Internet/Broadband

Twenty-Five Years Later: What Happened to Progressive Tech Policy?

[Commentary] As young policy wonks in D.C.—one working for Clinton-Gore, the other urging non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to engage tech policy—we listened to tech innovators and leaders for social justice. As we look back over those years, we see how many who inspired us in the early days decided to head off in a different direction. What precisely happened?

Partnership Deals Meaningful, Not Dominant Contributor to Netflix

Partnerships with pay TV operators, internet service providers, and other service providers are valuable contributors to Netflix’s subscriber growth and could play an even larger role as the company looks more deeply into agreements that bundle in the Netflix service. Netflix doesn’t break out what percentage of new customers come through its various partnerships with ISPs and pay TV providers: they are a “meaningful contributor, but not a dominant contributor in terms of being a major channel for us in terms of acquisition,” said David Wells, Netflix’s CFO.

What Facebook’s Feed Changes Mean for the News

For publishers, Facebook’s plans to shake-up its news feed may mean a dramatic change in traffic from the platform. The social media company has said its new algorithm will prioritize what it calls “meaningful social interactions”—posts, photos and videos that users share and discuss. Content directly from publishers won’t perform as well unless people engage with it.

Conservative groups urge Congress to let net neutrality repeal stand

A coalition of conservative groups are urging Congress not to support a bill that would overturn the Federal Communications Commission’s repeal of network neutrality. Twenty-four free-market groups sent letters to lawmakers on Jan 22 calling on them to let the FCC’s decision stand, arguing that the rules stifled investment from broadband companies. “Former FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s 2015 decision to classify the Internet as a public utility under Title II was a solution in search of a problem, and disrupted the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) tried and true approach,” the letter reads.

To Bridge the Digital Divide or Not…That Is the Question as the FCC Cut Back Its Lifeline Program

Since Chairman Ajit Pai took over the leadership of the Federal Communications Commission, he has emphasized that one of his main goals has been to “close the digital divide and bring the benefits of the Internet age to all Americans.” So it comes as no surprise that the FCC has taken several measures recently to overhaul the Lifeline program under the tagline “Bridging the Digital Divide for Low-Income Consumers.” The November changes to the Lifeline Program were mainly cutbacks; reducing available subsidies, as well as limiting eligible participants and carriers.

Next Generation Broadband for Western North Carolina

By 2020, North Carolina can claim the title of the state with the most gigabit communities. Thanks to the work of the North Carolina Next Generation Network (NC NGN) project, itself an outgrowth of the Gig.U project, as well as other efforts, competitive gigabit networks are being built out by Google, AT&T, in a number of its major cities including Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Charlotte, Greensboro, and Winston-Salem, as well as a number of its smaller communities, such as Carrboro, Pembroke and Holly Springs. But such deployments are not reaching everywhere in the state.

Montana governor's order requires net neutrality for companies seeking state contracts

Gov. Steve Bullock (D-MT) signed an executive order that will require all internet and data providers to adhere to net neutrality principles if they want to be awarded state contracts. "When the FCC repealed its net neutrality rules, it said consumers should choose. The state of Montana is one of the biggest consumers of internet services in our state.

Success Of Net Neutrality Lawsuit Depends On Role Of Precedent In FCC Decisions

Following the controversial Federal Communications Commission’s decision to repeal network neutrality, a coalition of 22 attorneys general, including Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro, filed a petition for review of the decision in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on Jan 16. However, professor of information systems management at Carnegie Mellon University Rahul Telang said he believes that the FCC will be successful.

California is trying to bring back net neutrality, but the debate is complicated

California state lawmakers are angling for another fight with the Trump administration, this time to revive federal net neutrality rules that they say are crucial to a fair, open and free internet. 

Comcast-NBC merger conditions expire, raising anti-competitive fears

Major conditions imposed by regulators as part of Comcast's merger with NBCUniversal expired Jan 20, renewing debate over AT&T's takeover of Time Warner that the Justice Department is trying to block. When approving the merger in 2011, the Justice Department and Federal Communications Commission required Comcast-NBCUniversal to abide by more than 150 conditions.

Broadband to the Neighborhood: Digital Divides in Detroit

The results of a study of Internet (non)use in three neighborhoods of Detroit, Michigan. The findings of this study identify key digital divides within these neighborhoods, and illuminate a common pattern of Internet use in the city – what might be called Detroit’s Internet ecosystem – that helps explain the relative lack of Internet access across its households. The findings provide the basis for a set of recommendations for narrowing the digital divide, including ways to address such issues as the affordability of the Internet.

Want To Topple Telecom Oligopolies? Support Locally Owned Broadband

[Commentary] This past August, the residents of the Republican-leaning Michigan town of Lyndon Township overwhelmingly voted to raise their property taxes. What spurred this rural community to violate the core Republican tenant of minimal taxation? Lack of high-speed internet access. Speedy internet connections are easy to come by in cities and sprawling suburbs where big cable and telephone monopolies can expect a large return on their investment. But in many rural areas of the country, high-speed internet access is sparse–39% of rural Americans flat-out do not have broadband access.

