should be a good show today at noon est. Come heckle!
---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Broadband Breakfast<news@broadbandcensus.com> Date: Wed, Feb 7, 2024 at 9:11 AM Subject: Congress, Net Neutrality and Privacy 🔓 12 Noon ET To: Dave Taht <dave.taht@gmail.com>
Broadband Breakfast Live Online Every Wednesday at 12 Noon ET
The battle over net neutrality rages on as sharply divided views pour in following the FCC’s proposal to reinstate the once-scrapped regulation. In recent pitches, the Democratic-led agency has touted classifying broadband providers as Title II common carriers rather than information services – the crux of the net neutrality debate – would also safeguard customer privacy and public safety. But this would grant the FCC oversight powers that some argue fall outside its remit. What does the internet landscape look like presently, especially after Congress just pumped billions of dollars into expanding broadband access?
Panelists
Harold Feld, Senior Vice President, Public Knowledge
Matt Wood, Vice President of Policy and General Counsel, Free Press
Eric Fruits, Senior Scholar, International Center for Law & Economics
Drew Clark (moderator), Editor and Publisher, Broadband Breakfast
Harold Feld is Senior Vice President of Public Knowledge, a DC based non-profit that promotes free expression, an open internet, and access to affordable communications tools and creative works. He has over 25 years experience in telecommunications and technology law.
Matt Wood helps to shape Free Press’s efforts to protect the open internet, prevent media concentration, promote affordable broadband deployment, and safeguard press freedom. Before joining the organization, he worked at the public interest law firm Media Access Project and in the communications practice groups of two private law firms in Washington, D.C. Before that, he served as an editor-in-chief for the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review, worked for PBS, and spent time at several professional and college radio and television stations.
Eric Fruits, Ph.D. is a Senior Scholar at the International Center for Law & Economics where he focuses on telecom and competition policy. He has written extensively on the ACP and BEAD as well as the FCC’s recent digital discrimination rules and proposal to regulate broadband under Title II. He also writes a near-weekly Telecom Hootenanny on the world of telecom—because hootenannies are way more fun that roundups.
Breakfast Media LLC CEO Drew Clark has led the Broadband Breakfast community since 2008. An early proponent of better broadband, better lives, he initially founded the Broadband Census crowdsourcing campaign for broadband data. As Editor and Publisher, Clark presides over the leading media company advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. Clark also served as head of the Partnership for a Connected Illinois, a state broadband initiative.
WASHINGTON, February 6, 2024 – A coalition of local internet advocates in Philadelphia pressured the city council to leverage its Comcast cable franchise agreement to secure a renewed deal that vastly expands free and affordable internet access resources, addressing a number of issues city residents experienced with Comcast.
The city’s renewed franchise agreement with Comcast includes major victories for the coalition, such as the expansion of free internet and video services to over 200 public institutions, heightened customer service improvements, enhanced protection for cable and internet workers, and the introduction of new local job opportunities, among other major benefits to the city.Â
The renewed cable franchise agreement includes an expansion of Comcast’s Internet Essentials program for city residents. This program, which provides low-cost internet access, a computer, and a Wi-Fi router, is now accessible to every low-income family with schoolchildren, all eligible seniors, and an additional 1200 qualifying citizens in Philadelphia
The Broadband Measurement Summit brings together the top stakeholders in understanding broadband speeds, prices, availability, reliability and competition. An in-person event with a webcast component.
Early bird price of $195 available until Friday, February 9, 2024. Existing Breakfast Club Members take an additional $100 off the in-person event.
The Broadband Measurement Summit runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 7, 2024, in Washington, D.C.
PANEL 1:Â THE CHALLENGE PROCESS FOR STATE BROADBAND OFFICES
Many state broadband offices are about to begin their broadband mapping challenges under the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment grant program. This is a process for states to verify locations that are unserved (i.e., they lack access to 25 Megabits per second (Mbps) * 3 Mbps broadband), and locations that are underserved (i.e., they lack access to 100 Mbps * 20 Mbps broadband). A few advanced states have already begun, or have already completed the process. What have they learned? What “challenges” are they facing? What’s next for broadband mapping?
