Learning from the Rural Broadband Experiments

The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau opened the application filing window for parties interested in participating in the FCC’s rural broadband experiments. Already the FCC has seen activity in the online system it is using to accept the applications, with many entities working on their applications. Interested parties have until 6 p.m. on Friday, November 7 to submit applications for this funding opportunity.

The opening of the filing window marks a historic occasion. For the first time, the FCC is using a competitive bidding process to award ongoing Connect America Fund support that will bring broadband to rural America. Applicants have the opportunity to bid on $100 million in available funding through the rural broadband experiments, with defined criteria for the level of service we expect winning bidders to provide and an objective, clear-cut methodology for selecting winning applications. Already, the FCC has learned a lot from these experiments: working on the nitty-gritty details of the application form, doing outreach to get the word out to potential bidders, and getting the online system up and running. Once the application window closes, the FCC will be learning about competitive interest to build networks to rural communities that will deliver services that far exceed the FCC’s current performance standards. And I’m sure the FCC will learn something unexpected that will help the FCC make decisions regarding the design of the Phase II auction that will occur after the offer of model-based support to price cap carriers.


Learning from the Rural Broadband Experiments