Ken Howard, Actor and SAG-Aftra Union President and Joe Garagiola, a Catcher Who Called a Better Game on TV
BENTON'S COMMUNICATIONS-RELATED HEADLINES for THURSDAY, MARCH 24, 2016
Today's Event: Legal Considerations in Building Broadband Public-Private Partnerships, CLIC webinar: https://www.benton.org/node/234460
INTERNET/BROADBAND
Remarks of Gigi Sohn on Lifeline and Broadband Adoption - speech
FCC's Lifeline expansion could see changes before vote
Thousands Support Expanding Lifeline to Broadband in Petitions Submitted to FCC - public notice
Learning from the FCC's Lifeline Broadband Pilot Projects - Technology Policy Institute research
FCC Chairman Wheeler Writes to Reps Upton and Pallone Regarding the Open Internet Order
NSF to Fund Up to $10 Million of US Ignite Gigabit R&D
Verizon’s fiber network will expand—after three-state sale to Frontier [links to Benton summary]
FCC Chairman Wheeler's Response to Rep. Ruiz Regarding the Transaction Between Frontier and Verizon [links to Benton summary]
Rep Blackburn Slams FCC Over Set-Tops, Preemption [links to Benton summary]
OWNERSHIP
4 Democratic Reps Back Charter-TWC Merger
FCC Chairman Wheeler's Response to Rep. Ruiz Regarding the Transaction Between Frontier and Verizon [links to Benton summary]
SECURITY/PRIVACY
Big Data is Watching: Growing Digital Data Surveillance of Consumers by ISPs and Other Leading Video Providers - CDD Report
Homeland Security Committee Chairman McCaul: After Brussels, Congress must act on encryption [links to Hill, The]
Intel, Fortinet, launch cybersecurity initiatives [links to San Jose Mercury News]
FBI Clash With Apple Loosed a Torrent of Possible Ways to Hack an iPhone [links to New York Times]
The iPhone hack that could help the FBI get a terrorist's files [links to CNNMoney]
Pentagon Cut Off Access to Personal E-Mail to Fight Mailicous Messages [links to nextgov]
ADVERTISING
Pressure from Democratic Reps hasn't swayed FCC on political ad disclosures
A Look Back at Hal Riney, the Ad Giant who Helped Re-Elect Ronald Reagan [links to AdAge]
ELECTIONS & MEDIA
Speaker Ryan Criticizes Tone of GOP Primaries [links to Hill, The]
Presidential Race Is One of TV’s Biggest Hits [links to Associated Press]
NPR Puts Political Reporters Through ‘Trump Training’ for Hostile Events [links to Wrap, The]
CNN on campaign 2016: We have ‘more access to both parties than any other channel’ [links to Washington Post]
Dating App Tinder introduces ‘Swipe the Vote’ [links to Hill, The]
App Connects Voters with Short Polling Lines in Texas’ Collin County [links to Government Technology]
A Look Back at Hal Riney, the Ad Giant who Helped Re-Elect Ronald Reagan [links to AdAge]
WIRELESS/SPECTRUM
AT&T launches international Wi-Fi Calling [links to Verge, The]
Zero rating: a boon to consumers, or a net neutrality nightmare? - analysis [links to Benton summary]
Wireless Carriers Offer Free Calls and Texts To Belgium After Attacks [links to Fortune]
Smartphone Streaming Survey: 81% of Smartphone Users Stream Video [links to telecompetitor]
TELEVISION
ABC Stacks the Deck in Battle for Streaming Rights [links to Variety]
Nielsen Adds Info on Connected-TV Devices [links to Broadcasting&Cable]
RADIO
Keynote Remarks of FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai at the Hispanic Radio Conference [links to Federal Communications Commission]
SURVEILLANCE
Idaho mom who sued Obama over illegal surveillance loses at appellate court [links to Benton summary]
TRANSPORTATION
Op-ed: This U.S. City Is Subsidizing Uber — Here’s Why [links to Revere Digital]
JOURNALISM
Blendle Wants to Sell You Journalism on the Web, One Story at a Time [links to Revere Digital]
Op-Ed: Why Hulk vs. Gawker Is not About Privacy vs. Free Speech [links to Huffington Post]
HEALTH
Lawmakers: Who Safeguards Health Care Data From Cyberthreats? [links to nextgov]
LABOR
Incentives – and pressures – for US workers in a ‘knowledge economy’ [links to Pew Research Center]
DIVERSITY
Media Has One Of The Worst Gender Wage Gaps Of Any Industry, Says Glassdoor Study [links to International Business Times]
GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE
Don’t Act Surprised by How Net Neutrality Rules Were Written - Blair Levin op-ed
