CEOs Call for Regulatory Reform to Retire Copper Networks

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2024 – Industry leaders emphasized the urgent need to retire outdated copper networks to accelerate broadband deployment and modernize the nation's infrastructure, during USTelecom’s 2024 Broadband Investment Forum.

“Every dollar spent on copper is a dollar that cannot be spent on fiber,” Tom Maguire, president & CEO of Brightspeed remarked, illustrating the significant financial strain maintaining copper infrastructure places on broadband providers. Brightspeed, one of the largest regional broadband providers in the U.S., focuses on rural and suburban markets.

Exacerbated by theft, weather damage, and aging infrastructure, the costs of maintaining copper networks continue to divert millions of dollars from next-generation fiber projects, Maguire said, citing over 450 instances of copper theft in a single state that cost his company “well over” $1 million in repairs.