Daily Digest 5/31/2024 (Affordable Connectivity Program)

Benton Institute for Broadband & Society
Table of Contents

Broadband Funding

ACP Transparency Data Collection  |  Read below  |  Public Notice  |  Federal Communications Commission
Broadband progress is measured by results, not good intentions  |  Read below  |  Robert Branson  |  Op-Ed  |  Jacksonville Journal-Courier
What Schools Should Know About Using E-Rate Funds for Bus Wi-Fi Upgrades  |  Read below  |  Crystal Montvid, Dave LeNard  |  Op-Ed  |  EdTech

State/Local

Washington State Digital Equity Dashboard helps highlight digital divide  |  Read below  |  Press Release  |  Washington State Department of Commerce

Research

Americans’ Use of Media and Technology, and their views on Online Safety, Privacy, Content Moderation, and Independent News  |  Read below  |  Research  |  Free Press

Kids & Media

What if, in 10 years, young people don’t subscribe to fixed broadband at all?  |  Read below  |  Linda Hardesty  |  Fierce

Wireless

FCC approves new Environmental Sensing Capability sensor deployment and coverage plans for Federated Wireless  |  Federal Communications Commission

Platforms/AI/Social Media

Google scales back AI search answers after it told users to eat glue  |  Washington Post
Europe Banned Russia’s RT Network. Its Content Is Still Spreading.  |  New York Times
OpenAI Says Russia and China Used Its A.I. in Covert Campaigns  |  New York Times
Key misinformation “superspreaders” on Twitter: Older women  |  Ars Technica

Elections & Media

Elon Musk’s X to Host Election Town Hall With Donald Trump  |  New York Times
Why this year’s election interference could make 2016 look cute  |  Washington Post

Policymakers

Celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month: A Q+A with Angela Thi Bennett  |  Read below  |  Maya James  |  National Telecommunications and Information Administration

Industry News

How Althea’s removing the friction of internet payments  |  Read below  |  Masha Abarinova  |  Fierce
DOCSIS 3.0 is Obsolete  |  Read below  |  Doug Dawson  |  Analysis  |  CCG Consulting
Cable’s Continuing Shift to Fiber  |  Read below  |  Doug Mohney  |  Analysis  |  Fiber Broadband Association
Lenovo and Cisco Announce Strategic Partnership to Simplify Path to AI Innovation  |  Cisco

Stories From Abroad

Life during wartime: Vodafone tests 5G in Ukraine  |  Fierce

How We Live Now

Judge stunned as man with suspended license joins Zoom hearing while driving  |  Washington Post
Today's Top Stories

ACP Transparency Data Collection

Public Notice  |  Federal Communications Commission

The Federal Communications Commission's Office of Economics and Analytics released data related to the price, subscription rates, and plan characteristics of the internet service offerings of participating providers in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), as required by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.  These data were collected through the ACP Transparency Data Collection and are available for download on the FCC’s website at https://www.fcc.gov/affordable-connectivity-program.

Broadband progress is measured by results, not good intentions

Robert Branson  |  Op-Ed  |  Jacksonville Journal-Courier

The late Congressman John Lewis once prophetically noted that “access to the Internet is the civil rights issue of the 21st century.” In the long struggle to recognize Lewis’ vision and close America’s digital divide, civil rights advocates have repeatedly reminded policymakers of one central truth: progress is measured by results, not good intentions. In 2015, for example, the Federal Communications Commission modernized Lifeline—a decades-old program that had long helped low-income households obtain phone service—to apply to internet service as well. But restrictions blocked customers of many of the country’s biggest providers from participating. Similarly, mandates and pricing restrictions in the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program may discourage experienced providers from participating. We can and must address the challenges of building broadband networks for the communities that still aren’t served while helping hard-pressed households—including the rural poor—afford internet service. However, we should not strangle these goals in a mess of well-intentioned but ultimately harmful regulations.

[Robert Branson is the president and CEO of the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council.]

What Schools Should Know About Using E-Rate Funds for Bus Wi-Fi Upgrades

Crystal Montvid, Dave LeNard  |  Op-Ed  |  EdTech

For decades we have known that for many underprivileged students, leaving the school grounds contributes to a homework gap because they cannot do much schoolwork without a robust internet connection. Bus Wi-Fi could fill a need for the millions of students who have a school-issued laptop but no reliable internet at home. In October 2023, the Federal Communications Commission added school bus Wi-Fi to the list of services eligible for E-Rate funding in Category 1. A vital funding source for schools and libraries, E-Rate funds can offset up to 90 percent of the cost of bus Wi-Fi equipment, installation and configuration, plus necessary accessories and monthly service fees. With E-Rate funding, schools can add internet to more school buses or mobile science, technology, engineering and math labs. With internet on buses, students on their daily commute or traveling for field trips or athletic activities can get extra time for homework, projects or studying.

 

 

[Crystal Montvid is a senior mobility solution architect at CDW. Dave LeNard is CDW’s E-Rate manager.]

Washington State Digital Equity Dashboard helps highlight digital divide

The Washington State Broadband Office (WSBO) has launched a Digital Equity Dashboard to help everyone understand the digital divide—the gap between those with access to technology, digital literacy skills, and the internet and those without. The dashboard uses data from different sources to help illustrate the impact of the digital divide in Washington. Access, affordability, and digital literacy are crucial elements everyone needs to participate in the economy and daily life today. Without them, vital access to necessary services over the internet, such as healthcare, education, employment opportunities and government services, are limited.

