AT&T, FCC Abandon Rural Broadband Customers

On October 1, AT&T stopped selling digital-subscriber-line (DSL) connections. At first glance, the move may seem like a market-based decision to drop an obsolete technology. But as journalists and advocates were quick to pick up on: What about the abandoned customers? At a time when safety dictates that many of us learn and earn from home, how are people to do so when a commercial decision impacts health and well-being? Although the situation seems ripe for government intervention, the Federal Communications Commission's adherence to "light-touch" regulation is preventing any recourse for consumers.