12 Days of Broadband

12 Days: FCC Issued Rules Against Digital Discrimination

In religious traditions including Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and others, 8 represents the idea of balance, justice and fairness.

Jericho Casper

Dec 29, 2023 — 3 min read

Illustration by DALL-E

WASHINGTON, December 29, 2023 – In a vote split 3-2 along party lines, the Federal Communications Commission moved to adopt rules aimed at preventing discrimination in access to broadband services, on November 15.

Under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the agency was tasked by Congress to enact regulations in 2023 aimed at eliminating digital discrimination and preventing its recurrence. The law amended the Communications Act to include the standard that “subscribers should benefit from equal access to broadband internet access service within the service area of a provider of such service.” (47 U.S.C. 1754)

The 12 Days of Broadband 2023 (click to open)

On the First Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
One Artificial General Intelligence
On the Second Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
24 Reverse-Preemption Pole Attachment States (2023 edition)
On the Third Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
$3.6 Billion Funds Remaining in the Affordable Connectivity Program
On the Fourth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
4.8 Million Challenges to Broadband Coverage Data
On the Fifth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
56 States and Territorial Broadband Offices Implementing BEAD
On the Sixth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
One-hundred-and 66 Billion Dollars of American Semiconductor Investment
On the Seventh Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
7 Layers to the Open Systems Interconnection Model and Open Access Networks
On the Eighth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
The Number 8 As a Representation of Balance, Justice and Fairness
On the Ninth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
93 Percent Match of Federal Funds for Enabling Middle Mile Broadband Program
On the Tenth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
Nearly 10 Months Without FCC Spectrum Auction Authority
On the Eleventh Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
More Than 11 Years in Lawsuits Over Net Neutrality
On the Twelfth Day of Broadband, my true love sent to me:
12 Year Olds (and Older) Having to Age-Verify on Social Media

The FCC’s new rules ban service providers from broadband discrimination by implementing a “disparate impact” standard. This standard aims to hold internet service providers accountable for practices that result in unequal broadband access among marginalized groups, irrespective of the providers’ intentions.