We're almost a month out from the California Broadband Summit (on June 5), which is part of the CalMatters Ideas Festival on June 5-6, 2024, in Sacramento. With so many broadband conferences (including one this week; see below), perhaps the question is worth asking: Why California? California Broadband Summit The event in Sacramento on Wednesday, June 5 is part of the CalMatters Ideas Festival on June 5-6, 2024. Broadband BreakfastBroadband Breakfast In a nation in which some make a sport of characterizing our nation's population centers and dynamic hubs as either "red" or "blue" states ..read more

WASHINGTON May 3, 2024 — Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rowenworcel on Thursday urged Congress to authorize an additional $3 billion in government money in order to assist U.S. operators in removing Huawei and ZTE equipment from their telecommunications networks. In a letter to Senate Commerce cSenate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell D-Washington, Rosenworcel said that almost 40% of the rip and replace program participants claimed they couldn't finish the gear change out without further government assistance. A law that was passed by Congress in 2019 mandated that ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2024 – In what could be the launch of a consolidation wave, cable Internet Service Provider WideOpenWest (WOW!) said Friday that two private equity firms have made a surprise offer to take the ailing company private. ? The $4.80 per share price represents a 32% premium over WOW’s closing price as of May 1, 2024 and [a] 44% premium to the company's 60-day [volume-weighted average price],” DigitalBridge Managing Director Jonathan Friesel said in a May 2 letter to the WOW! board. WideOpenWest said the bids came from DigitalBridge Investments and Crestview Partners to buy out ..read more

Broadband projects don’t end once customers are connected—they need consistent monitoring and maintenance to continue meeting a community's needs over time. But, with limited capital and expertise, how can rural utilities be expected to stand up and staff network operations centers (NOCs) for 24/7 monitoring and support? For many, it's an unrealistic expectation that puts network reliability at risk. Nonetheless, it’s a job that needs doing. Vigilant NOC operations are vital to preserving reliable broadband performance and customer satisfaction, which is where third-party NOCs come in. The NO ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2024—The Institute for Local Self-Reliance presented Jim Baller, senior counsel in Keller and Heckman's telecom law practice, with the Local Self-Reliance Lifetime Achievement Award during the organization's 50th anniversary celebration on Wednesday.   The Institute for Local Self-Reliance describes itself as a group promoting government policies supporting thriving local economies, and touted its work in helping communities access healthcare, employment and educational opportunities, and other resources as a result of the vigorous development of community broadb ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2024 – Some GOP senators were skeptical about renewing the Affordable Connectivity Program at a Senate hearing on Thursday. Their Democratic colleagues and witnesses urged short-term funding to keep the program alive before instituting reforms. April was the last month in which the ACP’s 23 million subscribers received the program’s full $30 discount on their internet bills. Recipients whose providers elected to participate in May will receive a $14 discount, and in June the program’s $14.2 billion allocation from the Infrastructure Act will be fully exhausted. The program ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2024 – New federal digital discrimination rules need revision to remove an exemption excusing BEAD awardees from the regulations, creating imbalances never authorized by Congress, public interest groups allege. These groups, including the Benton Institute for Broadband Society and Media Alliance, say the Federal Communications Commission erred by including a last-minute safe harbor provision in the rules for recipients of the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program – without first seeking public input. In their joint opening brief last week to the Eigh ..read more

Cable ISPs Continue to Face Pressure from Fixed Wireless Access Competition WASHINGTON, May 2, 2024 – Like Comcast Corp. and Charter Communications, Altice USA is feeling the pinch of competition. Altice reported first quarter earnings Thursday, posting a loss of 30,000 broadband subscribers, compared to a loss of 19,000 during the same quarter in 2023. In the previous quarter, Altice lost 27,000 broadband customers. Last week, Comcast reported a first quarter loss of 65,000 broadband subscribers and Charter reported losing 72,000 broadband subscribers during the same quarter. Meanwhile, whil ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2024 – As full Affordable Connectivity Program benefits expired on Wednesday, Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania, introduced a bill that would fold the program into an existing Federal Communications Commission subsidy, the FCC chairwoman made a final push for a short-term infusion of cash from lawmakers. Fetterman's bill would tap broadband providers and tech companies to pay for it the expansion. The ACP was stood up in 2022 with $14.2 billion from the Infrastructure Act and provided a $30 monthly internet discount for low-income families through April. The last of the p ..read more

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2024 – Seven more states have started accepting challenges to broadband coverage data as part of the BEAD program since April 16. That brings the number of open challenge processes to 10, with 18 states in varying stages of accepting provider rebuttals and adjudicating evidence. It’s the first step in getting broadband expansion projects funded under the $42.5-billion Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program. Four states have received the go-ahead to award subgrants for those projects, which will happen later this year. The Federal Communications Commission’s coverag ..read more