Friday, July 10, 2020
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Broadband Providers Keep Claiming Service Where It Isn't
Rep. Eshoo Introduces Legislation to Update National Broadband Plan
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Agenda
The Federal Communications Commission will hold an Open Meeting on Thursday, July 16, 2020. Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic and related agency telework and headquarters access policies, this meeting will be in a wholly electronic format and will be open to the public on the Internet via live feed from the FCC’s web page and on the FCC’s YouTube channel.
- Implementation of the National Suicide Hotline Improvement Act of 2018 (WC Docket No. 18-336): The FCC will consider a Report and Order that would designate 988 as the 3-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to aid rapid access to suicide prevention and mental health support services.
- Establishing Additional Call Blocking Rules to Protect Consumers (CG Docket No. 17- 59): The FCC will consider a Third Report and Order, Order on Reconsideration, and Fourth Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would continue the FCC’s work to combat unwanted and illegal calls and implement portions of the TRACED Act.
- Protecting Against National Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain Through FCC Programs (WC Docket No. 18-89): The FCC will consider Declaratory Ruling and Second Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would integrate provisions of the recently enacted Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 into its existing supply chain rulemaking proceeding.
- Improving Vertical Location Accuracy for Wireless 911 Calls (PS Docket No. 07-114): The FCC will consider a Sixth Report and Order and Order on Reconsideration that would further its effort to improve vertical (or Z-Axis) location accuracy for wireless 911 calls, which would help first responders quickly locate people calling for help from multi-story buildings.
- Modernizing Priority Services Rules to Support Emergency Personnel (PS Docket No. 20- 187): The FCC will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would seek comment on streamlining and updating FCC rules to ensure that priority service programs operate effectively for emergency workers as technology evolves.
- Leased Commercial Access (MB Docket No. 07-42); Modernization of Media Regulation Initiative (MB Docket No. 17-105): The FCC will consider a Second Report and Order that would modernize the leased access rate formula by adopting a tier-based calculation.
- Establishing the Digital Opportunity Data Collection (WC Docket No. 19-195); Modernizing the FCC Form 477 Data Program (WC Docket No. 11-10): The FCC will consider a Second Report and Order and Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would establish rules for collecting granular and precise data on the availability of fixed and mobile broadband service through the Digital Opportunity Data Collection, and would seek comment on additional measures to implement the requirements of the Broadband DATA Act.
House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-PA) said that a lot of broadband internet access service providers, "for whatever reason," claim they have service where they don't, something he said everyone knows "has been going on for years." He said that since Democrats and Republicans agree that broadband maps aren't good, the Federal Communications Commission would just be throwing $20 million out the window by starting to give out most of the Rural Development Opportunities Fund (RDOF) subsidy money. Chairman Doyle said it was mind-boggling that "given the technology and abilities we have today," he didn't know why the FCC did not have accurate maps" to direct the "precious dollars that aren't growing on trees."
Rep Anna Eshoo (D-CA) introduced the National Broadband Plan for the Future Act, legislation that instructs the Federal Communications Commission to update the National Broadband Plan to expand internet access across the US and study how the coronavirus pandemic has changed the online lives of Americans. “Universal access to reliable, affordable, and high-quality internet is essential in today’s world, and it’s especially needed as we conduct more of our personal and professional lives online during the coronavirus pandemic,” said Rep. Anna G. Eshoo. “Updating our decade-old National Broadband Plan is fundamental for policymakers to develop strategic, holistic, and thoughtful solutions to deliver universal access to broadband.” The National Broadband Plan for the Future Act is companion legislation to S. 4022, which was introduced by Sen Ed Markey (D-MA).
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 required the creation of the original National Broadband Plan, which set out a comprehensive roadmap for providing universal internet connectivity. Ten years later, the National Broadband Plan for the Future Act requires the FCC to assess the nation’s progress against the original Plan, provide detailed proposals to further expand internet access, and analyze how Americans’ unprecedented reliance on broadband during the coronavirus pandemic will shape the country moving forward.
