August 2024

The U.S. needs 58k more workers to deploy broadband

The broadband industry needs more workers. Specifically, it needs tens of thousands more construction workers and broadband technicians to complete a coming wave of government-funded deployment projects or else critical broadband expansions could be delayed. Some original research conducted by Continuum Capital found that the U.S.

Sponsor 

National Telecommunications and Information Administration

US Department of Commerce

Date 
Fri, 08/23/2024 - 10:00 to 12:00

A public meeting for providing input to spectrum band studies directed by the National Spectrum Strategy and National Spectrum Strategy Implementation Plan, which instructed the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to establish a multistakeholder forum for non-Federal stakeholders to engage with the Federal agencies conducting the studies. This is the first of what NTIA expects will be a series of public multistakeholder meetings held approximately every other month.



FWA Improvements on the Horizon

I’ve written a lot about the unprecedented success of fixed wireless access (FWA) being sold by cellular carriers. By the end of the first quarter of 2024, T-Mobile and Verizon had accumulated 8.6 million customers nationwide on FWA cellular home broadband. This is an amazing success for a product that was just launched in 2021. The big cable companies have been downplaying the success and capabilities of FWA. They commonly characterize FWA as too slow and inconsistent.

Public Knowledge Welcomes New Policy Analyst To Bolster Policy Efforts

Public Knowledge is pleased to announce one addition and two changes to our staff. First, Public Knowledge welcomes Morgan Wilsmann, Policy Analyst, to the team. Ms. Wilsmann will focus her policy work on content moderation and platform regulation. Prior to joining Public Knowledge, Ms.

Biden-Harris Administration Approves Wisconsin’s “Internet for All” Initial Proposal

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has approved Wisconsin’s Initial Proposals for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, a cornerstone of the Biden-Harris Administration’s “Internet for All” initiative.  This approval enables Wisconsin to request access to funding and begin implementation of the BEAD program—a major step towards closing the digital divide and meeting the President’s goal of connecting everyone in America with affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet service. Wisconsin was allocated over $1 bi

6 ways the Google antitrust ruling could change the internet

A federal judge said on August 5 that Google broke the law to kneecap competition in web search in ways that entrenched the company’s power. The next steps, which involve proposing legal fixes to undo Google’s behavior, are essentially about imagining an alternative future in which Google isn’t Google as we know it. We have the internet we have, and it’s hard to imagine something different or if you’d like it more, but here are six possible alternati

Unique Challenges for 100% Broadband Access in Hawaii

Hawaii’s broadband landscape has challenges like no other U.S. state. So how do you deliver broadband access to 100% of the residents and businesses in the most remote of the 50 states? “100% is hard to get to, but we’re going to make a really good try to get there,” said Garret Yoshimi, Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer of the University of Hawaii. Yoshimi is not Hawaii’s state broadband director.

FCC Announces Anticipated Renewal of its Consumer Advisory Committee and Solicits Nominations for Membership

The Federal Communications Commission announced the anticipated rechartering of the Consumer Advisory Committee and solicited nominations for membership. The FCC intends to recharter the CAC for a period of two (2) years following consultation with the Committee Management Secretariat, General Service Administration. It is anticipated that after this consultation, the renewed charter will become effective on or before October 13, 2024.