WASHINGTON, March 21, 2019 - The nation's leading telecommunications companies on Thursday announced a new broadband mapping pilot initiative that aims to geolocate each address in the country, and link each location with broadband providers that offer service to that address. At a launch event joined by Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, the broadband… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 20, 2019 - The Federal Trade Commission is hosting an event on Wednesday on "Competition and Consumer Protection Issues in U.S. Broadband Markets." Keep Reading
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: New Mexico Hosts their next broadband summit on March 22, 2019, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. BROADBAND SUMMIT Conference title: Connecting New Mexico – The Future of Broadband in our State BROADBAND SUMMIT Conference title: Connecting New Mexico – The Future of Broadband in our State Date: Friday, March 22 Time: 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.… Keep Reading
Editor's Note: The most recent edition of Broadband Communities Magazine features a special section on rural broadband, including this overview piece about the passage of the Agricultural Improvement Act and the ReConnect. Incidentally, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's series of webinars on the program continue with events on Tuesday, March 12; Thursday, March 14; and Wednesday,… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, March 6, 2019 - On Wednesday, 46 House and Senate Democrats moved forward with legislation that would codify so-called "network neutrality" legislation into law, bypassing a court dispute over their repeal by the Trump administration Federal Communications Commission. The Save the Internet Act of 2019 would once re-instate network neutrality rules using an approach… Keep Reading
At the beginning of a new Congress, there’s generally an exciting, hopeful spirit, even after the bitter partisanship of the past election. The issues that new committee chairs choose to focus on upfront are a good indication of their priorities and where they believe progress can be made. In telecommunications, therefore, it’s promising that Senator… Keep Reading
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: Broadband is the baseline for economic development: If you don't have the former, you won't have the latter. And for Rural America, this is doubly true. (Read all the way through the article to understand how "Broadband, Bluegrass and Beer" makes it all happen.) It's great to see these great results coming out of… Keep Reading
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: Google is beginning to enter into hunker-down mode. The company is finally alive to the grave new threats that it faces. They are two-pronged: More-intensive antitrust scrutiny, and regulation of privacy/AI/Section 230 free speech. As Drew Clark wrote about for a CATO Institute policy late last year, "Seeking Intervention Backfired on Silicon… Keep Reading
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: We've been following SNG Group for some time. Think of this group as the "broadband economists." They take data about broadband and help communities understand what they can do with it to enhance their usage of high-speed technology, and to find their competitive advantages vis-a-vis other communities. See this research report they've… Keep Reading
February 20, 2019 - The Rural Telecommunications Congress comes together once every year in Austin, Texas, jointly with the Broadband Communities Summit. Rural broadband issues are very much in the news. Among the topics that will be discussed this year at the summit are "Rural Broadband Success Stories." This panel will take place on Thursday, April… Keep Reading
February 14, 2019 - Americans love broadband. More accurately, they hate it when they can't get access to high-speed internet. Right now, Rural America faces a huge crisis, and it isn't getting better. According to a report, the "American Broadband Initiative," released yesterday by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Commerce, Rural America is woefully… Keep Reading
February 13, 2019 - The Trump Administration on Wednesday highlighted the importance of enhancing broadband internet service for America, particularly in rural areas, as it promoted a variety of existing federal initiatives under a new brand, the "American Broadband Initiative." Through the issuance of a new "Milestones Report" by the Agriculture Department and the Commerce… Keep Reading
Editor's Note: Around the time of Presidents' Day eight years ago, I wrote this piece about the connection between Abraham Lincoln's passion for infrastructure improvements and his belief in equal opportunity. I linked it to the then pressing - and still pressing - need for infrastructure improvements in Rural America. On Abraham Lincoln's 210th birthday… Keep Reading
At the Silicon Flatirons event at the University of Colorado, a heated (!) debate about economic harms, and how it should impact privacy law. 02/10/19 4:30pm - 5:30pm DEBATE: PRIVACY LAW SHOULD FOCUS ONLY ON ECONOMIC HARM Pierre de Vries — Moderator Spectrum Policy Initiative Co-director and Executive Fellow, Silicon Flatirons Danielle Citron Morton & Sophia… Keep Reading
BROADBAND BREAKFAST INSIGHT: As Google says goodbye to the first of its fiber cities in which it has actually deployed connectivity, questions swirl about what happens to the network already in place. In its blog post, Google refers to "learn[ing]" by failing," and links to an article about challenges of exposed fiber lines and a… Keep Reading
WASHINGTON, February 2, 2019 — Network Neutrality once again took center stage Friday as the Federal Communications Commission found itself defending its repeal of Obama-era Open Internet rules before a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Friday’s oral argument was the most recent of many partisan clashes… Keep Reading
January 16, 2019 - One day after an event aimed at encouraging bipartisan solutions on technology policy, the non-profit group Next Century Cities launched its "Becoming Broadband Ready" toolkit together with Neighborly and the Internet Society. The 33-page toolkit (PDF) was set to be launched at an event at 1 p.m. ET in Washington (PDF),… Keep Reading
January 15, 2019 - Below is the link to, and livestream from, the Next Century Cities event, "Opportunities for Bipartisan Tech Policy." This half-day event aims to bring together members of Congress, community leaders, and policy experts. Keynote conversations and panel discussions will work to determine key policy goals and action steps for the new… Keep Reading
LAS VEGAS, January 9, 2018 - Here at the Consumer Electronics Show, it's impossible to avoid being bombarded by the energy - real and imagined - surrounding the 5G wireless standard that is just beginning to be deployed. Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg made the communications company's efforts to nurture, promote and deploy 5G the sum… Keep Reading