Why Helping the Poor Pay for Broadband Is Good for Us All

[Commentary] The suggested Lifeline program updates would allow low-income households to use the same subsidy to help cover the cost of broadband -- meaning more families could afford Internet at home.The catch? The subsidy is just $9.25 per month. The proposal shows that federal regulators are finally beginning to acknowledge what many of us already know -- the Internet is a crucial gateway to economic opportunity. But broadband tends to be costly, even with discounted plans. Will such a seeming pittance be enough to make broadband affordable for families strapped for cash?

Advocates for bridging the so-called digital divide, it turns out, say it might be. Not only that, they say that expanding the Lifeline program to broadband could open up a whole new competitive marketplace for low-cost Internet access. Non-profits working to expand broadband adoption hope that if Chairman Wheeler’s proposal is approved, the FCC itself could encourage more providers to offer a subsidized rate to qualified low-income families, encouraging more competition with the current plans. Some say the government could even pay subsidies directly to broadband providers to get a better deal than low-income families could get on their own. “We’re building a nation of more consumers for broadband,” says Angela Siefer, the executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Allilance. “We’re actually creating new customers for them.”