Research

Reports that employ attempts to inform communications policymaking in a systematically and scientific manner.

The Digital Equity Researcher Inventory

The Digital Equity Researcher Inventory is a listing of researchers who have published research about broadband adoption and digital inclusion. Researchers from a multitude of academic disciplines and types of organizations have contributed to what we know about digital equity. The diversity of disciplines and sectors that researchers come from represents a rich variety of approaches to research and it demonstrates the importance of digital equity across fields.

Ethical Guidelines for Research Using Pervasive Data

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is seeking public input on the potential writing of ethical guidelines for the use of “pervasive data” in research. “Pervasive data” refers to data about people gathered through online services. NTIA will rely on these comments, along with stakeholder engagements, in considering whether to draft and issue non-binding guidelines to assist researchers working with pervasive data.

2024 State broadband special report

Nearly 30 state broadband officers attended the recent Fierce Network Broadband Nation Expo in Washington, D.C., where they outlined some of their top concerns related to the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program. Some of their top issues include when they will disburse funds for broadband projects, who will bid for BEAD monies, what types of technologies they’ll use to deliver broadband to unserved locations and how they’ll set the high-cost thresholds in their states. State broadband officers also talked about the cost and availability of middle-mile networks.

Broadband Providers Should Aim for Benchmark of Under 3% Annual Churn: Report

A new report based on a huge data pool from more than 400 regional broadband service providers pinpoints a benchmark to achieve with subscriber churn. Less than 3 percent annual churn is the target to aim for, reported by 45 percent of respondents.

EducationSuperHighway's Affordable Broadband Proposal

Earlier this year, a Benton Institute for Broadband & Society survey of low-income households found that 13 percent of Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) participants (approximately 3 million households) would disconnect their home internet service without the subsidy and 36 percent (or 8.3 million households) would downgrade to a cheaper or slower plan.

Public broadband falls under the line of fire—again

The Internet Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) claims public broadband providers get advantages that private players don’t and that they aren’t as efficient in building networks. Gigi Sohn, executive director of the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), said ITIF’s paper hides under the rug that private internet service providers have received billions from federal and state sources, including the Universal Service Fund, the Affordable Connectivity Program, and soon from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program. Meanwhile, the advantages public netwo

A Broadband Affordability Benefit to Connect the Unconnected

A new permanent broadband affordability benefit focused on unconnected households and funded by repurposing the Universal Service Fund's High Cost Programs as they expire can close the digital divide. 

The case for investing in improved digital connectivity in Harlan County

Digital connectivity is becoming more vital in driving economic growth, attracting inward investment, creating jobs and improving outcomes for people and communities. Improving availability and access to improved broadband is important for many of the key sectors within Harlan County and plays a crucial role in attracting inward investment to the area:

Is AI Use Increasing Among Small Businesses?

Recent research shows that advanced technology adoption and use are concentrated in large firms. This pattern also applies to artificial intelligence (AI). Evidence from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Annual Business Survey for the years 2017 and 2018 indicates that AI use in producing goods and services rises with firm size (Zolas et al., 2020 and Acemoglu et al., 2022). However, this pattern may be changing in the wake of recent advances in generative AI, which may have a disproportionate impact on small firms’ adoption and use of AI. 

Online Nation 2024 Report

This annual publication looks at what people in the UK are doing online, how they are served by online content providers and platforms, and their attitudes to and experiences of using the internet. In May 2024, UK adults spent an average of 4 hours 20 minutes a day online, across smartphones, tablets and computers.  Almost half (48%) of the time UK adults spend online is on services owned by Alphabet or Meta. Reddit was the fastest-growing large social media platform in the UK, reaching more than half of UK online adults by June 2024. Eighteen to 24-year-old TikTok and Snapchat visitors spe