The FCC’s newly issued Broadband Progress Report showed little progress in broadband deployment since the same report was issued last year and, for the second year in a row, declared that broadband in the U.S. is not being deployed in a timely fashion. (more…)
Unfiltered
Frank discussion with telecom's most experienced editors
Archive for the ‘Broadband Stimulus’ Category
Feds divert $302 million from broadband stimulus funding
Some call it “robbing Peter to pay Paul” — the federal government just calls it business as usual. As part of a budget compromise to find money to help avert state-based teaching layoffs, about $302 million of the total $4.7 billion devoted to broadband stimulus funding was taken away from the National Telecommunications & Information Administration and Rural Utlities Service this week. President Obama signed the Education Jobs Fund bill resulting in that funding loss this week.
(more…)
As expected, broadband plan architect Levin leaves FCC
As expected, Blair Levin, major architect of the commission’s National Broadband Plan, announced Thursday he is leaving the commission for the private sector and a job with the Aspen Institute, where he’ll continue to work on broadband issues. As executive director of the Federal Communications Commission’s broadband initiative, Levin led a year-long push to drive the policy effort that ultimately resulted in the FCC’s formal broadband plan to, among other goals, bring 100 megabit connections to 100 million homes within a decade.
(more…)
FCC starting over again on broadband plan?
It’s been a busy couple of days on the regulatory front, with issues like the National Broadband Plan and Net neutrality seemingly re-opened thanks to an appeals court striking down the FCC’s right to wrist-slap Comcast over its P2P traffic management. The repercussions are just now becoming clear. For starters, the FCC has decided to push back the comment period on its Net neutrality hearing from today to April 26, citing the need to allow for reaction time to the Comcast ruling. Then in The Wall Street Journal today came word that the FCC is already rethinking the National Broadband Plan, too.
(more…)
AT&T, Verizon lash out as regulatory issues heat up
Everyone was certainly getting along nicely there for a while, with telcos (at least publicly) graciously accepting broadband stimulus funding and initial reviews of the National Broadband Plan taking largely a conciliatory, “let’s all get along” tone. But as The Washington Post reports, the gloves are starting to come off. At issue: Petitions sent last week from Verizon and AT&T protesting new satellite broadband plans, as well as a recent call for regulation of broadband providers to move from the FCC over to Congress. Things are starting to get a bit feisty in our nation’s capital.
(more…)
Windstream latest telco to aim for big broadband stimulus bucks
After mostly sitting out the first round of broadband stimulus bidding (Level 3’s notable win being an exception), larger service providers are lining up fairly large bids for round two. The latest: Windstream, which this week applied for $238 million in federal stimulus funds to ramp up Internet coverage to half a million homes across 16 states. That follow’s Qwest’s recent proposal seeking $350 million in stimulus funding.
(more…)
Broadband stimulus deployments — there’s a map for that
We’ve spent a ton of time tracking the awarding of broadband stimulus projects. Now the government’s Broadband USA site has published a document that lists the currently awarded and pending stimulus grants (PDF). It’s a useful list to have. The document also includes a Q&A that answers some key questions on the Round 1 awards and pending Round 2 process. Finally, and perhaps most interestingly, it includes a selection of maps that in snapshot form show the deployment plans of many of the winners (Telecom Ramblings has pulled some of the maps into a convenient slide show, fyi).
(more…)
Sides line up as FCC looks to re-allocate valuable spectrum
A crucial side-battle in this week’s release of the National Broadband Plan – and likely a long, drawn out one at that – is the tussle over whether existing spectrum currently allocated to TV broadcasters should be dedicated to broadband services. We weighed in when this plan was first floated (see: Spectrum: Public trust or cash cow?) Now that the FCC has released its formal plan, it’s worth revisiting. The FCC is proposing that the government cutback the portion of spectrum allocated to broadcasters by about 40%, including calls to “reclaim” about 120Mhz of spectrum from broadcasters over the next five years and redirect it to mobile broadband deployment.
(more…)
Buzz mounts on eve of National Broadband Plan unveiling
With expectations
mounting for weeks now, the FCC tomorrow is slated to lift the veil on its National Broadband Plan – and the press is in fine form with rumor and speculation about its contents. Not that Connected Planet isn’t on the rumor bus as well (see: One Day Before the National Broadband Plan – Six Questions Still Unanswered ). So what is the word on the street when it comes to the NBP? Obviously, questions about what’s in it, but also concerns about it favoring incumbents (or not) and larger worries that the words on a page won’t be enough to drive the investment the U.S. needs in broadband.
(more…)
The fastest broadband counties in the U.S.
Late last week, data provider ID Insight published a list of what it called the “Top 25 Fastest Broadband Counties” – a list it claims is based on actual Internet access speeds. Those speeds, collected in database it calls Broadband Scout, includes data about users’ types of connection, speed, the carrier they use and more. ID Insight developed Broadband Scout as part of its work with service providers applying for federal stimulus funding. (more…)