Broadband Breakfast on February 25, 2026 – Legacy Networks in the Fiber Era

Highlights Reel:

Full Event Video:

As fiber deployment accelerates across the country, the question of what to do with the nation's aging copper infrastructure has moved to the center of state and federal broadband policy debates. This webinar will examine the complex transition away from legacy networks, the obligations that exist (if any) to maintain service continuity for existing customers, and how regulators are overseeing this shift. Experts will discuss the technical, economic, universal service and equity dimensions of copper retirement–including the risk of leaving rural and low-income communities behind.

Who Will Provide Telecom Service When Copper Networks are Gone?

Both panelists said they support fiber as the preferred technology for the transition.

Broadband BreakfastBroadband Breakfast

Panelists

• Hooman Hedayati, Senior Strategic Research Associate for Telecommunications Policy, Communications Workers of America
• Lynn Follansbee, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships, USTelecom
• Drew Clark (moderator), CEO and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast

Hooman Hedayati is a Senior Strategic Research Associate for Telecommunications Policy at the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the largest union of telecommunications industry workers in the United States. In this role, he supports CWA locals on federal and state telecommunications policy matters, including proceedings before the Federal Communications Commission and state public utility commissions.  

Lynn Follansbee is Vice President of Strategic Initiatives & Partnerships at USTelecom – The Broadband Association, where she leads policy development and advocacy on key telecommunications and technology issues at the federal and state levels. She brings extensive expertise in broadband, universal service, privacy, and consumer protection, and regularly represents USTelecom before the FCC, FTC, and other federal agencies. A seasoned attorney and former FCC official, Lynn has a distinguished background in regulatory law and public policy, with prior experience in private practice and federal service.

Breakfast Media LLC CEO Drew Clark has led the Broadband Breakfast community since 2008. An early proponent of better broadband, better lives, he initially founded the Broadband Census crowdsourcing tool to collect and verify broadband data left unpublished by the Federal Communications Commission. As CEO and Publisher, Clark presides over the leading media community advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. Clark also served as head of the Partnership for a Connected Illinois, a state broadband initiative.