Is the FCC Asking the Right Questions About Broadband Deployment?

On October 23, the Federal Communications Commission released a Notice of Inquiry (NOI), launching its annual review to determine if broadband is reaching all Americans in a timely fashion.  Finding in the negative, the FCC must take immediate action to accelerate broadband deployment by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market. Over the next seven weeks, the FCC will collect public input to help guide its analysis. Based on data on the state of broadband deployment at the end of 2017, the FCC concluded earlier this year that "the digital divide has narrowed substantially, and more Americans than ever before have access to high-speed broadband." Is the FCC likely to come to the same conclusion in its next broadband deployment report? Sometimes it depends on the questions you ask.