Research

From April 2020 to May 2021, the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), a Michelson Spark Grantee, studied the impact the COVID-19 pandemic had on digital inequity, particularly among school-age children in California. Researchers leveraged 2019 census data from over 35,000 households in California to establish the pre-COVID baseline as they considered how ethnic groups, income levels, educational attainment, and locality impacted device access and connectivity.

Millions of people across the country still lack sufficient access to broadband service, largely because they live in rural communities, which are the most difficult and expensive to serve. The challenges of deploying broadband network infrastructure in rural locations, particularly low population density and difficult terrain, create high costs and low returns on investment that discourage providers from expanding into those areas. As of fall 2021, 44 states had established grant programs to cover the costs of broadband deployment in areas where it would otherwise not be economically feasi

The National League of Cities (NLC) released a new report titled, “A Digital Equity Playbook: How City Leaders Can Bridge the Digital Divide,” which calls on local leaders to take action to equip people across the country with the high-speed internet access they need to fully participate in modern society.

The federal government launched the Emergency Broadband Benefit in February 2021 to provide low-income households with a $50 monthly discount on their internet bill as part of a multi-pronged approach to reduce the digital divide, which is a function of both access to a wired high-speed internet service provider and the affordability of service. According to the Universal Service Administrative Company, enrollment in the Emergency Broadband Benefit reached 7.1 million households in November 2021 (up from 6.1 million in October).

Philadelphia’s Digital Literacy Alliance launched a pilot project in 2020 to create a Digital Navigator program in Philadelphia (PA). Digital navigators are trusted guides who assist community members in internet adoption and the use of computing devices. Digital navigation services include ongoing assistance with affordable internet access, device acquisition, technical skills, and application support.

Shining a light on failed antitrust policy through a review of five mega mergers in the media and telecommunications industry: Comcast and NBCUniversal; AT&T and DirecTV; AT&T and Time Warner; Charter, Time Warner Cable and Bright House; and Disney and Fox. Each case study details the history and aftermath of these mergers, contrasting the companies’ promises of consumer benefits and pro-competitive outcomes with the post-merger realities, including higher prices, reduced choices, and harms to writers.

This paper is designed as a guide for philanthropic organizations interested in narrowing the digital divide, or the gap between those with internet access and those without, in rural communities. Philanthropy’s role in this space is not always clear. Broadband expansion is technically complex, extremely expensive, and often viewed as the domain of government and/or internet service providers.

The World Benchmarking Alliance's second iteration of the Digital Inclusion Benchmark measures and ranks 150 of the world’s most influential technology companies on their responsibility to advance a more inclusive digital society. The 2021 findings show:

Understanding affordability of internet service and its role in adoption are crucial for developing solutions to close the digital divide.The goals of this study were first to understand the barriers to connectivity and efficacy of low-cost internet service options; and second, to use the findings to inform digital inclusion policies, advocacy efforts, and other initiatives that aim to drive digital equity. The findings were informed by a national survey on broadband adoption among low- and lower-middle income households.

Congress has passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, which President Biden signed on November 15, 2021. The Act includes approximately $65 billion in funding opportunities for the deployment of broadband services in rural areas. In addition to the creation of a broadband grant program, the new legislation modifies Section 142(a) of the Internal Revenue Code to add broadband as an allowable use for qualified private activity bonds.