Telecommunication

Louisiana’s goal is to have broadband service in all unserved areas of the state by 2029. To help bridge the digital divide, applications for Granting Unserved Municipalities Broadband Opportunities (GUMBO) grants are being accepted until December 31. That program, run by the Louisiana Office of Broadband Development and Connectivity (ConnectLA), is designed to help private providers bring more accessible and affordable broadband service to areas that have download speeds of less than 25 Mbps and upload speeds lower than 3 Mbps.

The Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) has been laying fiber optic conduit along a 46-mile stretch of I-17 between Flagstaff and Sedona (AZ) as part of a project to bring broadband internet access to rural communities in the state. The broadband initiative is made possible by a partnership between ADOT and the Arizona Commerce Authority. The project will create more affordable opportunities to provide rural communities in Arizona with high-speed internet service.

The Pennsylvania Turnpike is ready to make money — potentially tens of millions — by selling space on a new broadband system along the toll road in Eastern Pennsylvania. The agency has nearly completed two projects totaling $95 million to install fiber-optic cable under the berm of about 220 miles of the highway, split almost evenly between the main line from Harrisburg to the New Jersey border and the Northeast Extension.

The number of US broadband users who regularly push the upper limits of their provisioned internet speed at the 9 pm hour increased 400 percent from May 2020 - September 2021, according to new data provided by analytics and software provider OpenVault. The phenomenon is known as "speed clipping." OpenVault says it occurs most often with multiple members of a subscribing household simultaneously taxing the network with high-bandwidth applications such as video streaming, video gaming and video conferencing.

Just weeks after Charter Communications slashed prices for its Spectrum Mobile offering to $29.99 per month, chairman and CEO Tom Rutledge said charges for wireless cable offerings could drop further as the cost to provide service continues to decline. “I think the mobile opportunity is very similar to the wireline opportunity that existed 15 years ago,” Rutledge said. “[Mobile]'s got its own complexities, but the opportunity is there to create value for consumers. Consumers actually save money and we make money. That’s a pretty attractive business model that is available to us.

Comcast’s Internet Essentials program announced a significant new partnership with Goodwill Industries International to provide digital skills and workforce development training for thousands of adults with low incomes at Goodwill nonprofit organizations across the United States. In addition, Comcast will install free WiFi access in Goodwill locations to enable people to get online to search for and apply for jobs as well as take digital skills training and certification programs to prepare for entry and mid-level occupations.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), in ongoing efforts to ensure reliable and affordable telecommunication services, approved Verizon Communications’ acquisition of TracFone Wireless with consumer protection conditions to ensure the acquisition will be in the public interest. The CPUC's Decision finds that in order for Verizon and TracFone to meet the burden of proving their acquisition is in the public interest, they must adopt a number of specific measures to protect consumers-including California Lifeline customers-from price increases and service disruptions.

As wonderful as telehealth is, it has a serious Achilles' heel. The fate of telehealth adoption is tied to the fate of broadband adoption. And broadband in millions of additional homes isn't strong enough to drive telehealth. Redlining, politics, and adverse economics leaves low-income communities stuck with outdated, broken infrastructure. Annually, billions in government spending to replace obsolete networks passes over big cities and are squandered by large telecom and cable companies before broadband reaches rural homes.

The Federal Communications Commission proposed an enhanced competition incentive program to encourage licensees to offer opportunities for small carriers and Tribal Nations to obtain spectrum via lease, partition, or

The National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) and the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition wrote a joint letter of support urging the Senate Commerce Committee to quickly conduct hearings and speedily confirm President Biden’s nominees to the Federal Communications Commission and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).