POLICYMAKERS
Commerce Sec Penny Pritzker Announces Kiersten Todt as Executive Director of Commission on Enhancing National Cybersecurity - press release [links to Benton summary]
STORIES FROM ABROAD
Google and Obama Administration Connect Over Cuba
Ministers plan to make universal broadband a ‘must-have’ in UK
Angola’s Wikipedia Pirates Are Exposing the Problems With Digital Colonialism [links to Benton summary]
Journalist Jailed in Eastern India Over Social Media Post [links to New York Times]
Vietnam: 2 Sentenced Over Blog Posts [links to Reuters]
INTERNET/BROADBAND
=
GIGI SOHN ON LIFELINE AND BROADBAND ADOPTION
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: Gigi Sohn]
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler proposal to modernize the Lifeline program and refocus it on making broadband service affordable for low income consumers. Here’s some concerns we’re hearing:
First, we have an obligation to focus the Lifeline program on broadband. While mobile voice will continue to be a supported service, afterDecember 1, 2019, it will have to be bundled with data to be Lifeline-eligible. Our firm belief is that voice service will continue to be an important part of Lifeline. But we also believe that low-income Americans must have access to broadband as well if they are to participate fully in today’s society. To give Lifeline providers time to adjust, we will phase down support for stand-alone mobile voice over a multi-year period. We plan to eliminate the subsidy for stand-alone mobile voice starting on December 1, 2019, although the Commission will examine the market in mid-2019 to determine whether there needs to be an adjustment. We believe that three years will be enough time for the market to adapt and for promising technologies to develop, and that by the end of 2019, there will be affordable bundled mobile voice and data plans that meet, and hopefully exceed, Lifeline’s minimum service standards. But again, if that is not the case, the Commission has a safety valve by which it can examine how the market has evolved between now and 2019, and preserve a subsidy for stand-alone mobile voice if it’s deemed necessary.
Second, minimum service standards for voice and data will ensure that Lifeline is not a second-class service, while ensuring that it is still affordable. The Lifeline order the Chairman circulated sets the following minimums: for fixed broadband Internet access, the minimum speed is 10 Mbps down and 1 up and the minimum data allowance is 150 GB. For mobile voice, the minimum is unlimited minutes, and for mobile data, the minimum data allowance starts at 500 MB on December 1, 2016 with increases to 2GB by December 1, 2018. Finding the right balance between robust service and affordability is difficult, and we continue to talk to a variety of stakeholders on this issue. Our goal, which I know that you share, is to allow low-income Americans to take full advantage of the myriad opportunities access to broadband brings while ensuring that service remains within their reach. But that objective is unlikely to be fulfilled unless we provide incentives for carriers to offer meaningful broadband to low-income communities.
Third, states will continue to play a critical role in the Lifeline Program. Aside from moving the program to broadband, the single most important thing the proposed order does, in my opinion, is streamline the process for becoming a Lifeline provider to make it more attractive for new entrants. Chairman Wheeler’s mantra, “competition, competition, competition,” is just as relevant and important in the Lifeline context as in any other. The more we can encourage competition for Lifeline service, the more prices will decrease and service quality and quantity will increase. More competition can also help us create a Lifeline marketplace where we don’t have to choose between affordability and robust broadband service that also includes voice. But this new nationwide Lifeline Broadband Provider category does not eliminate the states’ role in the Lifeline Program. It simply gives a new entrant a choice in how it becomes a designated Lifeline provider.
