A common restaurant principle—“Accuracy over speed”—should guide our country’s broadband funding initiatives, particularly the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, both now and in the future. Recently, the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology held a hearing titled, “From Introduction to Implementation: A BEAD Program Progress Report,” and while some lines of questioning seemed to grasp at straws, there were important points that should be revisited in future hearings. Policymakers must keep three key considerations in mind in the months ahead: 1) the precision at which broadband is deployed will determine the long-term success of this massive investment, 2) broadband access without affordability is not real access, and 3) if we invest in workforce development, we can drive technological and economic growth.

In 2022, the Berks County (PA) commissioners found out their county, like many other counties across the country, was facing a digital divide. There was a widening, increasingly troublesome gap between those with Internet access and the skills to use it and those without. That realization was laid bare in a study conducted by an independent contractor that took a look at broadband access and availability. Seeing a need for things to change, they committed $6.3 million to addressing the challenges faced by the County.

Starlink has added a $100 “congestion charge” to certain new subscribers of their Residential Services. The one-time fee applies to new service plans within areas of “network congestion.” The Support section of the Starlink website provides details of the new charge. “In areas with network congestion, there is an additional one-time charge to purchase Starlink Residential services. This fee will only apply if you are purchasing or activating a new service plan. If you change your Service address or Service Plan at a later date, you may be charged the congestion fee,” the post reads. The caveats of the new congestion charge are further clarified on Starlink’s website: “Our intention is to no longer charge this fee to new customers as soon as network capacity improves. If you’re not satisfied with Starlink and return it within the 30-day return window, the charge will be refunded.”

T-Mobile expects to pass between 12 million and 15 million more households with fiber by 2030 through its fiber partnerships, company executives told attendees at a September 18 T-Mobile investor event. The company’s fiber partnerships include a joint venture with investment firm EQT that will acquire Lumos and a joint venture with KKR to acquire Metronet. Unsurprisingly, T-Mobile sees strong potential to convert customers who currently use the company’s fixed wireless service to fiber. “We think there are synergies with our 5G fixed wireless customer base in markets where we’re launching fiber,” said Mike Katz, T-Mobile president of marketing strategy and products.