley

Universal Service Fund

Comments Filed on the Future of the Universal Service Fund  |  Read below  |  Sarah Oh Lam, Scott Wallsten  |  Analysis  |  Technology Policy Institute

Broadband Infrastructure

Reps. Long and Kustoff Introduce Internet Exchange Act  |  Read below  |  Press Release  |  House of Representatives

State/local Initiatives

Comcast, Verizon and Mediacom snag $44.9 million to help deliver universal broadband in Delaware  |  Read below  |  Diana Goovaerts  |  Fierce
Williamson County, Tennessee, plots new broadband projects using American Rescue Plan Act funding  |  Read below  |  Anika Exum  |  Nashville Tennessean
Battle Emerges Over Future of Broadband in Rhode Island  |  GoLocalProv
Cox hits back at claims it's playing catch-up with Rhode Island fiber investment  |  Fierce
Clackamas County (OR) Expanding Access of Broadband Services to County Homes and Businesses with American Rescue Plan Act funds  |  Clackamas County
Here's how Williamson County (TN) hopes to support new broadband projects  |  Tennessean
Opinion | Alabama’s early broadband planning, investments paying dividends today  |  Alabama Political Reporter
Ziply Fiber announces three new multi-gigabit fiber market construction projects in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington  |  Ziply Fiber

Telecom

AT&T, Verizon, Ziply plot copper retirement work across a dozen states  |  Read below  |  Diana Goovaerts  |  Fierce

Advertising

T-Mobile home internet ads get mixed results in Charter challenge  |  Read below  |  Monica Alleven  |  Fierce

Industry News

Fiber Surge Drives Record-Breaking Year for Broadband Access Equipment Market, According to Dell’Oro Group  |  Read below  |  Dell'Oro Group
Counterpoint Finds Global 5G Smartphone Sales Surpass 4G for First Time in January 2022  |  Counterpoint
Sierra Wireless expands its relationship with T-Mobile in a new agreement to leverage the carrier’s IoT, 4G LTE and 5G networks  |  Bevin Fletcher

Platforms

DC Suit Accusing Amazon of Controlling Prices Is Thrown Out  |  New York Times
Facebook is locking out people who didn’t activate Facebook Protect  |  Vox
Youth and Extended Reality: An Initial Exploration of Augmented, Virtual, and Mixed Realities  |  Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society

Content

Rep Beyer introduces Educating Against Misinformation and Disinformation Act to promote media literacy  |  House of Representatives

Policymakers

FCC and NTIA Name Staff Representatives to Advisory Committees to Further Technical Collaboration  |  Read below  |  Press Release  |  National Telecommunications and Information Administration

War & Communications

The war in Ukraine has reintroduced these words and phrases into our vocabulary  |  National Public Radio
President Zelenskyy Merges All TV Stations Into Single Platform to Fight Against Russian ‘Misinformation’  |  Wrap, The
Some Russians are breaking through Putin’s digital iron curtain — leading to fights with friends and family  |  Washington Post
4 reasons why social media can give a skewed account of the war in Ukraine  |  National Public Radio
Chip Sanctions Challenge Russia’s Tech Ambitions  |  Wall Street Journal

Stories From Abroad

Toronto, the Quietly Booming Tech Town  |  New York Times
Brazilian court orders Apple and Google to block Telegram over disinformation  |  Vox
Vodafone UK prepares for 3G shutdown in 2023  |  Fierce
Meta Platforms is Sued Over Scam Ads by Australian Regulator  |  Wall Street Journal
Today's Top Stories

Digital Inclusion

National Broadband Growth is Slowing

Doug Dawson  |  Analysis  |  CCG Consulting

Leichtman Research Group recently released the broadband customer statistics for the end of the fourth quarter of 2021. The numbers show that broadband growth has slowed significantly for the sixteen largest broadband providers tracked by the company. LRG compiles these statistics from customer counts provided to stockholders, except for Cox which is privately owned. Net customer additions sank each quarter during 2021. The first quarter of 2021 saw over 1 million net new broadband customers. That dropped to just under 900,000 in the second quarter, 630,000 in the third quarter, and now 423,000 in the fourth quarter. There are a few interesting things to keep an eye on in the future. The growth for Comcast and Charter have slowed significantly and my prediction is that there will come a quarter within a year where one or both of them will lose net customers. For several years running, Frontier has been bleeding customers but seems to be turning it around. The big loser is now CenturyLink.

Does your wireless company participate in the Affordable Connectivity Program?

Grace Tepper  |  Analysis  |  Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

 This is the third in a series of articles looking at which providers are opting to offer services supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program. Here, Benton looks at the offerings of the largest wireless companies in the United States. According to wireless trade association CTIA, all three national providers and numerous regional providers support the Affordable Connectivity program—representing approximately 95% of existing wireless subscriptions and covering more than 99% of all Americans. The vast majority of wireless broadband consumers—over 350 million—subscribe to either Verizon, T-Mobile or AT&T. All US wireless providers with over 5 million subscribers, Verizon, T-Mobile and AT&T (as well as their prepaid services and subsidiaries), Dish Wireless's Boost, and US Cellular are all participating in the Affordable Connectivity Program. We also included nonprofit PCs for People, whose services center on getting low-cost computers and affordable broadband internet into the homes of low-income individuals. When comparing wireless companies to telephone and cable providers in the program, cable is overall more cost-effective and transparent about their participation.

[Also see Does your cable company participate in the Affordable Connectivity Program? and Does your telephone company participate in the Affordable Connectivity Program?]

New Suspension and Removal Rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program To Have Major Impact on Participating Providers

Shawn Chang, Edgar Class, Charles McKee  |  Analysis  |  Wiley

On March 16, 2022, the vast majority of the new rules for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) – the successor program to the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) Program created by Congress in 2021 to help offset the cost of broadband subscription and broadband-capable devices for qualified low-income consumers – became effective. One of the biggest differences between the pre-existing rules for the EBB Program and the new rules for the ACP is the adoption of new involuntary removal rules modeled after the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Guidelines to Agencies on Government Debarment and Suspension. Under the new suspension and removal rules for the ACP, a participating carrier could be subject to a suspension or removal proceeding by the Federal Communications Commission not only for violations of the rules or requirements of the ACP or its predecessor EBB Program, but also the Lifeline program, the Emergency Connectivity Fund (ECF) Program or successor programs, as well as any of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund (USF) programs. Given that there are over 1,200 participating providers in the ACP, and that the OMB Guideline departs from existing suspension and removal procedures for USF program participants in a few significant ways, all participating providers of ACP should review the new rules carefully to understand their potentially far-reaching impact and ensure ongoing compliance with the program requirements.

[Shawn Chang, Edgar Class and Charles McKee are partners at Wiley.]

Universal Service Fund

Comments Filed on the Future of the Universal Service Fund

Sarah Oh Lam, Scott Wallsten  |  Analysis  |  Technology Policy Institute

The Federal Communications Commission asks a series of questions about the current set of programs supported though the Universal Service Fund, particularly in light of the broadband initiatives funded through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). Commenters have focused heavily on how to fund universal service programs given the problems with the current contribution mechanism and ways to modify existing support programs. We have reviewed these comments and respectfully submit reply comments. We make six points in these reply comments:

  1. Fund Universal Service Through General Revenues, Not Taxes on Services
  2. Stop Mandating Minimum Projected Demand for High-Cost Subsidies
  3. Set Budgets for CAF and Other Infrastructure Programs
  4. Include Measurable Objectives and Evaluation
  5. Continue Using Reverse Auctions
  6. Create a Task Force to Overhaul USF and Monitor ARPA and IIJA Funds

Broadband Infrastructure

Reps. Long and Kustoff Introduce Internet Exchange Act

Press Release  |  House of Representatives

Reps Billy Long (R-MO-7) and David Kustoff (R-TN-8) introduced H.R. 7112, the Internet Exchange (IX) Act. The bill aims to strengthen Internet access in rural and other underserved areas by promoting more Internet Exchanges across the country. IXs are one of the building blocks around which the Internet is built. They are the physical locations where networks come together, and where content providers place content closer to end users to increase the speed and efficiency of networks. Currently, there are dozens of IXs nationwide but most of them are concentrated in big cities and in the coastal states. The IX Act would authorize the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to administer a grant program that will establish or expand IX facilities and allow eligible E-rate (schools and libraries) and Telehealth program recipients to use available support to fund connections to and maintenance of points of presence at IX facilities. Increasing the number of IXs across the country will result in a more resilient, competitive, and interconnected web (especially for households in more rural areas).