Fourth, the budget will limit the impact on ratepayers while at the same time provide a safety valve to protect society’s most vulnerable. The proposed order sets a budget of $2.25 billion, indexed to inflation, which is sufficient to allow for increased participation generated by support for broadband service. The safety valve is triggered when spending reaches 90% of the budget. If that occurs, the Wireline Competition Bureau must notify the Commission and prepare an analysis of the causes of spending growth, followed by Commission action within 6 months. With this process, we can responsibly manage growth in the program without creating waiting lists or denying anyone service. Like the minimum service standards, a budget is all about balance. While we do expect that there will be more demand for Lifeline as it becomes a broadband program, we don’t expect that growth to be precipitous – remember, only about 30% of Lifeline eligible consumers take advantage of the program today. So, the proposed budget leaves room to meet increased demand, while also giving the Commission a mechanism to monitor and control spending to ensure the program is using ratepayer dollars efficiently and wisely.
benton.org/headlines/remarks-gigi-sohn-lifeline-and-broadband-adoption | Federal Communications Commission | Multichannel News
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
LIFELINE PLAN COULD CHANGE BEFORE VOTE
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Mario Trujillo]
Federal Communications Commission member Mignon Clyburn signaled that there could be late changes to the planned overhaul of Lifeline, the FCC’s phone subsidy program for low-income Americans. Commissioner Clyburn said is sympathetic to concerns from the wireless industry and she will help make changes if the regulations do not strike the right balance. "My office has been inundated with concerns about the call for minimum standards, particularly for mobile voice," she said. "But the strongest part of the FCC's process, one that is the envy of regulators from across the globe, is that our process enables parties to give and receive feedback. If parties believe that the current proposal doesn't strike the right balance, I have been clear from the beginning that I am open to taking appropriate adjustments, and I plan to live up to that promise." Commissioner Clyburn would not say whether she has proposed any specific changes. She said nothing is "set in stone" and noted she is still in "listening mode." The FCC's plan sets a number of minimum service standards on the speed of Internet and the data allowance of smartphone plans. By December, the FCC will also require Lifeline providers of simple voice-only cellphone service to offer unlimited-minute plans. By 2019, Lifeline will transition completely away from wireless voice-only service. The wireless industry has lobbied hard over the past few weeks against the December change to require unlimited minutes. They argue that the $9.25 per month Lifeline subsidies would not fully cover the price of unlimited plans currently on the market, meaning that some low-income families would not be able to cover the extra cost.
benton.org/headlines/fccs-lifeline-expansion-could-see-changes-vote | Hill, The
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
THOUSANDS SUPPORT EXPANDING LIFELINE TO BROADBAND PETITIONS SUBMITTED TO FCC
[SOURCE: Public Knowledge, AUTHOR: Meredith Whipple]
Public Knowledge joined MAG-Net, Communications Workers of America, Color of Change, and OC Inc. in submitting more than 20,000 signatures to the Federal Communications Commission urging the agency to expand its low-income phone subsidy program, Lifeline, to broadband Internet. The petitions will be added to the public record, which the Commissioners will consider before they vote on the Lifeline modernization proposal at the March 31 Open Meeting. Public Knowledge supports modernizing Lifeline to include broadband Internet as the new essential communications tool for the 21st century. Meredith Whipple, Digital Content Associate at Public Knowledge, said, "“We are pleased to see that thousands of people took action to ask the Federal Communications Commission to modernize the Lifeline program to support broadband Internet access. It is clear from this outpouring of support how essential broadband access is to people’s lives. In 1985, the Federal Communications Commission established the Lifeline program, which provided a discount on phone service for qualifying low-income Americans. In 2005, the program was updated to include wireless phones. In 2015, Lifeline is still a successful program for ensuring all Americans have the opportunities and security provided by essential communications services, like connecting to emergency services, jobs, and family members. Now, 30 years after the introduction of Lifeline, the addition of broadband access is a clear next step for the Lifeline program. Americans increasingly rely on broadband Internet for education, employment, health care, news and information, access to government and social services, commerce, and basic communications. However, for many Americans, broadband is simply not affordable. Modernizing the Lifeline program to include broadband Internet access will help millions of Americans stay connected, further closing the digital divide and supporting a thriving American economy. We look forward to the Commission’s decision on its Lifeline modernization proposal.”
