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Broadband's Impact

One Day After FCC’s Net Neutrality Repeal, Focus Turns to Reactions and Responses

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WASHINGTON, December 15, 2017 – The Federal Communications Commission’s Thursday vote to repeal the “open internet” rules classifying broadband services as common carriers represents the most significant regulatory shift in the internet in more than a decade. Critics in Congress, at the agency, and even on late-night TV wasted no time in blasting it.

These repealed network neutrality regulations prohibited broadband internet providers from speeding up or slowing down certain websites’ internet traffic based on financial or business relationships. Now, internet providers will be free to throttle, block and prioritize traffic, so long as they provide notice to consumers that they are doing so.

The most recent iteration of those regulations were put in place by the FCC under President Obama in February 2015. It was based on Title II of the Communication Act, which regulates common carriers like telephone companies.

Such common carriage rules require telephone providers to treat all traffic the same in the same way. For example, Ma Bell was prohibited from prioritizing voice calls over fax calls, or prioritizing the calls of customers who buy telephone handsets from the phone company over those who didn’t.

Broadband reverts to being an information service ‘regulated’ under Title I

Under the rules that the FCC will implement after Thursday’s vote, broadband internet access service will revert to being “regulated” under Title I. That section of the law governs “ancillary services,” and for decades the FCC has classified “information services” under this lesser regulatory standard.

These information services are not subject to the same kinds of requirements as are common carriers.

Thursday’s result was only the latest chapter in a public policy battle that has raged since the waning years of the George W. Bush Administration.

At the time, the FCC under then-Chairman Kevin Martin ruled that Comcast had discriminated against peer-to-peer file-sharing applications by blocking traffic using the BitTorrent application.

The agency had held that Comcast’s actions departed from standard industry practice and did not fall under the category of “reasonable network management.” That was, then, part of the standard under which the FCC would allow a broadband provider to manage traffic.

Chairman Julius Genachowski, the first chairman selected by Obama, said that the FCC would be a “smart cop on the beat.” Genachowski proposed network neutrality rules that would enforceable under Title I – the less-regulatory standard – of the law. But those rules were also struck down by the D.C. Circuit Court.

In part, that led Genachowski’s successor Tom Wheeler to take the stricter step of reclassifying broadband under Title II.

Taking enforcement authority for internet violations out of the hands of the FCC

Not only does the FCC’s action Thursday undo that reclassification, it goes further by declaring that the FCC will not attempt to regulate broadband providers at all. Additionally, enforcement of what little that remains of the “net neutrality” rules are passed to the Federal Trade Commission.

The FTC can only take enforcement actions after a violation of consumer protection rules has occurred. Further, under a recent decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, the FTC may not even have the authority to regulate broadband providers at all.

The Department of Justice Antitrust Division could also initiate litigation. But that can take years to achieve a result.

While Pai characterized Thursday’s vote as a return to the “light-touch” regulation that existed before 2015, it goes further. It abdicates the authority and responsibility that Martin – a Republican considered an ardent foe of network neutrality – acknowledged that the FCC possessed.

Sharply critical reactions from Democrats in Congress

In addition to strong comments by Congressional Democrats like Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-California, and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, progressives and other advocates of net neutrality rules through their lot behind arguments that the FCC cannot simply abandon it authority to enforce consumer-focused standards for an internet.

During a conference call with media last week, former FCC general counsel Jonathan Sallet predicted that the courts would not allow the FCC to pick and choose which parts of the law to enforce.

“The draft order seems to say that the FCC is no longer interested in exercising its responsibilities as an expert agency,” said Sallet. “I do not believe a court of appeals will uphold this order.”

On Thursday, Markey and Eshoo added that in addition to leading efforts to draft an amicus brief for litigation in support of the rules, Markey said he will introduce a resolution under the Congressional Review Act that would overturn the FCC’s decision.

Senator Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont – who conducted a Judiciary Committee field hearing in Vermont on the subject of network neutrality — also condemned Thursday’s vote in a statement.

“Today the FCC took a wrecking ball to the pillars of freedom and openness upon which the Internet was built.  Without the protection of net neutrality rules, powerful telecommunication companies can decide which content gets preferential treatment and which gets throttled or even blocked,” he said.

Leahy added that the decision will hurt consumers, small businesses, and startups by stifling innovation and competition, and pledged to keep fighting until the protections are restored.

Late-night comedians weigh in with their studied analyses

Even late-night television hosts whose employers have interests in the debate got in on attacking the FCC’s decision, with Stephen Colbert of CBS (which runs its’ own video streaming service), Seth Meyers of NBC (which is owned by Comcast), and Jimmy Kimmel of ABC (which is owned by Disney, which is starting its own video streaming services which could be blocked under the new rules) condemning the vote, which Kimmel called “absolutely despicable.”

“So now, we have to hope Congress agrees to vote on and reverse it,” Kimmel said. “So, thank you, President Trump – thanks to you and this (explitive deleted) [Pai] you appointed to run the FCC — big corporations are about to take control of the internet.”

Critics also raise concerns about the FCC’s public comment process

Kimmel noted that many of the public comments filed with the FCC that were in favor the repeal turned out to have been filed under the names of dead people.

Wheeler and others had previously noted that problems with the public comment process, which attracted more comments than any other rulemaking in the FCC’s history.

That could factor into litigation seeking to overturn the new rules by allowing network neutrality advocates to claim that the FCC did not properly follow the Administrative Procedure Act.

Internet service providers pleased with the decision

While consumer groups and most technology companies were vehemently against repealing the 2015 rules, perhaps the only groups excited about the FCC’s vote were those associated with large broadband providers.

Michael Powell, President and CEO of NCTA – The Internet Association, praised the FCC’s decision in a statement released to reporters.

“Today’s FCC action rightly restores the light-touch approach to government regulation of the internet that has fostered the development of a vibrant, open and innovative platform,” Powell said. “For decades, America’s internet service providers have delivered an open internet – allowing consumers to enjoy the lawful internet content and applications of their choosing.”

Powell said that Internet providers have repeatedly pledged to continue to adhere to the now-repealed rules, but did not explain why his association’s members lobbied so aggressively for the rules’ repeal if they still want to follow them.

The two Democratic FCC commissioners minced no words

Democrats on the FCC railed against Pai and the Republican majority in angry statements delivered before the vote.

“I dissent from this rash decision to roll back net neutrality rules,” Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat said.

“I dissent. I dissent from this fiercely spun, legally lightweight, consumer-harming, corporate-enabling Destroying Internet Freedom Order,” said Rosenworcel’s senior Democratic colleague.

(Photo of Sen. Patrick Leahy, among the critics of the FCC’s Thursday decision on net neutrality.)

Andrew Feinberg was the White House Correspondent and Managing Editor for Breakfast Media. He rejoined BroadbandBreakfast.com in late 2016 after working as a staff writer at The Hill and as a freelance writer. He worked at BroadbandBreakfast.com from its founding in 2008 to 2010, first as a Reporter and then as Deputy Editor. He also covered the White House for Russia's Sputnik News from the beginning of the Trump Administration until he was let go for refusing to use White House press briefings to promote conspiracy theories, and later documented the experience in a story which set off a chain of events leading to Sputnik being forced to register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Andrew's work has appeared in such publications as The Hill, Politico, Communications Daily, Washington Internet Daily, Washington Business Journal, The Sentinel Newspapers, FastCompany.TV, Mashable, and Silicon Angle.

Broadband's Impact

Josephine Bernson: The Customer Experience is About More Than Fiber

‘Listen to the customer’ is a fundamental pillar in gaining a satisfied customer.

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The author of this Expert Opinion is Josephine Bernson, Chief Revenue Officer at Great Plains Communications.

Customer experience and the digital customer experience are what makes businesses today stand apart from competitors. In our connected world, it means delivering products and services via high-speed internet, provided by a network that’s reliable and scalable according to rising bandwidth demand.

Yet, we must keep in mind the other component of a first-rate customer experience: customer service excellence.

Customer service excellence, from the beginning

How does a fiber provider successfully work with the customers and the community from the very beginning? And, continue to provide exceptional customer service each day thereafter?

It begins with listening.Listen to the customer” is a fundamental pillar in gaining a satisfied customer, whether it’s meeting with business executives, community leaders or residents. What are they hoping to achieve with their network, short-term and long-term? Any concerns that should be addressed?

Respond with solutions that meet their needs.  Personalization is better than a one-size-fits-all approach. Each customer has different needs and unique bandwidth specifications that should be taken into consideration. For example, the ability to adjust availability to accommodate peak work hours for a financial institution or local government complex or the flexibility needed for a local business that serves an online global market.

Get to know your customers. Focus on getting to know your customers through participating in local events and spending time in the community. Teams that live and work in same community they serve care about providing their neighbors with high-quality products and superior service. Valuable feedback comes from customers who directly interact with local employees immersed in the community.

Timely and convenient customer service options. If there’s a problem, how can customers contact you for a resolution? Does the customer service center or 24/7 operations center always have agents available? Are there easily accessible online resources equipped to handle common questions? Automation is a big trend in CX. While we enjoy our personal relationships with our customers, we also leverage technology for self-service tools. It’s important to enable customers to do business in whichever manner works best for them.

Happy employees for a happy customer experience

Happy employees have long been credited with increased productivity and better service for customers. Great Plains Communications’ culture has always been to attract, train and retain workers from the areas it serves.

Customer service representative Marisa Benham has been with Great Plains Communications for 15 years. “I’ve always been a people person so I really love talking to people! I love helping them figure out what services they want and helping them if they have an issue with their account.”

As for the GPC team itself, she says, “The biggest thing I love about our team is that even though we’re a large company, I feel like we are still trying to get that small company family feel.  I really love that about Great Plains as well.”

For any business to survive for a long period it must continually evolve. Great Plains Communications is a 113-year-old company serving nearly 200 Midwestern communities.  As a leading digital telecommunications leader, our core focus remains the same: customer service excellence. We believe in our high-performing network and high-performing people.

Customer loyalty depends on the customer experience, but it must be earned. It’s more than state-of-the-art technologies. It’s the people behind the innovation. It’s the teams that deliver and support the technology that make all the difference.

Josephine Bernson is the chief revenue officer at Great Plains Communications. This piece is exclusive to BroadbandBreakfast.

Broadband Breakfast accepts commentary from informed observers of the broadband scene. Please send pieces to commentary@breakfast.media. The views reflected in Expert Opinion pieces do not necessarily reflect the views of Broadband Breakfast and Breakfast Media LLC.

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Digital Inclusion

Sean Gonsalves: National Digital Inclusion Alliance Hosts Largest Net Inclusion Gathering

NDIA Executive Director Angela Siefer zeroed in on the need for good data.

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Selfie of NDIA Executive Director Angela Seifer and Net Inclusions audience from Twitter

With nearly 1,000 in attendance at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in downtown San Antonio for the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA) marquee gathering, those on the front lines of bridging the digital divide across the nation came to the three-day conference (Feb 28  to March 2) to network, share lessons, best-practices, and learn from experts as the largest ever federal investment in expanding broadband access is heading to state broadband offices this summer.

Mayor addresses attendees, acknowledges open secret of segregation

San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg welcomed attendees, noting how his city was a fitting venue for the event.

“It’s no secret San Antonio is one of the most socio-economically segregated cities in the United States,” he said. “And that’s why we have zeroed-in on equity – in our budget, in who gets invited to the table.”

DeAnne Cuellar with Mayor Ron Nirenberg

Nirenberg congratulated NDIA for its work and the attendance record set by this year’s gathering. He also singled out our own outreach coordinator and San Antonio resident DeAnne Cuellar, not only lauding her work with ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks team but for her role in bringing city officials together with Older Adults Technology Services as the city commits to connecting 100,000 older adults in the city.

(ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks team, which has long worked with NDIA participated conducted a workshop, participated in several panels discussions, and hosted a special Connect This! live stream at a social mixer at The Friendly Spot Icehouse.)

“Broadband is a basic human right and is a public utility. That’s why digital inclusion is a pillar of our recovery program,” Nirenberg said, noting how that is reflected in line items in the city’s budget.

Mayor Nirenberg also spoke candidly about injustices that had been baked-in to city and state policies in the past and, whether intentional or not, excluded vulnerable communities across the city, putting them at a socio-economic disadvantage. He said that closing the digital divide was central to correcting those injustices.

He concluded his welcoming remarks encouraging attendees to “use technology to live, learn, work and thrive.”

Texas broadband office announces new network funding opportunity

Also on hand for the conference was Greg Conte, Director of the Texas Broadband Development Office. Conte announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity for $120 million in grants for the construction of new high-speed Internet infrastructure across the Lone Star State.

As projects are funded to build new infrastructure, the state can’t assume people will automatically subscribe for Internet service, as efforts to tackle affordability and adoption are equally important undertakings.

“We want to make sure communities can get online and use it,” he said. “We ask all Texans to help in this process.”