State/Local

Comcast, Verizon and Mediacom snag $44.9 million to help deliver universal broadband in Delaware

Diana Goovaerts  |  Fierce

Comcast won a grant of more than $30 million to help expand high-speed internet service to underserved homes and businesses in Delaware, as part of a state initiative to deliver universal broadband access. Verizon and Mediacom each also scored hefty awards. All told, the state awarded $56 million in Broadband Infrastructure Grants. The money was distributed as part of a $110 million program announced in September 2021 aimed at closing existing broadband gaps in the state. Comcast came away with $33.1 million, while Verizon snagged $11.8 million and Mediacom won $11.1 million. Using the money, the trio will extend their wireline infrastructure in Delaware over the next 36 months to cover more than 11,000 unserved locations. The grants will cover up to 75 percent of construction costs, with the operators contributing the remaining 25 percent. In a strategic broadband plan released in May 2021, the state previously identified 11,600 locations in contiguous areas which were unserved with broadband meeting the Federal Communications Commission’s minimum speed standard of 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload. The report noted there were a few hundred more unserved addresses sprinkled within mostly served areas, with these primarily consisting of locations where “the potential return on investment is not high enough to merit the cost to pick up those customers.” It concluded that encouraging incumbent providers to edge out their networks would be the most efficient way to connect a majority of unserved locations, finding 87 percent could be reached with a half-mile extension of existing infrastructure.

Williamson County, Tennessee, plots new broadband projects using American Rescue Plan Act funding

Anika Exum  |  Nashville Tennessean

The Williamson County (TN) Commission stated its willingness to help fund broadband internet projects in the county in two resolutions approved unanimously March 14. The money would come from the over $46 million Williamson County is slated to receive in American Rescue Plan funds meant to provide relief from the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The Tennessee Department of Economic Development's Broadband Division is awarding up to $400 million of state American Rescue Plan funds for an emergency broadband fund. State funds would cover up to 70 percent of approved broadband projects, while providers would be responsible for the remaining 30 percent. In the resolutions, the commissioners indicated the county is eager to help providers cover their portion. Five broadband providers — Comcast, United Communications, Charter Communications, AT&T and Conexon — have expressed interest in building new infrastructure in the county. United and Comcast have requested support from the county alongside the state. If the providers are awarded grants, the county will provide a maximum of around $1.7 million or 10 percent of Comcast's project and no more than $3 million or 15 percent of United's project.

Telecom

AT&T, Verizon, Ziply plot copper retirement work across a dozen states

Diana Goovaerts  |  Fierce

AT&T has filed to undertake copper retirement projects in at least eight states in 2022 as it ramps a plan to reduce its legacy DSL footprint by 50 percent over the coming years. Verizon, which has been working to retire its copper network for a while now, and Ziply Fiber are seeking to sunset copper assets in four additional states. Under Federal Communications Commission rules, operators are required to file public notices for certain network changes, including copper retirements. Short-term notice can be submitted for changes set to take place within six months. These notices are published by the FCC and considered final after 90 days if no objection is raised. In the case of filings covering facilities not serving any customers, the notices are considered final after 15 days. The waiting period following the publication of public notices was originally 180 days, but was cut to 90 through reforms passed by the FCC in November 2017. AT&T is targeting upgrade work in Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas in the first half of this year. Specifically, AT&T filed to upgrade wire centers in Atlanta (GA); Charlotte (NC); Brookfield, Chillicothe, Laclede, Linneus, Kirksville, Saint Catharine, Stanberry and Trenton (MO); and Alva and Olustee (OK). The filings for most of these noted there were no current customers on the relevant parts of the network. Elsewhere, Verizon filed to retire copper assets in South Boston (MA), and Syracuse, Scarsdale and Pleasantville (NY), while Ziply Fiber submitted plans to decommission wire centers in Newberg, Beaverton and Hillsboro (OR), and Marysville (WA).