benton.org/headlines/thousands-support-expanding-lifeline-broadband-petitions-submitted-fcc | Public Knowledge
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
LIFELINE PILOT PROJECTS
[SOURCE: Technology Policy Institute, AUTHOR: Scott Wallsten]
Evidence from the Federal Communication Commission's broadband Lifeline pilot studies demonstrate the difficulty of encouraging non-subscribers to join the network. Without careful attention to this issue, subsidies for broadband provided by the Lifeline program will likely go to those who already subscribe to broadband service, suggesting the program will do little to close the digital divide. After analyzing 14 experimental broadband Lifeline projects proposed by wireline and wireless broadband providers in 2013, this research shows:
The programs, restricted to those who had not subscribed for at least 60 days, had low participation rates. Overall, providers signed up less than 10 percent of the number of participants they had expected (except in Puerto Rico). These results demonstrate the difficulty of encouraging low-income people without connections to sign up even with large discounts, suggesting that subsidies are likely to go to people who already subscribe rather than working to close the digital divide.
Subscribers regularly choose plans offering speeds of less than 10 Mbps, which is the FCC's current required minimum for rural broadband subsidies. "Because faster broadband typically costs more, higher minimum speeds are likely to blunt the (already likely low) beneficial effects of subsidies by increasing the price of eligible plans."
Subscribers generally expressed a preference to avoid digital literacy training classes, although those that did take the classes were somewhat more likely to continue to subscribe to broadband once the pilot programs ended. The results also suggest that digital literacy training should be studied further to evaluate which aspects of it are most effective.
benton.org/headlines/learning-fccs-lifeline-broadband-pilot-projects | Technology Policy Institute
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
WHEELER LETTER TO REPS UPTON AND PALLONE RE: OPEN INTERNET ORDER
[SOURCE: Federal Communications Commission, AUTHOR: FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler]
On March 14, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler responded to a letter from House Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ) regarding the Open Internet Order. Chairman Wheeler wrote, "I understand that the House Energy and Commerce Committee is about to markup HR 2666, the No Rate Regulation of Broadband Internet Access Act. There have been suggestions that the approach in this legislation is consistent with comments I made before the Senate Appropriations Committee [in 2015]. I want to state, respectfully, that it is not...[The] broad forbearance in the Open Internet Order was the basis of my comments to the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senator Boozman asked if I objected to Congress prohibiting the Commission from rate regulation. I responded that if Congress wanted to ensure that a future Commission would be unable to unforbear, I would have no difficulty with it. What I said then remains true today. If Congress in its wisdom decides to make doubly sure that the forbearance in the Open Internet Order is the law of the land, that is Congress's prerogative. But this bill does more than that. It would introduce significant uncertainty into the Commission's ability to enforce the three bright line rules that bar blocking, throttling, and paid prioritization rules, as well as our general conduct rule that would be applied to issues such as data caps and zero rating. It would also cast doubt on the ability of the Commission to ensure that broadband providers receiving universal service subsidies do not overcharge their consumers. Finally, it would hamstring aspects of the Commission's merger review process. I am committed to ensuring that forbearance today is forbearance tomorrow. But I write to make plain that this bill is not consistent with the views I expressed last year."
benton.org/headlines/fcc-chairman-wheeler-writes-reps-upton-and-pallone-regarding-open-internet-order | Federal Communications Commission
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
NSF TO FUND UP TO $10 MILLION OF US IGNITE GIGABIT R&D
[SOURCE: telecompetitor, AUTHOR: Andrew Burger]
The National Science Foundation aims to award as much as $10 million in grant funding toward US Ignite gigabit R&D. Funded projects will carry out fundamental research to advance gigabit network protocols and infrastructure and/or develop new applications and prototypes that expand the use of high-speed network infrastructure. The gigabit R&D project solicitation is part and parcel of US Ignite, a non-profit public-private partnership program launched by NSF and the White House Office of Science Technology Policy in June 2012 to spur US leadership in development and deployment of next-generation gigabit networks and applications. Bridging the ¨Digital Divide¨ while at the same time enhancing US economic competitiveness are the motivations that guide and inform US Ignite. Program managers are aiming to deliver 60 next-gen gigabit broadband applications and establish 200 community test beds by 2017.
The latest NSF-US Ignite solicitation seeks to make up to $10 million in capital available to fund projects focusing on one of two areas:
Focus Area 1 encourages the development of application ideas and prototypes addressing national priority areas that explore new uses for high speed networks and give rise to Smart and Connected Communities. Focus Area 1 builds on activities explored by previous US Ignite investments.