Americans’ Use of Media and Technology, and their views on Online Safety, Privacy, Content Moderation, and Independent News

Research  |  Free Press

On behalf of Free Press, the African American Research Collaborative (AARC) and BSP Research (BSP) completed a survey of 3,000 American adults to better understand how Americans use media and technology to gain information, how they deal with misinformation and safety online, what privacy concerns they have about online platforms, what they believe are appropriate roles in content moderation, and whether they perceive a need for more independent news sources in the current media and political environment. Key findings included:

  • More than half of respondents spend 3 or more hours a day on their phone, with major time spent perusing Facebook, news, entertaining videos on YouTube, and answering work emails, texting, and making phone calls.
  • Americans are concerned that what they see online can be false or intended to confuse. They have become fact checkers and support legislation to educate kids to fact check online content.
  • Americans have significant privacy concerns, with two thirds concerned that: tech companies or the government are tracking their online actions; their search history is being used to target personalized ads; and tech companies might sell their personal information for marketing purposes.
  • Majorities of Americans believe social media companies should be able to moderate against hateful or racist speech, even when that speech is part of a political ad.

What if, in 10 years, young people don’t subscribe to fixed broadband at all?

Linda Hardesty  |  Fierce

Can you imagine a future where everyone relies solely on their cellular connection, and they don’t subscribe to a fixed broadband connection at all? Currently, the U.S. government is undertaking a big push to get everyone in the country connected to fiber broadband to close the digital divide. But ironically, a research group from the U.K. predicts that within 10 years a large contingent of young people will have never subscribed to fixed-lined broadband, and they’ll rely solely on their cellular connections for all their internet needs. “These are not just cord-nevers, in the traditional sense of avoiding pay TV, these are consumers that will use their smartphones as their primary media consumption devices,” stated a Rethink report entitled “The Crash of 2033: Predicting the next ten years, by studying the past decade.”

Celebrating AANHPI Heritage Month: A Q+A with Angela Thi Bennett

In May the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) celebrated Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month with the theme “Bridging Histories, Shaping Our Future.” We close out this month by chatting with Angela Thi Bennett, NTIA’s first-ever Director of Digital Equity. "NTIA's work is crucial in addressing the digital divide, which disproportionately affects certain populations, including Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. By promoting policies and initiatives that enhance broadband access and digital literacy, NTIA helps these communities gain better access to education, healthcare, and economic opportunities. This work ensures that all individuals, regardless of their background, have the tools they need to succeed in a digital world."

How Althea’s removing the friction of internet payments

Masha Abarinova  |  Fierce

No surprise, consumers generally want flexible internet plans. Here’s a company that’s deconstructing the typical billing scheme. Althea is a startup that’s come up with a decentralized internet service that aims to remove the "manual pieces of friction at the last mile” so that rural areas get better access to broadband. The Althea platform is comprised of two core things, CEO Deborah Simpier explained. First, it’s a machine-to-machine payment. Basically, Althea’s network of routers “sees where the traffic is flowing and pays a programmatic microtransaction for that piece of infrastructure.” The other piece of the puzzle is what Simpier referred to as “the price-aware routing protocol.” It’s a router dashboard that allows consumers to customize their internet experience, from the network’s speed and latency to how much they want to pay. 

DOCSIS 3.0 is Obsolete

Doug Dawson  |  Analysis  |  CCG Consulting

Most State Broadband Offices have decided that DSL is an obsolete technology, regardless of the bandwidth that it can deliver. This means that for purposes of Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grants, homes and businesses served by DSL are considered to be unserved. I think the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the States should make the same determination for cable networks still using DOCSIS 3.0 technology. DOCSIS technology (Data Over Cable Interface Specification) was created by CableLabs to give cable companies the ability to deliver broadband over a hybrid fiber-coaxial network. It’s not hard to make an argument that DOCSIS 3.0 is obsolete. The technology will soon be two generations of technology behind what will be deployed in most markets. Nobody expects DOCSIS 3.0 networks to still be functioning a decade from now. Any cable company operating this technology will have to eventually upgrade—but until they do, this technology should not qualify for BEAD funding.

Cable’s Continuing Shift to Fiber

Doug Mohney  |  Analysis  |  Fiber Broadband Association

With net broadband subscribers down year after year due to fixed wireless and new fiber projects, cable providers now face substantial competition and need to reevaluate their upgrade strategies. The capital expense expenditures to support DOCSIS 3.1 and 4.0 rollouts are difficult to justify if there’s insufficient growth and a slim return on investment anticipated. However, cable providers are faced with diverting choices to upgrade their existing plant. They may choose to move from DOCSIS 3.1 to “DOCSIS 3.1+” as the easiest way to preserve their investment in traditional cable tech, while smaller operators see DOCSIS 3.1 as a temporary stop before migrating to fiber. Fiber provides a clear-cut upgrade path accessible today and future-proofed for tomorrow for cable operators that is competitive with existing and future fiber providers in the market.

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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), Grace Tepper (grace AT benton DOT org), and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.


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Kevin Taglang

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