Individuals who primarily Reside in a Rural Area

Universal and meaningful digital connectivity (UMC) is crucial in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 2015. Recently, its importance as a public utility was verified when the countries that have achieved digital transformation have been more adept at tackling the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic than those on the other side of the digital divide. This article aims to contribute to the discussion on the global governance of mega satellite constellations as part of global Internet infrastructure.

US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that USDA is making investments to provide clean drinking water, sanitary wastewater systems and affordable high-speed internet to people in Tribal communities. Secretary Vilsack made this announcement at the one of the nation’s largest Tribal economic development conferences, the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development’s Reservation Economic Summit (RES) in Las Vegas, Nevada. USDA is investing $58 million in Tribal

In a recent press release, John Deere announced an agreement with Starlink to provide broadband for smart farm equipment in areas where cellular coverage is not strong enough. Anybody familiar with rural America understands that there are gigantic holes in cellular coverage, so this arrangement puts Starlink in a strong position with farmers. The decision means that John Deer will include a Starlink receiver in smart farm equipment along with a 4G LTE receiver.

The Minnesota Department of Employment of and Economic Development (DEED) is celebrating the tenth anniversary of the Office of Broadband Development (OBD) and the ten grant rounds that followed.

President Biden is fighting to lower costs for American families and has made lowering costs his top domestic priority.

A large majority of internet service providers seeking BEAD grants will be financing matching funds using loans. Matching funds are the contributions expected from providers—a 75 percent grant means 25 percent in matching funds. Very few providers carry enough cash on hand to consider using equity to pay for broadband expansion. This contrasts significantly with large telephone and cable companies that will be pursuing BEAD grants, most of whom will finance grants using equity. When it comes to financing using equity vs using loans, equity is the clear winner for the provider.

Allegan County’s journey to universal connectivity has overcome a number of obstacles: accurately determining the extent of connectivity gaps, exploring potential strategic solutions, and tackling costs in a manner palatable to the community. Advancing this initiative required a leader with deep industry knowledge and a strong connection to the community.

Some State Broadband Offices are taking a stab at social engineering by trying to force BEAD grant winners to offer low broadband rates. I understand the sentiment behind this because everybody in the industry involved with digital equity issues hears stories about homes that can’t afford broadband even when it is available. I know this feels like a broadband office is doing something good, but there are a number of reasons why this is a terrible idea.

Thanks to our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, 46,000 new projects have been announced across your communities – modernizing our roads and bridges, ports and airports, and public transit systems. ... Providing affordable high speed internet for every American no matter where you live. 

With the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) on the brink of exhausting its funding and congressional action to secure its future still uncertain, it’s time we have the hard conversation about sunk costs. For ACP, that includes: