Infrastructure
Springfield Considers First Municipal Fiber Network Among New England’s Big Cities
City is yet another in a growing field of municipalities aiming for a municipal fiber network.
Cybersecurity
Private Sector Falling Behind on Information Sharing During Cyberattacks, Says Comcast Rep
Comcast’s Noopur Davis says cyber attackers share information better than the private sector.
Joe Biden
Cox CEO Leaving, ISPs Spent $234M on Lobbying, Fixed-Wireless As Key to Bridge Divide
CEO Esser to step down, ISPs spent $234 million lobbying in two years, fixed-wireless as solution to digital divide.
Infrastructure
Explainer: On the Cusp of Sea Change, Broadband Breakfast Examines the Net Neutrality Debate
In the first in a series of explainers, Broadband Breakfast has hand-picked the debate on net neutrality to bring readers up-to-speed on its history and future.
FCC
Klobuchar Drops Big Antitrust Bill, Raimondo’s Nomination Advances, Suicide Hotline Location Data
February 5, 2021 – Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, unveiled sweeping new antitrust legislation on Thursday to address the growing market power of companies in technology and other industries. Concern over big tech companies like Google and Facebook has been increasing on a bipartisan basis in Congr
EBB
FCC’s Marketplace Report, Commission’s Newest Appointees, EBB Comments Sought
January 26, 2021—The Federal Communications Commission’s Marketplace Report, released on the last day of 2020, grades the market competition of data-driven sectors, such as mobile wireless and fixed broadband industries. One key data point found in the Report is that between 2010 and the end of 2019
FCC
FCC Launches C-Band Auction on Tuesday, Plus Broadband Grants in Both Maine and Illinois
The Federal Communications Commission kicked off its C-Band auction on Tuesday, marking one of the first occasions in which the United States is auctioning off valuable midband spectrum for commercial use. In other countries the midband is well occupied by commercial players. Verizon is projected to
Digital Inclusion
Technology Policy Institute Panelists Say U.S. Needs a Prepaid Broadband Model for Low-Income
October 27, 2020 – Prepaid broadband might be a good alternative for those who need connectivity but aren’t in a position to commit to a full broadband plan, panelists said at the Technology Policy Institute virtual summit on Thursday. Ceri Howes, regulatory head at mobile analytics company Opensign
COVID
Coronavirus Pandemic Prompted Cities to Rethink and Accelerate Broadband Strategies
October 27, 2020 — The COVID-19 pandemic is disrupting local government operations, requiring many cities to revisit their digital governance strategies. Cities across the country are in the process of revisiting their digital approaches to center the emerging needs of constituents, with many bring
FCC
Starry and Microsoft in Los Angeles, Comcast Clocks a Gigabit Upload, Nobel Prize for Spectrum Auction
Starry Home Internet announced a partnership with Microsoft on Tuesday aimed at accelerating the availability of its low-cost program Starry Connect in public housing communities across the country. The program will kick off this month in Los Angeles, California, and it promises to bring Starry Conn
FCC
With Anniversary Awards, FCC Recognizes Role of Communications Technology for People With Disabilities
October 13, 2020 – Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai on Thursday recognized Karen Peltz Strauss, Claude Stout, Tom Wlodkowski at an awards ceremony on the tenth anniversary of the Communications and Video Accessibility Act. “Democracy is not a state–it is an act,” declared Pai, sta
Ajit Pai Responds on Net Neutrality, West Virginians for Broadband Utility, New Economist at FCC
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai circulated a proposal to address the three issues raised by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in an October 2019 decision on the agency’s net neutrality repeal. In December 2017, the FCC repealed regulations that had classified broadband internet a
CTA
Transportation Department Proposes to ‘Dig Once’, Growing Support for BRIDGE Act, West Virginia Fight Over Cable Speeds
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration recently proposed streamlining broadband deployment in rights-of-way during federal highway construction projects. The proposal would require greater collaboration with states departments of transportation and broadband infrastru
FCC
Municipalities Fear The Impact of FCC’s Section 621 Order on Local Cable Franchise Fees
September 5, 2020 — Local telecommunications officials involved in renewing local cable franchises criticized the consequences of the Federal Communications Commission’s ruling on the topic called the Section 621 order. The conversation among members of the National Association of Telecommunications
COVID
At NATOA Conference, 5 Municipalities Highlight Broadband Efforts During Coronavirus Pandemic
September 5, 2020 – Telecommunications officials and advisors from five municipalities described how they have approached broadband during the time of a pandemic. Speaking at the virtual conference of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors on “Leveraging Smart Communiti
Charter
Microsoft President on Broadband Accessibility, New Hampshire Partnership, ‘Corrupted’ Consumer Advisory Committee
Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, called for closing the broadband gap during a Thursday Axios webinar on leadership and the future of broadband. “Even post-COVID, the importance of the broadband gap is not going abate one bit,” Smith said, “it will remain just as important to our future as it is