Focus Area 2 funds fundamental research advances in networking technology and protocols that further the capabilities and understanding of gigabit networking infrastructure to meet current and future application demands. Focus Area 2 projects should seek to propose fundamental advances in networking infrastructure that, if successful, would better enable current or future gigabit to multi-gigabit applications.
benton.org/headlines/nsf-fund-10-million-us-ignite-gigabit-rd | telecompetitor
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
OWNERSHIP
4 DEMOCRATIC REPS BACK CHARTER-TWC MERGER
[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable, AUTHOR: John Eggerton]
In a letter to the Federal Communications Commission and Justice Department, four Democratic Reps have weighed in in support of the Charter-Time Warner Cable merger. The FCC is approaching its 180-day shot clock on the deal, and the FCC is expected to circulate an approval with conditions late during the week of March 21 or the week after. That would almost certainly mean the DOJ was OK, too, since they coordinate reviews. In the letter dated March 23, Reps Marc Veasey (D-TX), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Terri Sewell (D-AL) and Gregory Meeks (D-NY) told attorney general Loretta Lynch and FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler they should consider the "significant" commitments Charter has made, including on creating jobs, offering high-speed broadband (30 Mbps) to low-income communities, and its policies of no data caps or modem rental fees. They said they are fine with the FCC scrutinizing the merger carefully, but urged it to give credit to Charter's diversity commitments and others, saying that combining with Time Warner Cable and Bright House (also part of the deal), would only "continue to raise standards across the country."
benton.org/headlines/4-democratic-reps-back-charter-twc-merger | Broadcasting&Cable
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
SECURITY/PRIVACY
BIG DATA IS WATCHING
[SOURCE: Center for Digital Democracy, AUTHOR: Yewande Ogunkoya]
Americans face growing new threats to their personal privacy as phone and cable Internet service providers (ISPs), along with leading Internet companies, expand their ability to capture details about what we do online in order to target us with data-driven personalized advertising. This report examines AT&T, Comcast, Cablevision, Charter, Cox, Verizon, Dish, Time Warner Cable, Viacom, Google, News Corp. (Fox), Turner Broadcasting (Time Warner), and Disney, focusing on some of their recent data- and video-related advertising practices.The ability of an ISP and others to identify and target us regardless of what digital device we use, moreover, has effectively erased any privacy safeguards we may have enjoyed in the past when we switched between devices. The report provides more evidence of the “digital data arms race” that is further eroding consumer privacy. The Federal Communications Commission’s pending proceeding on privacy should examine all the ways that broadband networks operated by Internet service providers gather and use consumer information today. The review and policy proposals need to address the data-targeting relationships that ISPs have with leading digital marketing companies, including ad exchanges, data brokers, and advertisers. The FCC should enact privacy and consumer protection rules that provide individuals with rights over their data—including a set of Fair Information Practices that address the current data practices of ISPs. These companies should not be allowed to share data with affiliates or to use information for marketing their services without the informed, prior consent of the customer. Policies for privacy are essential as well for a competitive digital video market. Otherwise powerful ISPs and other gatekeepers will control the key way programming is financially supported and distributed.
benton.org/headlines/big-data-watching-growing-digital-data-surveillance-consumers-isps-and-other-leading-video | Center for Digital Democracy | Broadcasting & Cable
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
ADVERTISING
DEM PRESSURE HASN'T SWAYED FCC ON POLITICAL AD DISCLOSURES
[SOURCE: The Hill, AUTHOR: Mario Trujillo]
Strong pressure from Democratic Reps has not persuaded the Federal Communications Commission to take up a controversial proposal that would require some political TV ads to name the major individual donors behind them. In a letter, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said he understood that 168 House Democrats think he “should go farther” but gave no indication that he is willing to do so during an election year. “The fact that 170 members of Congress is a significant statement, the significance of which is not lost on me,” Chairman Wheeler wrote in response to a letter signed by all but 20 Democratic Reps in the House. Chairman Wheeler has said much of the same for the past year. Rep John Yarmuth (D-KY), who sponsors legislation on the issue, said he “certainly expected more than this,” referring to the letter as little more than a thank you note. Currently, FCC rules require super-PACs and other outside groups to include a sponsorship announcement at the beginning or end of a television ad that reveals the group that is funding it. But Democratic Reps want the names of significant donors included on the screen. Democratic Reps say the current disclosure rules are based on a weak interpretation of the law. They say the sponsorship tags are of no real use to voters, who likely have no idea who is funding groups with generic names like Restore our Future, Priorities USA or Americans for Prosperity. Chairman Wheeler has defended his record on “expanding the public’s access to information about political advertising.” He pointed to the FCC’s rules that now require the FCC to maintain an online database that includes information about ads run on broadcast TV, radio, cable and satellite.
