Research

The Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau released its fourth report on the ownership of broadcast stations. The data contained in the report provide a tabulation of station ownership based on information submitted by licensees on FCC Form 323 and Form 323-E in response to the 2017 biennial ownership report filing window, which closed in March 2018. This filing window was the first to collect information from non-commercial educational stations about the gender, ethnicity, and race of the licensee’s attributable interest holders.

A report issued by the United Kingdom’s competition authority (CMA) provides interim findings that both Google and Facebook have a virtual lock on key elements of and inputs to the digital advertising market.

The MAPS Act (HR 4227) -- passed by the House of Representatives on December 16, 2019 -- would prohibit any person from willfully, knowingly, or recklessly submitting inaccurate information or data related to the geographic coverage of broadband Internet service to the Federal Communications Commission. Violators would be subject to criminal and civil penalties in the same amounts currently imposed on anyone who knowingly provides inaccurate information to the FCC. CBO estimates that it would cost the FCC less than $500,000 to update rules to implement the act.

The US 5G Leadership Act of 2019 (S 1625) would establish a program, administered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to reimburse certain US communications providers for the cost of removing and replacing any equipment made by Chinese companies, other companies subject to extrajudicial direction from a foreign government, or entities deemed to pose a national security risk to the US. Under the bill, recipients of federal funding would be prohibited from using US funds to purchase communications equipment from any of those entities.

As policymakers consider digital inclusion solutions, understanding the root of the problem is important. There are a number of ways people’s decisions not to subscribe to broadband could play out. Older adults – especially those on fixed incomes – may find the monthly fee burdensome but also struggle with the skills to use the internet. Low-income households, particularly those with children, likely understand the internet’s importance, but they may struggle with service affordability.

The Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 (HR 4998) would establish a program, administered by the Federal Communications Commission, to reimburse certain US communications providers for the cost of removing and replacing equipment or services made or provided by entities, including certain companies based in China, that are deemed to pose a national security risk. The act would prohibit recipients of FCC subsidies from using those funds to purchase, rent, lease, or otherwise obtain communications equipment or services that could threaten national security.

The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) Modernization Act, enacted in 2016, required the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in consultation and coordination with Federal Communications Commission, to enhance and test the capabilities of IPAWS and increase its adoption among state and local public safety agencies. GAO was asked to review the federal response to recent natural disasters. This report examines, among other things: (1) trends in the use of IPAWS and (2) actions that FEMA and FCC have taken to modernize IPAWS and increase its adoption.

BroadbandNow Research manually checked broadband availability of more than 11,000 addresses using Federal Communications Commission Form 477 data and estimates that 42 million Americans do not have the ability to purchase broadband internet. The FCC's Broadband Deployment Report states that 21.3 million Americans, or 6.5 percent of the population, lack access to broadband internet, including wired and fixed wireless connections. Here’s what we did and how BroadbandNow arrived at this estimate:

Housing scholars stress the importance of the information environment in shaping housing search behavior and outcomes. Rental listings have increasingly moved online over the past two decades and, in turn, online platforms like Craigslist are now central to the search process. Do these technology platforms serve as information equalizers or do they reflect traditional information inequalities that correlate with neighborhood sociodemographics?

As part of an assessment conducted with the Department of Defense, NTIA significant progress in finding potential spectrum sharing options for the 3450-3550 MHz band. Federal operations in the 3450-3550 MHz band include shipborne, airborne, and land-based systems — primarily radars. Our report points to a clear possibility for real time spectrum sharing that would protect these critical missions, while providing attractive opportunities for commercial business.