AT&T Is Abandoning Tens of Thousands of American Households in the Deep South Who Have No Other Internet Access Option

AT&T has stopped making connections to users subscribing to its DSL Internet as of Oct 1st. It looks like the most conservative number of those affected by the decision will be about 80,000 households that have no other option. Analysis using the Federal Communication Commission’s Form 477 data shows that the Deep South will be hit the hardest, with 13,200 households in Georgia, 11,700 in Florida, and 9,700 in Mississippi. South Carolina and Texas have just under 8,000 households affected. Alabama, Tennessee, Louisiana, California, and Oklahoma will see between 3,300 and 4,300 households hit, and Illinois, Arkansa, Kentucky, Michigan, and North Carolina between 1,000 and 2,000. Indiana,  Ohio, Nevada, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Kansas contain 700 or fewer. Collectively, that’s more than 207,000 Americans who, if disconnected, will have no option for Internet aside from their mobile devices or satellite service. Those affected by the decision but which have additional wireline options is higher: roughly 2.2 million American households nationwide subscribe to the service.