benton.org/headlines/pressure-democratic-reps-hasnt-swayed-fcc-political-ad-disclosures | Hill, The | Read the Letter
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE
DON'T ACT SURPRISED BY HOW NET NEUTRALITY RULES WERE WRITTEN
[SOURCE: Inside Sources, AUTHOR: Blair Levin]
[Commentary] The Johnson report on how the Federal Communications Commission arrived at its decision to reclassify Internet Service Providers as common carriers under Title II is a 30 page version of that wonderful 20 seconds in Casablanca—Inspector Renault says “I’m shocked, shocked, to find that gambling going on in here” and then is provided his winnings—except that it completely lacks the Inspector’s self-awareness of its own comedy. A completely political document professing shock at discovering circumstantial evidence of politics inside the beltway? That’s pretty darn amusing. There are two tragedies here. Neither involve actions by the FCC. The first is that taxpayer dollars were spent gathering information (including taking up FCC staff time) and writing the report, when the Committee said nothing that could not be gleaned by spending a buck to buy the Wall Street Journal story on the same subject. The other tragedy is the over investment of political capital on Title II, in ways that cause us to under invest in considering other issues. I admit to being in an exceedingly small minority that believes both the benefits and costs of the decision are exaggerated. For me, there are three core broadband questions: how do we deploy affordable, abundant bandwidth everywhere, how do we get everyone on, and how do we use the broadband platform to better deliver public goods and services? When we address those questions well, we improve the economic and civic prospects of our communities. The Johnson Report does nothing to help with those challenges. Rather, it is taxpayer-funded political theater—comedic yes, but not enough to justify the price–that distracts us from the important and more productive tasks required for leadership in the global information economy.
[Blair Levin is a Non-Resident Fellow at the Brookings Institute Metropolitan Policy Project]
benton.org/headlines/dont-act-surprised-how-net-neutrality-rules-were-written | Inside Sources
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
STORIES FROM ABROAD
GOOGLE, THE ADMINISTRATION AND CUBA
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Brody Mullins, Carol Lee]
When President Barack Obama was working secretly to restore diplomatic and business relations with Cuba two years ago, he got some help from an unlikely place. Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt and other company executives, with encouragement from the White House, traveled to Havana in June 2014 to talk with the Cuban government about the benefits of Internet access. When he returned, Schmidt called for an end to the trade embargo. The White House didn’t tell Google about the secret negotiations with Cuba. But by the time President Obama announced that December the US would restore diplomatic ties, Google had established a toehold in the island nation by rolling out versions of its popular search engine and other Internet offerings.
benton.org/headlines/google-and-obama-administration-connect-over-cuba | Wall Street Journal
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top
UNIVERSAL BROADBAND 2020
[SOURCE: Financial Times, AUTHOR: Daniel Thomas]
The government has outlined plans to make universal broadband of 10 mbps a service everyone in the UK must have by 2020. Legislation will be brought forward to give the secretary of state the power to introduce a broadband universal service obligation that puts it on the same footing as other essential utilities, such as electricity and water. Meeting this goal could be funded by companies in the sector, public funding or a combination of the two. Ministers have also been exploring options for extending superfast broadband coverage beyond its 95 per cent by 2017 goal. However, a consultation document published on Wednesday makes it clear that without the USO, the government will not otherwise commit to subsidising access for the remaining 5 per cent of the UK. This would neither be “proportionate or represent value for money” it said. Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, will undertake a detailed analysis of the USO. It could also be asked to review it after it has been applied, to ensure it reflects what customers need.
benton.org/headlines/ministers-plan-make-universal-broadband-must-have-uk | Financial Times
Share: Twitter | Facebook
back to top