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PANEL 2:Â THE VALUE OF MAPPING ASSETS BEYOND BEAD
Besides current broadband challenges, what geospatial, demographic, and operational information is important for BEAD implementation? In particular, what geospatial information do investors and operators of broadband networks need to better deploy broadband? This session will consider why mapping assets is valuable well beyond the BEAD program.
PANEL 3:Â THE FCC'S BROADBAND NUTRITION LABELS
As if the National Telecommunications and Information Administration’s BEAD program wasn’t enough, the Broadband Measurement Summit will consider the current status of the Federal Communications Commission’s broadband “nutrition” labels. By April 10, 2024, larger ISPs must display these new Broadband Consumer Labels at the point of sale. They must use clear, easy-to-understand, and accurate information about the cost and performance of broadband services. Internet service providers with 100,000 or fewer subscriber lines must do so by October 10, 2024. How is the FCC’s nutrition labels process going?
PANEL 4:Â MEASURING AND TRACKING BROADBAND PRICING
The Biden Administration’s “Internet for All” program emphasizes the important role of affordable broadband. That’s one reason that the Affordable Connectivity Program has loomed so large in discussions of America’s broadband buildout. What does the evidence show about the price of broadband in the United States versus other Western nations? How does it vary by location? As part of the more detailed and granular broadband mapping and data now being collected, is broadband pricing data being left out?
Sponsors Include:
BroadbandNow is a data aggregation company helping millions of consumers find and compare local internet options. BroadbandNow’s database of providers, the largest in the U.S., delivers the highest-value guides consisting of comprehensive plans, prices and ratings for thousands of internet service providers. BroadbandNow relentlessly collects and analyzes internet providers’ coverage and availability to provide the most accurate zip code search for consumers
BroadbandToolkit.com provides analytical planning tools to the telecommunication industry to help state broadband offices, investors, grant applicants, engineering firms, and ISPs understand and manage BEAD / CPF decision-making. The firm also helps clients navigate the newly released FCC Fabric. BroadbandToolkit.com consulting enables clients to integrate location grids, dozens of layers of critical geospatial data, commercial crowd-sourced measurements, and even mobile broadband data.
Ookla® is a global leader in network intelligence and connectivity insights. For almost two decades, Ookla has set the industry standard for both fixed and mobile network testing and analysis. From its world-renowned Speedtest® and Downdetector® platforms to an accompanying and growing suite of end-to-end enterprise solutions, Ookla’s mission is to make the internet better, faster, and more accessible for everyone. Ookla’s enterprise solutions combine first-party crowdsourced data and scientifically controlled testing with tools that provide actionable insights across a network’s lifecycle and customer experience. Our insights empower operators, businesses, government agencies, nonprofits, and more to analyze, optimize, and publicize networks around the world.
Tune into this exclusive Broadband Breakfast Live Online to catch a glimpse of Net Inclusion 2024 happening directly in the heart of Philadelphia. In this week’s episode, enjoy a two-hour free live stream from the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s conference, featuring the Lightning Round and Lunch Plenary: Maximizing Federal Funding and Keeping it Flowing. Follow Broadband Breakfast as we bring you the most recent updates on digital inclusion and equity right from the front lines.
Panelists
Laurel Leverrier, Assistant Administrator, RUS Telecommunications Programs
Angela Thi Bennett, Digital Equity Director, NTIA
Amy Huffman, Policy Director, National Digital Inclusion Alliance
Two cases that could set precedents for social media regulation are heading to the Supreme Court after lower courts issued divergent rulings. These center around Florida and Texas laws that bar platforms from suppressing users’ posts based on their opinions. With the high court poised to decide whether such statutes infringe on companies’ First Amendment rights, broader debates are simmering about overhauling long-standing legal shields for online networking sites. What exactly is at stake here? What ripple effects might these cases have on oversight and accountability across the social media landscape?
About Broadband Breakfast:
Broadband Breakfast is the leading media company advocating for higher-capacity internet everywhere through topical, timely and intelligent coverage. The company’s annual Digital Infrastructure Investment conference champions a robust 21st century information economy.
