CCG Consulting

I suspect that there are already a lot of communities and other folks who are in violation of the license agreement to view and use the new Federal Communications Commission mapping fabric and associated data. CostQuest, the firm that created the mapping fabric, has provided communities and others with a basic license to view and utilize the mapping data strictly for the purpose of the Broadband Data Collection (BDC) process – for reviewing and challenging the FCC maps. Anybody that wants to use the mapping data for any other purpose must sign a different agreement and pay to utilize the da

There is a mountain of complaints to be made about the Federal Communications Commission's new National Broadband Map. In some parts of the country, there are a lot of missing rural locations, including entire subdivisions. Close analysis of the map shows what folks in the broadband world have always known, but were unable to prove, that the big cable companies and telcos don’t cover everybody. It is these unserved folks in the middle of cities that I call the hidden unserved locations. These little pockets came about for a variety of reasons.

Hopefully, the word is getting out that individuals can challenge the Federal Communications Commission's new National Broadband Map. Broadband providers often claim coverage and broadband speeds that are not actually available. The challenge process is built directly into the FCC broadband map. Anybody can zero in on the map and see the broadband options that providers say are available at their location. If you challenge any of these items for a given provider, the FCC will forward your challenge to said provider.

There was an interesting phenomenon that happened in September when Starlink launched 49 new satellites. The satellites were successfully deployed by the rocket, but as the satellites were being maneuvered to reach the final orbital slots there was a geomagnetic storm that caused 38 of the satellites to fall back to earth. Space storms happen when radiation affects the magnetosphere that surrounds the earth. The extra energy from the storms can also play havoc with GPS and other space-based communications.

With a big push nationwide to get customers enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), most broadband providers seem to have forgotten about the Federal Communications Commission's Lifeline program that can provide a monthly discount of $9.25 off a telephone or broadband bill for qualifying customers. Customers can qualify for both the ACP discount and Lifeline, meaning an ISP can collect a total subsidy of $39.25 for a qualifying customer. Any ISP that is participating in ACP in order to reach low-income households should consider the Lifeline discount as well.

I am often asked about the role that broadband providers should take in making sure that we solve the digital divide. I think that people are somewhat shocked every time when I tell them this is not a role for broadband providers. In explaining my answer, let me start by parsing what is meant by the question. We are about to see a lot of grant funding for getting computers into homes and training folks on how to use them. The folks asking this question are hopeful that providers are going to take up that role in any meaningful way.

Losing email service reminded me of businesses' reliance on technology and web platforms that underlie our businesses. The number one issue I hear from businesses is how devastating it is to lose a broadband connection. A lot of businesses go dead when losing broadband. I don’t think the average person realizes how reliant businesses are on broadband. People are not surprised when broadband shuts down consultants, engineers, or architects who rely on broadband to exchange data and files on projects.

There is a provision in the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) grant rules that says that if no broadband provider seeks funding in an unserved or underserved area, a state broadband office may engage with providers to find somebody willing to serve such areas. In order to make this work, states are allowed to offer additional inducements, such as providing additional state matching funds for the grant areas.

Netherlands is also the world’s top supplier of seeds for ornamental plants and vegetables. The country is a hub for agricultural research, with 15 of the top twenty agribusinesses having research and development labs in the country. All of this agriculture needs broadband. Like the U.S., the rural areas of the country are the last to get broadband. But the country has put a big push on connectivity. 100% of homes and farms can buy DSL. This is not like the slow rural U.S. DSL, but mostly with reliable speeds between 25 Mbps and 50 Mbps.

The Federal Communications Commission voted recently to implement consumer broadband labels. The pricing information alone must be giving shivers to the marketing folks at the biggest broadband providers. The requirement that I think will be the most controversial is the requirement to disclose the typical broadband speed and latency. Some providers will have a real dilemma with the speed disclosure. Some of the dilemmas include the following: