Broadband Breakfast on July 31, 2024 - It's All About Costs: Junk Fees and Affordable Connectivity
Lurking beneath advertised rates, some argue, "junk fees" have silently inflated costs and eroded trust.
In an era where connectivity is essential, consumers are facing a hidden battle on their broadband bills. Lurking beneath advertised rates, some argue, "junk fees" have silently inflated costs and eroded trust. This panel will unravel the complex story of how these fees are impacting affordable connectivity and distorting market competition. From the White House to state legislatures, efforts are underway to combat these practices. Join us as we explore broadband pricing, transparency, and affordable internet connectivity.
Joel Leighton
Panelists
- Brian Hurley, Chief Regulatory Counsel, ACA Connects
- Mike Lynch, Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Director, National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA)
- John Bergmayer, Legal Director, Public Knowledge
- Mark Jamison, Nonresident Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
- Drew Clark (moderator), CEO and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast
Panelist resources:
Broadband Breakfast
Brian Hurley is Chief Regulatory Counsel for ACA Connects. In that position, he oversees and coordinates ACA Connects’ advocacy on legal and regulatory matters as well as its educational programming for Members. Before joining ACA Connects in 2018, he was an attorney with the Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau.
As NATOA’s Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Director, Mike Lynch is responsible for advancing policy positions, advocacy, legislative and strategic development, as well as for tracking and analyzing federal and state legislative and regulatory telecommunications initiatives. A longtime board member, past president and treasurer of the NATOA, Mike's worked closely with local government cable and PEG folks in cities, towns and counties across the country to address issues like PEG Access programming and funding, Wireless Siting, broadband planning and funding, Digital Equity & Inclusion, cable licensing, and other matters at the nexus of local government telecom, communications, and right-of-way policies.
John Bergmayer is Legal Director at Public Knowledge, specializing in telecommunications, internet, and intellectual property issues. He advocates for the public interest before courts and policymakers, and works to make sure that all stakeholders--including ordinary citizens, artists, and technological innovators--have a say in shaping emerging digital policies.
Mark Jamison is a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he works on how technology affects the economy, and on telecommunications and Federal Communications Commission issues. He is concurrently the director and Gunter Professor of the Public Utility Research Center at the University of Florida’s Warrington College of Business. Dr. Jamison has served on the FCC transition team for President-elect Trump, as a special adviser to the chair of the governor of Florida’s internet task force, and as president of the Transportation and Public Utilities Group.
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.