State of Illinois Announces $300,000 Public Private Investment to Support Community-Driven Broadband Plans
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) Office of Broadband announced the first recipients of the Illinois Connected Communities grant program, created to assist some of the most underserved areas of the state with building broadband capacity. Through cross-sector collaboration, this new program directs $150,000 in state-funded small grants for 12 community and local government partners to lead the development of strategic plans to ensure access, adoption, and utilization of high-speed broadband in their communities. The state grants will be paired with $150,000 in philanthropic matching funds. These grants will help lay the groundwork for individual communities to play a part in Gov JB Pritzker's (D-IL) ambitious statewide high-speed internet expansion, Connect Illinois, a $420 million program to bring basic access to all communities by 2024.
Illinois Connected Communities is a partnership among the Illinois Office of Broadband, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and local philanthropy. The program is designed to engage a first-year cohort of communities through best practice curriculum, expert consultation, and a state grant of up to $15,000.
"I was very impressed by the breadth of organizations that applied, the articulation of their challenges, and the passion they exhibited to engage a variety of stakeholders in the Illinois Connected Communities process," said Adrianne B. Furniss, Executive Director of the Benton Institute. "These grants will support our communities to think through broadband strategies and goals that will work best for them, inspire broad community involvement, and engage more stakeholders in building broadband capacity."
The initial cohort includes the following organizations leading community-wide initiatives:
- Brown County School District 1
- City of Harvey
- Housing Authority of Champaign County
- Leadership Council Southwestern Illinois
- Mattoon School District 2
- McKinley Park Development Council
- Mercer County Better Together
- Neighborhood Network Alliance
- Palatine School District 15
- Park Forest-Chicago Heights School District 163
- Region 1 Planning Council (Winnebago County and City of Rockford)
- Village of Flanagan
We’ve been working to fill [the tricky gap between urban and rural broadband access] for more than two decades. Around 95 percent of the US population today has access to broadband of at least 25 megabits per second. 99 percent of non-rural households do, and 98 percent of non-rural households enjoy access to 100 megabits-per-second service.
In solving the problem of the last five yards, however, we should look to the strategy that took us so successfully 95 yards down the field. Since 1996, when the communications world was mostly unleashed from the old monopoly model, telecom, cable, and mobile firms have invested $1.8 trillion in broadband networks. These fast and nearly ubiquitous networks allowed the US to become the world leader in network traffic, and they are the foundation of our explosive web, software, e-commerce, and general information industries. But how do you bring the expertise of private sector networks to a small slice of the market which appears to be uneconomical to serve? The best idea so far is the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF).
The combination of RDOF, individual state efforts, and new wireless and satellite technologies mean that within the next couple years, nearly all Americans could have access to broadband. While these new networks won’t be in place before the school year begins next month, this episode is a reason to help the remaining five percent prepare for the future, which will surely surprise us.
Frontier will pay a $900,000 fine to Washington state after the attorney general's office found it has misled customers about internet speeds and charged them undisclosed fees. The bulk of the $900,000 fine will go to former Frontier customers in Washington. Earlier in 2020, Frontier sold its broadband services in three states, including Washington, to Kirkland-based WaveDivision Capital in partnership with Searchlight Capital Partners for $1.35 billion. WaveDivision renamed Frontier Communications Northwest as Ziply Fiber.
On July 8, Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s office said that Frontier did not adequately disclose fees when advertising and selling its products, and misled subscribers about internet speeds it could provide. Frontier’s unlawful deception impacted thousands of Washington consumers. The legal agreement requires the company to be transparent with customers over fees in the future and stop the internet surcharges.
The broadband market has finally been anointed as the ultimate “centerpiece” of everything people do. The first bill paid each month is not to a mortgage company, a religious institution or a credit card. It is to the broadband provider. Independent service providers that target the multifamily industry are going to see their target markets shift views in several ways once this is over. Specifically, I believe there will be a surge of new bulk internet agreements added to hundreds of communities. I believe these plans will include much higher speeds – 250 Mbps, 500 Mbps or even higher. And I am confident that there will be a renewed interest in the actual infrastructure being used as part of these new networks. Fiber to the home has gone from a “nice to have” to a “got to have” network technology, driven by the demands for services caused by increased usage for schooling, streaming, socializing and exercising. This is a real opportunity for the broadband industry – it is in the right place at the right time. Over the next few years, providers should recognize that we have become the centerpiece of our clients’ world and key to their residents’ lives.
[Bryan J. Rader is the president of UpStream Network, a broadband provider]
China is using the same tactics it employed to drive down the price of telecommunications equipment from Huawei to flood the US market with fiber optic cables—crucial underlying infrastructure for fifth-generation networks—a senior Commerce Department official said. "China is currently driving massive overcapacity in critical sectors including steel, aluminum and optical fiber cables,” said Nazak Nikakhtar, Commerce’ assistant secretary for industry and analysis. In the case of steel and aluminum, the administration has imposed tariffs on imports from China under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which allows for such action if the Commerce Department finds there are implications for national security. Nikakhtar said such actions have never been taken before but are necessary because of the lack of structures in international law for dealing with non-market driven economies. “It’s unprecedented, some of the things that we’re trying to do,” she said. “We’ve never really developed the right tools and toolsets to deal with this. Look at overcapacity. We don’t have international laws that deal with overcapacity, so what does the U.S. try to do? ... We use Section 232 tariffs with steel and aluminum—two prime examples to prevent overcapacity from decimating U.S. industry.”
Twenty years ago, policymakers set aside the 5.9 GHz band of frequencies specifically for auto safety and vehicle-to-vehicle radio communications. Unfortunately, the band remains almost completely unused. While Wi-Fi is saturating the band immediately below 5.9 GHz and generating hundreds of billions of dollars in consumer welfare annually, the set-aside of 5.9 GHz for a specific auto industry use case and technology has proven an abject failure. It’s time to recognize that both auto safety and wireless technologies have changed markedly, justifying a fresh look at the highest and best use of the 75 megahertz allocated to intelligent transportation systems at 5.9 GHz.
Speedtest Intelligence reveals AT&T was the fastest mobile operator in the US in Q2 2020 with a Speed Score of 41.23 on modern chipsets in competitive geographies. T-Mobile was the second fastest, Sprint third and Verizon Wireless fourth. Although Sprint merged with T-Mobile earlier in 2020, Ookla considered the companies’ performance separately as the networks have not been fully integrated. We will combine their results when the integration is complete.
As of July 8, 2020, there were 5,165 commercially available 5G deployments in the US according to the Ookla 5G Map. T-Mobile had the majority of these deployments with 5,008. AT&T had 355 deployments and Verizon Wireless 39. While Sprint did show 5G results during Q2 2020, T-Mobile has since shut down those sites. The number of T-Mobile 5G deployments suggests that they had significantly more 5G coverage as of Q2 than the other operators combined.
Verizon ruled the roost for fastest US broadband speeds, and was also tops for lowest latency. For fastest fixed broadband speeds, Comcast, Cox, Charter, AT&T and CenturyLink, respectively, followed on the heels of Verizon. Overall, Ookla reported a decline in fixed broadband download speeds in March due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, but noted download speeds have since rebounded. Median download speeds over fixed broadband increased by almost 20% during the last year to 86.04 Mbps in Q2 while median upload speeds increased by 1.5% to 11.86 Mbps over the same time frame.
Verizon has completed the first data session on its new 5G standalone core and plans to start shifting mobile traffic over later in 2020. All US carriers have deployed 5G networks in non-standalone (NSA) mode, which relies on a 4G LTE anchor. With 5G standalone that’s no longer the case. With a 5G core implemented, it means Verizon can start introducing key 5G technologies, like network slicing to enable new use cases. The carrier expects full commercialization of its 5G standalone core in 2021.
Nearly 12 million urban household have no access to telehealth, but Federal agencies earmark billions for broadband and telehealth grants targeted to 3.8 million disconnected rural households. Urban communities demand parity with rural community for these grants that their tax dollars and telephone bills support. COVID-19’s disproportionate killing of Black people has thrown into stark relief the many health issues afflicting this population, afflictions that telehealth can mitigate. People are marching in the streets saying “Black Lives Matter!” They also need to bring this to Federal agencies that fund the good health of rural communities while refusing to equally fund urban health. Consumers cannot have telehealth without broadband. So any federal or state broadband funding that does not target urban constituents fails to deliver telehealth or broadband to them.
School districts are taking it upon themselves to help families get connected to the internet as they face down a long future of virtual learning. Most schools don't even know which students are lacking internet service, and the neediest families are often the hardest to reach. Perhaps the most ambitious initiative is a $50 million, public-private partnership in Chicago, which aims to provide 100,000 public school students with home internet service for four years. The most successful districts have maximized their purchasing power by partnering with other nearby districts or municipalities, said Ellen Goldich, program director at EducationSuperHighway, a nonprofit that is working with school districts on data collection and procurement.
