Reporting

Gigi Sohn [Senior Fellow and Public Advocate at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society] has weighed in on the political forces that prevented her from taking a seat on the Federal Communications Commission after her nomination by President Joe Biden and her decades of experience in communications, primarily as a public advocate and briefly as a top FCC adviser.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is scheduled to release state funding allocations for the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program by the end of June 2023. The allocations will be based on the latest version of the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Map released in late May 2023.

Silicon Valley is hatching new futures faster than the rest of the world can digest them. The artificial-intelligence wave, driven by the astonishing ne

Phones at school are "a disaster," said Jonathan Haidt, the prominent social psychologist, making the case for phone-free schools. "Smartphones impede learning, stunt relationships, and lessen belonging," says Haidt. Teachers and administrators see "clear links between rising phone addiction and declining mental health, to say nothing of declining academic performance. Back in 2019, Haidt asked school leaders why they couldn't just ban phones during school hours. "They said too many parents would be upset if they could not reach their children during the school day," he said.

On June 5, Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) signed into law HB1221, subjecting rural electric cooperatives to pole attachment regulation by the Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) if they provide broadband service. Specifically, the law mandates that if an electric cooperative provides broadband service “directly, through an affiliate, or pursuant to an agreement with a third party,” or if the cooperative accepts state or federal funding to expand broadband service to unserved areas in Florida, then the cooperati

Texas lawmakers passed a momentous bill that allocates $1.5 billion to expand internet availability across the state through the new Broadband Infrastructure Fund. If approved by voters in November, that money will be added to an undetermined amount of federal dollars the state will receive. That allocation is slated to be announced by June 30.

The Washington Island Electric Cooperative (WIEC) hosted Governor Tony Evers (D-WI) at a meeting that included Quantum Technologies, an industry leader in advanced communications and network solutions. The meeting followed a $2.5 million state grant announcement aimed at expanding the fiber optic network project on Washington Island. Quantum Technologies Network Specialist Clinton Tripplet performed live demonstration of fusion splicing, an essential technique in modern fiber optic networks.

The latest development in ongoing skirmishes over One-Touch-Make-Ready (OTMR) policies is that competitive provider GoNetspeed testified in favor of legislation that would make the approach available in Massachusetts. OTMR rules require the owners of utility poles to allow one contractor to make changes, including moving an incumbent provider’s equipment. Traditionally, each provider handles its own equipment. Proponents of OTMR say that such rules speed service deployment.

In April 2023, the Federal Communications Commission’s Space Bureau and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau opened a proceeding to accept comments on filings by SpaceX and T-Mobile to establish supplemental wireless coverage from space.

Texas lawmakers made the biggest investment for broadband development in state history with a bill allocating $1.5 billion to an infrastructure fund that is meant to expand internet availability in a state where 7 million people lack access to the service. House Bill 9, filed by State Rep. Trent Ashby, (R- Lufkin) would create the Texas Broadband Infrastructure Fund.