Daily Digest 4/12/2021 (Miley Quincy Kuebbeler)

Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
Table of Contents

Broadband Infrastructure

FCC Releases 477 Data on Broadban Deployment as of June 30, 2020  |  Read below  |  Public Notice  |  Federal Communications Commission
Rep. Delgado Reintroduces Bill to Improve Broadband Speed  |  Read below  |  Rep Antonio Delgado (D-NY)  |  Press Release  |  House of Representatives
Rep. Delgado Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Improve Flawed Broadband Mapping  |  Read below  |  Rep Antonio Delgado (D-NY)  |  Press Release  |  House of Representatives
Benton Foundation
Does America Want to Invest in Broadband?  |  Read below  |  Kevin Taglang  |  Analysis  |  Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
Broadband Access For Success In Postsecondary Education  |  Read below  |  Rachel Hirsch, Jake Varn  |  Analysis  |  National Governors Association
Broadband Expansion in East Cleveland  |  Read below  |  Gov Mike DeWine (R-OH)  |  Press Release  |  Ohio Office of the Governor
Biden’s Infrastructure Plan Tops Priorities as Congress Returns to Work  |  Wall Street Journal

Consumer Protection

FTC Seeks Public Comment on Dark Patterns Topics ahead of Workshop  |  Read below  |  Press Release  |  Federal Trade Commission
Comcast nightmare: Six months without Internet despite $5,000 payment  |  Ars Technica
Charter Hit With $19 Million Judgment for Windstream Bankruptcy Mailers  |  Wall Street Journal
Q Link Wireless exposes data for millions of accounts  |  Ars Technica

Platforms/Social Media

Facebook removes over 16,000 groups trading fake reviews  |  Guardian, The
Revealed: the Facebook loophole that lets world leaders deceive and harass their citizens  |  Guardian, The
How Facebook let fake engagement distort global politics: a whistleblower's account  |  Guardian, The
Google’s Secret ‘Project Bernanke’ Revealed in Texas Antitrust Case  |  Wall Street Journal
A guide for conceptualizing the debate over Section 230  |  Brookings
Mark MacCarthy: Justice Thomas sends a message on social media regulation  |  Brookings

Antitrust

Hiltzik: Biden could remake American society by reviving antitrust enforcement  |  Los Angeles Times

Research

Global Trends 2040: A More Contested World  |  Office of the Director of National Intelligence

Labor

Workers at Amazon warehouse in Alabama reject unionization  |  Washington Post

Education

Online Schools Are Here to Stay, Even After the Pandemic  |  New York Times

Children and Media

Kids hooked on tech becomes bipartisan focus  |  Axios
Today's Top Stories

Broadband Infrastructure

FCC Releases 477 Data on Broadband Deployment as of June 30, 2020

Public Notice  |  Federal Communications Commission

The Federal Communications Commission's Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA), in conjunction with the Wireline Competition Bureau (WCB) and the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB), released updated data on fixed broadband deployment, and mobile voice and broadband deployment as of June 30, 2020. These data were collected through FCC Form 477 and are available on the Commission’s website. Fixed Deployment Data are available for download at https://www.fcc.gov/general/broadband-deployment-datafcc-form-477 and will be visible on the National Broadband Map at https://broadbandmap.fcc.gov shortly. Mobile Deployment Data are available at https://www.fcc.gov/mobile-deployment-form-477-data. The fixed broadband data includes revisions made by filers through March 11, 2021, while the mobile deployment data include revisions made by filers through December 29, 2020. Data users should expect future revisions to be captured in subsequent releases.

Rep. Delgado Reintroduces Bill to Improve Broadband Speed

Rep Antonio Delgado (D-NY)  |  Press Release  |  House of Representatives

Rep Antonio Delgado (D-NY-19) reintroduced legislation to help end the digital divide and deliver affordable, quality broadband service to rural Americans. The Broadband Speed Act would require internet service providers to report annual, accurate speed data to the Federal Communications Commission. The Broadband Speed Act (HR 2398) would require internet service providers to annually report data to the FCC that shows the actual speeds they are capable of providing, as opposed to what they can potentially provide within 7-10 business days, as current law requires. This will help demonstrate to the FCC where broadband service is actually matching the speeds being advertised, and where there are still gaps in service. The bill would also require that new FCC funding awards be built out at speeds of 100 mbps or higher to ensure that they are built to last.