He also briefly touched on something numerous other state broadband offices are in the process of doing: beefing up staff as each state is set to receive an historic amount of federal funds from the bipartisan infrastructure bill’s BEAD program.

Conte was a guest on our Community Broadband Bits podcast last summer in which he discussed the challenges of staffing up his office and addressing the dearth of data about precisely where broadband is and isn’t available across the state.

Engaging other sectors in the work of advocating for more ACP funding

Batting clean-up was NDIA Executive Director Angela Siefer, who first zeroed in on the need for good data that shows and measures how local digital equity programs are working, and how those efforts can be improved.

Angela Siefer speaking at Net Inclusion

And while quality robust data is vital, she said, it is also worth thinking about who benefits from expanded broadband access (beyond individual end-users) and how data and stories about digital inclusion initiatives can be used to engage industries and sectors of society who may not see bridging the digital divide as an urgent concern.

That includes the necessity of getting more than just Internet service providers at the table. Buy-in from healthcare providers, educational leaders, captains of retail and commerce, as well as transportation planners and housing officials should be engaged in helping to make broadband available especially for residents who struggle with affordability.

Specifically as it relates to commerce, Siefer noted, “the savings that can come from conducting certain business online can be invested into access.”

Siefer also emphasized the value of digital equity advocates sharing the stories they encounter of the lives impacted by their work with those who may not be tuned into the connectivity crisis that still plagues even such a technologically-sophisticated nation as the U.S.

Lastly, Siefer reminded the attendees that the federal funding that supports the Affordable Connectivity Program will run in the next year or so without additional appropriation from Congress.

“We need more money for the ACP,” she said, adding that it was important for state and local leaders to be pushing their Congressional representatives to replenish the ACP’s coffers.

“The long term plan is that the Universal Service Fund needs to be fixed but that is going to take time. The ACP will run out of funds before the USF is fixed,” she said.

Before the general assembly dispersed to a variety of focused workshops and breakout groups, Siefer ended with a note of encouragement: “Remember you guys are the heroes. You do the work on the ground. But NDIA has your back.”

Watch the plenary sessions below. Also, stay tuned for our new podcast series Building for Digital Equity, which will debut soon and feature interviews with dozens of frontline digital inclusion practitioners discussing the work they are doing in their local communities.

This article originally appeared on the Institute for Local Self Reliance’s Community Broadband Networks project on March 2, 2023, and is reprinted with permission.

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Digital Inclusion

NTIA Seeks Comment on How to Spend $2.5 Billion in Digital Equity Act

National Telecommunications and Information Administration is seeking comment on how to structure the programs.

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Photo of Veneeth Iyengar of ConnectLA

WASHINGTON, March 1, 2023 – The National Telecommunications and Information Administration announced Wednesday that it is seeking comment on how to structure the $2.5 billion that the Digital Equity Act provides to promote digital equity and inclusion. 

As part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Digital Equity Act consists of two sub-programs, the State Digital Equity Capacity grant and the Digital Equity Competitive grant. Comments will guide how the NTIA will design, regulate, and evaluate criteria for both programs. 

“We need to hear directly from those who are most impacted by the systemic barriers that prevent some from fully utilizing the Internet,” Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said Wednesday at the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s Net Inclusion event in San Antonio. 

See Commerce Secretary Raimondo’s remarks at Net Inclusion:

The request for comment is part of NTIA’s strategy to hear diverse perspectives in implementing its goal to ensure every American has the skills and capacity needed to reap the benefits of the digital economy, stated a press release. 

The $1.44 billion State Digital Equity Capacity grant will fund implementation of state digital equity plans which will strategically plan how to overcome barriers faced by communities seeking to achieve digital equity.  

Simply making investments in broadband builds is not enough, said Veneeth Iyengar, executive director of ConnectLA, speaking at a Brookings Insitution event in December. Bringing digital equity means “driving adoption, digital skills, and doing the kinds of things that we need to do to tackle the digital divide.” 

The $1.25 billion Digital Equity Competitive grant program will fund anchor institutions, such as schools, libraries, and nonprofits, in offering digital inclusion activities that promote internet adoption. 

“Community-anchor institutions have been and are the connective tissue that make delivering high-speed internet access possible,” said Alan Davidson, head of the NTIA at AnchorNets 2022 conference. 

This announcement follows dissent on the definition of digital discrimination. Commenters to the Federal Communications Commission disagree on whether the intent of a provider should be considered when determining if the provider participated in digital discrimination. There has been no response from the FCC. 

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