Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer: Getting One Big Beautiful Spectrum Pipeline by 2028
Notifying NTIA is not the same as identifying spectrum for auction, and the FCC should use that difference to keep 2028 auctions alive.
Joel Thayer
Joel Thayer is president of the Digital Progress Institute and an attorney based in Washington. Digital Progress Institute is a nonprofit seeking to bridge the policy divide between telecom and tech.
Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer and Ethan Tun: Stop Making Americans Pay for Yesterday’s Phone Network
Outdated rules tying carriers to copper phone lines are diverting billions from fiber and wireless buildout, and the FCC should finish modernizing them.
Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer and Matthew Wong: Space Policy Can’t Run on Dial-Up Speeds
A bipartisan push at the FCC and in Congress aims to modernize satellite licensing and clear the backlog threatening American leadership in space.
5G Wireless
Joel Thayer and Matthew Wong: The FCC’s $40 Billion Question
A Citizens Broadband Radio Service auction could raise $45 billion for the U.S. Treasury
Broadband Live
Broadband Breakfast on December 10, 2025 - AI and BEAD Non-Deployment
The news may pave the way for non-deployment funds to be spent for broadband and AI-related projects.
Defense Department
Joel Thayer: Why the Pentagon Wants Ligado’s Scalp
The dispute over Ligado highlights a clash between the FCC’s spectrum policy decisions and Defense Department’s efforts to block them.
Expert Opinion
The Court Did Its Job, Now It’s Time for Congress to Get Millions of Americans Online
Joel Thayer and Roslyn Layton argue that Universal Service Fund reform will be the next major fight on Capitol Hill.
Expert Opinion
Congress Has a Chance to Rid Our Networks of Huawei Once and For All
Armed with the Chinese Communist Party’s monies and resources, they flooded our markets with equipment riddled with vulnerabilities.
Expert Opinion
To Fix the Digital Divide, The Great Can’t Be the Enemy of the Good
Given all of its successes, reauthorizing the ACP should be a no-brainer.
Expert Opinion
Keeping Low-Income Families and Veterans Online is a National Priority
Roughly 35 million Americans lack home broadband internet.
Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer: No 5G Spectrum Means No Digital Future
The 5G war is on and there’s a lot of concern about the U.S. position vis-a-vis China.
Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer and Greg Guice: FCC Needs to Unchain T-Mobile to Promote 5G
5G is also helping carriers reach those on the wrong side of the digital divide.
Expert Opinion
Joel Thayer and Diane Holland: We Need the Affordable Connectivity Program!
Keeping American families and veterans connected is too important to allow the ACP to lapse.
SpaceX
Joel Thayer and Shane Tews: Rural Broadband Requires Out-of-the-Box Thinking
Mobile broadband is largely ignored by federal connectivity efforts.
