The Universal Service Fund (USF) has been stuck in legislative limbo as the government wrestles with how to improve the subsidy program. Experts think USF reform could see momentum in Trump’s second term, but how that will pan out is a trickier question to answer. The USF, which supports broadband access and affordability in rural and low-income communities, is made up of four [sic] smaller programs: Connect America Fund, Lifeline, E-Rate and Rural Health Care. One glaring problem with the current USF framework is the shrinking contribution base. Telecommunications service providers are required to contribute a certain percentage of their interstate and international service end-user revenues. However, those revenues have declined over time as more consumers use broadband as opposed to traditional telephone service. 

The Oregon Broadband Office is excited to announce it has issued Notices of Intent to Award $132,917,084 through the Office’s Broadband Deployment Program (BDP), part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund (CPF). This initial tranche of funding will support the construction and deployment of high-speed, reliable wired broadband internet at speeds of 100/100 Mbps to unserved and underserved locations across the state. Eligible applicants included municipalities, private and for-profit entities, electric utilities, co-operatives, municipal affiliates (economic development corporations, regional planning and development councils, and councils of government), nonprofit organizations, and partnerships between eligible applicants. All awarded funds must be utilized, and projects must be operational by December 2026.

A legal battle over the Biden administration’s influence on social media companies looks set to spill into the next Trump administration—and no one knows quite how that will play out. A district judge allowed the case known as Missouri v. Biden to resume even as the Biden administration winds down. The Supreme Court vacated his previous ruling in the case in June, but the new one means the plaintiffs can now pursue additional discovery. That sets the stage for Donald Trump and his team to inherit the role of defendants in government censorship cases brought by some of their own political allies—including Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 

Cable TV giant Charter Communications and Liberty Broadband Corp. have entered into a definitive agreement under which Charter has agreed to acquire Liberty Broadband, part of the empire of John Malone, in an all-stock transaction. The transaction was unanimously recommended to the Charter Board of Directors for approval by a special committee composed of independent, disinterested directors and advised by independent financial and legal advisors. The Boards of Directors of both Charter and Liberty Broadband have approved the transaction. The deal is expected to close on June 30, 2027, unless otherwise agreed by the companies. 

Following in the footsteps of some smaller US cable operators, GCI, Alaska's biggest cable operator, is preparing to end its pay-TV service. GCI confirmed that it has informed its video customers that it will shut down its TV offerings by mid-2025 and allocate more of its resources toward broadband and mobile. GCI explained on its website that it filed an application to discontinue its cable TV/video service with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska on November 8. GCI has already been phasing out a legacy QAM video platform. That move enables the operator to clear about 200MHz of spectrum for broadband and other IP services, including "high-split" upgrades that dedicate more capacity to the network upstream and potential, future DOCSIS 4.0 upgrades.