March 2022

US Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Slams Sohn, Wants Hispanic Replacement Candidate (RBR.com)

Submitted by benton on Wed, 03/02/2022 - 06:36

President Biden to Congress: Pass That Bill to Fund US Chip Manufacturing (C|Net)

Submitted by benton on Wed, 03/02/2022 - 06:35

TikTok Was Designed for War (Wired)

Submitted by benton on Wed, 03/02/2022 - 06:35

How the Russian Invasion of Ukraine Is Playing Out on English, Ukrainian, and Russian Wikipedia (Slate)

Submitted by benton on Wed, 03/02/2022 - 06:34

President Biden demands Congress protect kids online in State of the Union address (Vox)

Submitted by Grace Tepper on Tue, 03/01/2022 - 23:04

European telecom companies take action to support Ukrainian people (European Telecommunications Network Operators Association)

Submitted by Grace Tepper on Tue, 03/01/2022 - 23:01

Comcast Expands Affordable Connectivity Program Offers with Internet Essentials and Xfinity Mobile

Comcast is participating in the federal government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) and the $30/month benefit can be applied to any tier of Xfinity Internet service. On March 1, Comcast introduced two new ways for customers to connect through the ACP and both are available to any customer who qualifies in all the company’s service areas. Customers can sign up for Internet Essentials Plus, which includes 100 Mbps download speeds, a cable modem, and WiFi router, and is free after the government’s ACP credit is applied.

When Government Impedes Fiber Construction

It always perplexes me at a time when solving rural broadband is a top priority that governments still create policies that are huge barriers to fiber construction. The newest story comes from the State Department of Transportation in New York (NYDOT). The agency has a permitting process that is adding tons of costs to fiber projects – including fiber projects that were funded by State broadband grants. The NYDOT requires an expensive process to get onto a pole located in State rights-of-way.

Big Internet Service Providers Fear Rate Regulation

Now that Democrats are back in charge of the White House, the issue of net neutrality and the threat of rate regulation has surfaced again. The big internet service providers (ISPs) have been trying to derail or delay confirmation of Gigi Sohn [Senior Fellow and Public Advocate at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] as the fifth Federal Communications Commissioner because they know that one of the first actions of the FCC under Chairman Jessica Rosenworcel will be to reintroduce Title II regulation.

President Biden's Municipal Broadband Push Clashes With State Restrictions

President Biden's transformative push to expand internet service by treating broadband more like a public utility is on a collision course with laws in 17 states. And, the potential conflict is raising questions about whether his administration is willing to use federal infrastructure dollars to twist the arms of mostly Republican-run states to change laws they have on the books restricting municipal broadband projects.

Benton

Search