America’s Broadband Moment: Creating a Broadband Competition Policy Agenda

Broadband competition is more important than ever because – in these crises and beyond – America has fast-forwarded into its broadband future. But broadband competition is limited: At a typical broadband speed of 100/10 Mbps, at least 80% of Americans face either a monopoly (no choice) or a duopoly (only one choice) for fixed service. It’s worse in rural America, where monopoly is even more prevalent. The impact is obvious: higher prices, lower quality and/or slowed innovation limiting the ability of people to participate fully in society and the economy. Here are five significant ways governments can encourage competition.

1. Focus Federal Dollars on High-Performance Broadband
2. Encourage New, Competitive Entrants and Local Experiments in Private-Public Collaboration
3. Expand Competition for Residents of Multi-Tenant Locations
4. Empower Community Institutions to Act as Launching Pads
5. Gather Pricing Data and Other Information Necessary to Promote and Assess Competition