INCOMPAS Adds Directors, Colorado Floats $600 Internet Subsidy, Microsoft Holograms Meetings

March 3, 2021 – The internet and competitive networks association, INCOMPAS, announced Tuesday that Ken Williams, CEO of Allied Telecom Group, and Brandon Reed, government relations at Zayo, have joined the association as members of its board of directors.

INCOMPAS CEO Chip Pickering praised Allied and Zayo for “being at the forefront of competitive communications, building the broadband networks, and providing the cutting edge services that fuel greater competition and innovation in the market.”

Colorado bill would subsidize home internet at $600 annually

Colorado is considering a new bill that would expand broadband service in the state by providing a $600 subsidy per year to households with students.

Eligible Colorado households that could apply for the $600 reimbursement, under Senate Bill 21-060, are those with children enrolled in grades K-12 who receive free or reduced-price lunch through a school’s lunch program. It also includes those whose income that does not exceed higher than the federal poverty level or 30% of the area median income.

The subsidy would be administered by the broadband deployment board.

The bill also amends the definition of “broadband network” by increasing download and upload speed requirements, and considers underserved download speeds of 10 megabits per second. The federal minimum for programs like the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund is 25 megabits per second.

The proposal is in addition to the FCC’s Emergency Broadband Benefit Program, which will provide up to a $50 discount per month towards broadband service and up to $75 per month for households on Tribal lands. Eligible households under the emergency benefit program can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers if they contribute money towards the purchase price.

Microsoft Mesh aims to bring holographic virtual meetings

Microsoft is developing a technology that would allow virtual meeting participants to become holograms to simulate real-world gatherings.

Microsoft Mesh, which is powered by the company’s Azure cloud services, may soon be on all devices, including smartphones and virtual reality headsets.

Greg Sullivan, Microsoft’s head of mixed reality, detailed the company’s vision for the future of virtual collaboration with tech publication Engadget.

Microsoft used its keynote in the 2021 Ignite conference to show off Mesh, and dubbed it as “holoportation.”