Advertising

T-Mobile home internet ads get mixed results in Charter challenge

Monica Alleven  |  Fierce

In a win for T-Mobile over challenger Charter Communications, the National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs determined that T-Mobile's "no data caps" claim for its Home Internet service was not misleading. NAD also found that T-Mobile's advertising “did not reasonably convey a disparaging message” that competing cable internet providers, including Charter, require long-term contracts and “exploding bills,” as compared to T-Mobile's Home Internet service. The determination is notable because T-Mobile is going after the same home internet market that cable companies, like Charter through its Spectrum brand, have been serving for years. It’s doing so more aggressively than ever, with T-Mobile intending to attract 7 million to 8 million fixed wireless access (FWA) customers by 2025. NAD recommended that T-Mobile discontinue claims that its Home Internet offers customers consistent speeds over 100 Mpbs or modify those to better reflect the range of speeds that customers can expect on a consistent basis. NAD also issued a number of other recommendations for T-Mobile. Because T-Mobile’s Home Internet connection shares its cellular network, the speeds consumers experience may be affected by the number of people using the cellular network through a process called deprioritization, NAD noted.

Industry News

Fiber Surge Drives Record-Breaking Year for Broadband Access Equipment Market, According to Dell’Oro Group

  |  Dell'Oro Group

Total global revenue for the broadband access equipment market went up to $16.3 billion in 2021, according to Dell’Oro Group's Q4 2021 Broadband Access and Home Networking quarterly report. Fiber demand fueled market growth, along with passive optical networking (PON) infrastructure and fixed wireless customer premises equipment (CPE). Cable access concentrator revenue increased by 4 percent in 2021, totaling over $1 billion. Total PON optical network terminal (ONT) shipments reached a record 140 million units. PON infrastructure and fixed wireless CPE made up 32 percent of global revenue, according to Dell’Oro Group VP Jeff Heynen. Fixed wireless CPE revenue went up by 42 percent since 2020. Heynen said the Gigabit Ethernet passive optical network (GPON) “makes up the largest portion of the market by far.” But the XGS-PON, which can coexist on the same fiber as GPON, is also gaining traction in North America. Fiber distributors are also concerned about supply chains. There is so much demand for new fiber projects and optic conduits that fiber lead times are increasing, Heynen said. Heynen predicts 2022 will see a slowdown in the number of PON-CPE and ONT units. Partially due to ongoing supply chain constraints but also because providers are focused on building out infrastructure first, before adding subscribers to their networks.

Policymakers

FCC and NTIA Name Staff Representatives to Advisory Committees to Further Technical Collaboration

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson named staff representatives to participate on each other’s advisory committees. This is a critical component of the FCC and National Telecommunication and Information Administration’s Spectrum Coordination Initiative, under which they are taking actions to strengthen the processes for decision making and information sharing and to work cooperatively to resolve spectrum policy issues. As part of this initiative, the agencies committed to fostering proactive technical exchanges and engagement with industry and other federal agencies by participating in cross-agency advisory groups. Chairwoman Rosenworcel named Jessica Quinley of the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau to participate as an observer in NTIA’s Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee. Quinley currently serves as an Acting Legal Advisor in the FCC’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau where she has worked for nearly three years. Assistant Secretary Davidson named Douglas Brake, a Spectrum Policy Specialist, and Timothy May, a Senior Advisor, to participate in the FCC’s Technological Advisory Council and its Communications Security, Reliability, and Interoperability Council, respectively. Brake, a Spectrum Policy Specialist with NTIA, previously directed the broadband and spectrum policy work at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. May currently serves as a Senior Advisor in the Office of the Assistant Secretary where he has worked for four years.

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Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org) and Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.


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Kevin Taglang

Kevin Taglang
Executive Editor, Communications-related Headlines
Benton Institute
for Broadband & Society
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