Antitrust Changes, Ookla SpeedTest Results, Electric Cooperatives Form Alliance for Broadband

June 1, 2022 – Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., released revisions last week to antitrust legislation that would strengthen prohibitions on anticompetitive conduct and mergers, but support remains unsure as supporters for the advancement in January express hesitation on floor vote.

Klobuchar said she hopes that there will be a vote on the bill, called the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, within the next month.

Concerns during the committee markup in January centered on the bill’s potential to increase President Joe Biden’s administrations regulatory authority, the targeting nature of the bill toward American companies, and potential negative impact on privacy and cybersecurity.

This follows concerns from experts in the field that antitrust legislation may harm already increasing inflation rates and American competitiveness.

Ookla report shows T-Mobile has fastest 5G performance

Metrics company Ookla reported Wednesday that T-Mobile is maintaining its lead on 5G performance with a recorded median speed of 191.12 Megabits per second, with Verizon following at 107.25 Mbps.

Verizon’s 5G speeds have set it apart from AT&T since deploying its C-band spectrum. For 4G/LTE speeds, AT&T recorded a median speed of 34.57 Mbps versus a 26.33 Mbps for Verizon. According to the Ookla report, 50.6 percent of AT&T customers spent a majority of its time on 5G networks during the first quarter compared to only 28.9 percent of Verizon customers.

The fourth quarter report from 2021 showed that T-Mobile’s median 5G download speed was 187.12, with Verizon coming in second at 78.2 Mbps and AT&T with 68.82 Mbps.

Ookla gathers data from Speedtest users to report internet speeds at different locations.

Electric cooperatives form alliance in Arkansas to expand broadband access

In Arkansas, 13 electric cooperatives announced Thursday that they joined together to form a new wholesale fiber provider called Diamond State Networks to expand broadband access across the state.

The company said it will be focused on providing middle mile fiber transport routes to internet service providers and wireless operators. It said it is working to secure funding from the Infrastructure, Investment and Jobs Act’s middle mile funding program to extent its project further.

It is planning on investing more than $1.66 billion in fiber infrastructure to cover 64 percent of Arkansas’ land, reaching 600,000 potential customer locations.

It said it is also hoping that more co-ops will follow its model. Diamond State Networks hinted that it will not be the last coalition of its kind in a statement to Fierce, noting that co-ops are “uniquely positioned to serve parts of the country other operators either can’t or don’t want to reach.”