Rep. Delgado Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Improve Flawed Broadband Mapping

Rep Antonio Delgado (D-NY)  |  Press Release  |  House of Representatives

Reps Antonio Delgado (D-NY-19) and David McKinley (R-WV-1) introduced bipartisan legislation to help end the digital divide and deliver affordable, quality broadband service to rural Americans. The Community Broadband Mapping Act (HR 2400) addresses flawed federal broadband mapping practices and empowers local communities to dispute inaccurate Federal Communications Commission internet service status claims. The Community Broadband Mapping Act would allow local governments, electric/telephone cooperatives, economic development/community groups, and small internet providers to access USDA Rural Utility Service grants that would allow them to collect information on local broadband coverage. This will allow communities that are incorrectly designated by the FCC as having broadband access to have the information necessary to dispute that status with the FCC.

Does America Want to Invest in Broadband?

Kevin Taglang  |  Analysis  |  Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

On March 31, President Joe Biden traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to unveil his American Jobs Plan, and what he touts as a once-in-a-generation investment to rebuild the country's infrastructure. The plan calls for investing $100 billion to ensure everyone in America has access to high-speed broadband infrastructure. In a White House fact sheet outlining the American Jobs Plan, the Biden administration recalls the national effort to bring affordable access to electricity to all through the Rural Electrification Act of 1936. In 1936, nearly 90 percent of farms lacked electric power because the costs to get electricity to rural areas were prohibitive. By 1950, due to the Rural Electrification Act, close to 80 percent of US farms had electric service. "Broadband internet is the new electricity," the fact sheet reads. "It is necessary for Americans to do their jobs, to participate equally in school learning, health care, and to stay connected." But today, millions of people live in areas where there is no broadband infrastructure that provides minimally acceptable speeds. Americans in rural areas and on tribal lands particularly lack adequate access. And, in part because the United States has some of the highest broadband prices among OECD countries, millions of Americans can’t use broadband internet even if the infrastructure exists where they live because they can't afford it. In urban areas, there is a stark digital divide: a much higher percentage of White families use home broadband internet than Black or Latino families. President Biden believes we can bring affordable, reliable, high-speed broadband to every American. The question now is: are we going to connect everyone in this decade? 

Broadband Access For Success In Postsecondary Education

Rachel Hirsch, Jake Varn  |  Analysis  |  National Governors Association

Immediately following the onset of the pandemic and the shift to virtual learning, many Governors initiated or supported short-term solutions to access to broadband and computers. However, states must prioritize investment in the expansion of sustainable and affordable broadband infrastructure in order to permanently close the digital divide. Governors are at the forefront of this effort and have started this year by proposing record levels of investment in broadband infrastructure, with 36 Governors calling attention to the need for increased access in their State of the State addresses. Governors have expanded broadband access through a variety of strategies including targeted investments for anchor institutions such as schools, community colleges, libraries and universities to provide immediate access, coordinating and expanding affordability programs, and leveraging federal funding and financing opportunities.

Broadband Expansion in East Cleveland

Gov Mike DeWine (R-OH)  |  Press Release  |  Ohio Office of the Governor

A new broadband expansion project located in the City of East Cleveland will connect residents to reliable, low-cost high-speed internet. The project will connect more than 1,000 households in its first phase, with plans to scale up access to 2,000 households. East Cleveland households will pay $15 a month for internet speeds of 50 Mbps for download and 10 Mpbs for upload (twice the minimum federal definition of high-speed internet). The first antenna tower has been activated on the roof of Mayfair Elementary School. Additional tower sites will go live over the course of the coming months to increase service to the areas of the pilot program. PCs for People will serve as the internet provider, and distribute antennas and modems for residents to have in their homes. Case Western Reserve University, Connect, East Cleveland City Schools, OARnet, and University Hospitals will assist with the technical infrastructure. The pilot program includes $650,000 in financial investments from BroadbandOhio, Cuyahoga County, Eaton Corporation, GE Lighting- a Savant company, Greater Cleveland Partnership, InnovateOhio, Microsoft, and PCs for People. Additional investments will be forthcoming.

Consumer Protection

FTC Seeks Public Comment on Dark Patterns Topics ahead of Workshop

Press Release  |  Federal Trade Commission

The Federal Trade Commission is seeking comment on topics related to the use of digital “dark patterns,” a range of potentially deceptive or unfair user interface designs used on websites and mobile apps, that will be discussed at the agency’s April 29, 2021 workshop. The FTC is seeking comment on several topics that will be discussed at the workshop, Bringing Dark Patterns to Light: An FTC Workshop, including:

  • The definition of dark patterns;
  • The prevalence of dark patterns in the marketplace;
  • The use of artificial intelligence and machine learning to design and deliver dark patterns;
  • The effectiveness of dark patterns at influencing consumer choice, decision-making, or behavior;
  • The harms dark patterns pose to consumers or competition; and
  • Ways to prevent, mitigate, and remediate the harmful effects of dark patterns.

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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 Robbie McBeath (rmcbeath AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.


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Kevin Taglang

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Benton Institute
for Broadband & Society
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