Internet/Broadband

Collecting data and opinions from our members is one of the best tools we have to really tell the story of rural America to policymakers and stakeholders in Washington, D.C. You may have seen that NTCA released the results of a member survey conducted to show how the potential disruption of Universal Service Fund (USF) support could affect rural consumers, broadband investment in rural America and the viability of existing rural broadband networks.

One in five U.S. students attends K-12 school in a rural district. The reduced economies of scale in those schools can result in limited funding, barriers to on-going professional training for teachers and other factors that implicate trickle-down impacts on student experiences. However, many schools are developing creative solutions to address their needs, relying on technology and innovative solutions.

The House of Representatives passed the Future Uses of Technology Upholding Reliable and Enhanced (FUTURE) Networks Act (H.R. 1513), legislation that directs the Federal Communications Commission to bring together industry leaders, public interest groups and government experts to establish a 6G Task Force. Specifically, the FUTURE Networks Act requires the FCC to establish a 6G Task Force comprised of industry, government, and public interest representatives to issue a report on:

Broadband providers want to avoid net neutrality because it comes with more expansive federal oversight. But one trade group for Internet Service Providers and state officials told judges that it comes with at least one big benefit: backup from the government in negotiations with utility pole owners. The Federal Communications Commission is currently trying to keep alive its net neutrality rules, which would reclassify broadband as a telecom service subject to common carrier regulations. Broadband trade associations challenging the move in court convinced a panel of the U.S.

A new wave of private capital and joint ventures is beginning to transform the way open access networks are financed and developed. What was once largely a public-sector initiative is now attracting billions in private investment from firms like the Canadian Northleaf Capital Partners and BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, betting heavily on shared network models.

Brazil’s ban of social media platform X has led to greater scrutiny on another part of Elon Musk’s business empire: Starlink. From Amazonian tribes and farming frontiers, to the armed forces and offshore oil industry, the satellite internet service has connected remote corners of the continent-sized territory to the worldwide web since launching there in 2022. Access for Starlink’s 225,000 users in Latin America’s largest nation was thrown into doubt after it was recently dragged into the dispute surrounding the supreme court’s shutdown of X.

In December 2020, the Federal Trade Commission issued 6 Orders to nine of the largest social media and video streaming services—Amazon, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Snap, ByteDance, Discord, Reddit, and WhatsApp. At the time, a bipartisan group of Commissioners issued a joint statement warning that far too much about how these platforms operate is “dangerously opaque,” with critical questions around data collection and algorithms “shrouded in secrecy.” On September 20, the FTC released a groundbreaking report that sheds light on how these powerful companies have operated.

Funding for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) lapsed in May 2024, ending a monthly subsidy that 23 million households nationwide had been using to afford high-speed internet connections. The program’s lapse means many rural, low-income, and other vulnerable households are losing access to internet connections.

In the creation of its Initial Proposals Volume 1 and  Volume 2 for Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program funding, the Missouri Office of Broadband and Development (OBD) laid out three goals. In its first goal, OBD recognizes the need for high-quality, affordable broadband for all residents in the state. According to the U.S.

To connect more Americans, Congress designated a slice of the $1.2 trillion 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), as well as a portion of the $350 billion 2021 American Rescue Plan Act that passed to provide financial relief during the COVID pandemic to fund projects that would cross this digital divide. All told, the bills provide around $90 billion in funding for connectivity spread across a plethora of initiatives. But the question remains: Will this colossal sum be enough to bridge the digital divide?