How will students from low-income families connect to the internet to learn from home if they can’t attend school physically this fall? What role can school systems play in ensuring home broadband access for all students, given the budget crisis many districts will be facing next year? The simplest solution would be for the Federal Communications Commission to lift the restrictions barring E-rate recipients from using their networks to extend broadband service into students’ homes. However, this scenario isn’t likely to happen, according to John Harrington, CEO of the consulting firm Funds For Learning (FFL), which helps schools successfully apply for E-rate discounts.
Working with the Schools, Health, and Libraries Broadband (SHLBC) Coalition and the State E-rate Coordinators Alliance, FFL has drafted a proposal that would close this gap. The plan, called the Remote Learning During COVID-19 Initiative, calls for $5.25 billion in federal funding for schools and libraries to provide broadband access for families who can’t afford it. The funding would be distributed according to the E-rate formula, with schools and libraries contributing a portion of the cost themselves based on National School Lunch Program data. More than 1,900 individuals and organizations have endorsed the proposal, including the American Library Association and personnel from hundreds of school systems. Although the proposal hasn’t made it into a House or Senate bill yet, Harrington said he’s heard interest from lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle. He urged K-12 leaders to sign the letter endorsing the plan or at least contact their federal legislators to raise awareness of the need for home broadband access to support remote learning — and to think about contingency plans if Congress doesn’t act before the new school year begins.
The coronavirus has exposed a deeply rooted problem in childhood education that could damage our national economy long after the pandemic subsides. Broadly speaking, that problem is a lack of preparedness for the future. As the private sector grows increasingly digitized with each passing year, many American students lack even a basic understanding of digital technologies, and are becoming less qualified for the thousands of advanced manufacturing jobs that will soon dominate America’s mid-century economy. Often from marginalized communities, these students are on the wrong end of the digital divide. The coronavirus has shown us that basic Internet access and digital capabilities are not simply essential to a child’s technological education, but are fast becoming essential to a child’s educational success. The answer to the digital divide is clear. Policymakers must push for schools nationwide, and particularly those in less resourced communities, to invest in connecting students with next generation technology now. 5G, or the fifth generation wireless network, will not only allow students trapped on the wrong side of the digital divide to learn at lightning fast speeds, but also enable cutting edge technologies like augmented and virtual reality that will be used in future manufacturing and businesses processes. By engaging with and learning on these technologies early, American students will be better poised to enter the workforce of tomorrow.
[Francis Taylor served as undersecretary for intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security and as assistant secretary of diplomatic security for the Department of State now with Cambridge Global Advisors]
Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders’ “unity task forces” — which brought together backers of each camp to bridge differences in their agendas — unveiled policy recommendations that featured positions on a number of key tech policy issues. The task force included a recommendation on how the party should approach resurrecting the repealed Obama-era net neutrality protections, saying “Democrats will restore the FCC's clear authority to take strong enforcement action against broadband providers who violate net neutrality principles through blocking, throttling, paid prioritization, or other measures that create artificial scarcity and raise consumer prices for this vital service.” Though there are no explicit mentions of tech and antitrust, the proposal tasks federal regulators with “systematically incorporating broader criteria into their analytical considerations, including in particular the impact of corporate consolidation on the labor market, underserved communities, and racial equity.” And it calls for enforcers to conduct “a thorough review of all mergers and acquisitions since [President] Trump took office,” a plan that would have far-reaching implications for the tech sector.
Stories From Abroad
Assessing fifteen years of State Aid for broadband in the European Union: A quantitative analysis
How public funds, or State Aid, have been used to support the deployment of broadband infrastructure in Europe since 2003. The descriptive analysis relies on a unique data set on all the broadband measures notified to the European Commission by Member States between 2003 and 2018. The authors identify two waves of State Aid for broadband: one for the deployment of basic broadband, and a more recent one for the roll out of next-generation access networks. The use of State Aid is very heterogeneous across Member States, with a few large countries representing the bulk of the cases. The objective of most plans is to expand broadband coverage. The typical project relies mainly on public funds, and involves a direct grant, an open tender, and a contract for 3–5 years. Access obligations are imposed on networks deployed with State Aid, using a benchmarking approach in most cases. Finally, the authors show that notifications are associated with a relatively high level of broadband coverage in notifying countries, suggesting that public investment is taking over from private investment.
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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