Chairman Pai's Response to Members of Congress Regarding Restoring Internet Freedom Declaratory Ruling, Report and Order

On Dec 4, 2017, several members of Congress wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai expressing deep concern about the "proposal to roll back critical consumer protections by dismantling...current net neutrality rules." Due to reports that bots may have interfered with the proceeding and reports that "50,000 consumer complaints seem to have been excluded from the public record", the members of Congress requested that the FCC delay its planned vote on the item until it could conduct a thorough review of the state of the record and "provide Congress with greater assurance

CenturyLink extends broadband to 600K homes, businesses via CAF-II program

CenturyLink has inched closer to meeting its Federal Communications Commission CAF-II program commitments, reaching over 600,000 rural homes and businesses with broadband over the past two years. In August 2015, CenturyLink accepted $500 million in CAF-II funding. This money, combined with its own capital, will ultimately enable the telco to deliver broadband services to about 1.2 million rural households and businesses in 33 states over the next six years.

House Communications Subcommittee Introduces Third Round of Broadband Infrastructure Bills

House Communications Subcommittee Chairman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) announced a third series of bills introduced by subcommittee members on expanding broadband infrastructure in rural America. The bills aim to advance broadband deployment in disaster areas, as well as support innovation and remove obstacles to expansion.

USDA Invests in e-Connectivity to Restore Rural Prosperity by Providing Training and Health Care Services

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing in e-connectivity which will provide virtual access to job training, educational, and health care opportunities for rural communities. USDA is awarding 72 grants totaling $23.6 million through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Grant Program. This program invests in equipment that uses broadband to help rural communities connect to educational and health care services.

Why rural America needs better internet service

[Commentary] With an upcoming Federal Communications Commission vote on whether cellphone data speeds are fast enough for work, entertainment and other online activities, Americans face a choice: Is modest-speed internet appropriate for rural areas, or do rural Americans deserve access to the far faster service options available in urban areas?

House Minority Leader Pelosi pushes for House vote on preserving net neutrality

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is pushing for a floor vote on a bill that would stop the Federal Communications Commission from repealing network neutrality.  “December’s radical FCC vote to dismantle net neutrality has endangered the American entrepreneurship and freedom that are the envy of the world,” Rep Pelosi said. “Congress must act to reverse this destructive FCC ruling that steamrolled over a bipartisan, decades-long consensus and the will of the American people to undermine the fair playing field that is the heart of the internet.”

Net Neutrality: Changing Regulations Won’t Kill the Internet

Over the past 25 years, the internet has grown and changed in ways, both good and bad, that no one predicted. But at least one thing is constant: concern about how the Internet is regulated.  The Federal Communications Commission’s decision in Dec to change the regulatory framework governing internet service providers (ISPs) isn’t going to change that concern.

Fort Collins starts mapping residents' interest in broadband

Things are happening in the wake of voters' November approval of the creation of a telecommunications utility that would provide high-speed internet services. The City Council has directed $1.8 million from the General Fund to cover startup costs associated with the new utility. The city also is preparing to issue bonds to cover the cost of engineering and building a fiber-optic network that would deliver its promised 1 gigabit-per-second speed for uploads and downloads. Construction of the system is still far away.

I3 Broadband aiming to connect 10,000 homes to fiber network in 2018

I3 Broadband, which acquired the fiber-optic network in Champaign-Urbana (IL) in 2017, said it expanded to 2,750 new homes in the last 12 months, and its goal for 2018 is to connect more than 10,000 homes. I3 has partitioned C-U into neighborhoods and expands its network to each one based on a variety of factors, such as whether it is adjacent to one that already has access and if 30 to 45 percent of households in one register their interest. Right now, i3 is in about 24 neighborhoods, including many in northern Champaign and Urbana, and just east of the University of Illinois campus. 

Cincinnati Building Fiber Ring, Pursuing Smart City Projects Downtown

As it builds a downtown fiber network, Cincinnati (OH) is laying the foundation for improved traffic management and other smart city initiatives, as well as offering the kind of communications infrastructure necessary to further grow the region’s economic development efforts. The city is installing 20,000 feet of fiber-optic cable around the central business district, while also bisecting the area with another line of cable.

Your City Wants To Be In The Broadband Business: We Asked Three Economists For Their Advice

[Commentary] This version of the Bytes Chat discusses the wisdom of restrictions against municipal broadband with three economists who are following the issue closely.

Kyle Wilson: It’s worth remembering that unlike schools, installing a municipal network creates a new stream of revenue, even though it may not be enough to break even.

Very liberal or conservative legislators most likely to share news on Facebook

The most ideological members of Congress shared news stories on their Facebook pages more than twice as often as moderate legislators between Jan. 2, 2015, and July 20, 2017. Members of Congress with very conservative or very liberal voting records shared news links in about 14% of all their posts. But members with more moderate ideology scores shared links to news stories in just 6% of their posts. Some of the outlets included in the study were linked to exclusively by Democrats or by Republicans in Congress.