Healthcare From Anywhere
Connected Nation Michigan found that while each community may face its own unique challenges to providing telehealth services, many trends and correlations may be found:
March 2020
Op-ed: Free Speech Isn’t a Free Pass for Privacy Violations (Slate)
Submitted by benton on Tue, 03/10/2020 - 10:51Telecom Fights Tech Over FCC Plan to Open Airwaves to Wi-Fi
Big Tech and Big Telecom are wrangling over a Federal Communications Commission plan that would open up an unprecedented amount of airwaves to meet the nation’s Wi-Fi demand. The FCC is expected to vote before the end of April on a plan that may quintuple the amount of spectrum available to handle data from millions of Wi-Fi-connected smartphones, laptops, and other devices.
Cat Zakrzewski: Social networks haven't done enough to prevent voter manipulation, tech leaders say (Washington Post)
Submitted by benton on Tue, 03/10/2020 - 10:09Network:/Connecting technology experts across government and industry in an ongoing survey (Washington Post)
Submitted by benton on Tue, 03/10/2020 - 10:08Georgia Activity Highlights Rise of Utility Company Broadband Initiatives
Georgia utility companies have been pursuing opportunities to deliver broadband since the state passed legislation in April 2019 to encourage utility companies to provide broadband services. The latest example comes from Diverse Power Inc. and its internet affiliate Kudzu Networks, who have filed documents with the state public utilities commission regarding the purchase of fixed wireless broadband provider South Georgia Regional Information Technology Authority (SGRITA). Diverse/Kudzu and SGRITA operate in rural areas of the state and serve some of the same counties.
Wisconsin Offers Tax Breaks for Rural Broadband Investments
The newly enacted 2019 Wisconsin Act 128 incentivizes rural broadband investment through targeted tax exemptions. Telephone companies will get an exemption for property used to provide broadband service in rural or underserved areas. Most Wisconsin property taxes are paid to local governments. The telephone company property tax, however, is paid to and controlled by the state. This means that the bill will have no fiscal impact on local governments, according to a press release from WSTA — Wisconsin’s Broadband Association.
In 2019, the Trump Administration launched the American Broadband Initiative (ABI) with the release of the Milestones Report. A year later, federal agencies have made significant progress across government to improve broadband access for Amer