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Trump's FCC Votes To Allow Broadband Rate Hikes Will Deprive More Public Schools From Getting Internet Access (theoutline.com)
The FCC voted on Thursday to approve a controversial plan to deregulate the $45 billion market for business-to-business broadband, also known as Business Data Services (BDS), by eliminating price caps that make internet access more affordable for thousands of small businesses, schools, libraries and hospitals. The Outline adds: The price caps were designed to keep phone and, later, broadband, access cheap for community institutions like schools, hospitals, libraries, and small businesses. Now, there will be no limit. A spokesperson for the trade association Incompas, which advocates for competition among communications providers, told The Outline that the increase is expected to be at least 25 percent across the board. Low-income schools already don't have enough money; according to a report last year in The Atlantic, schools in high-poverty districts, where the property taxes are lower, spend 15.6 percent less per student than schools in low-poverty districts. If internet costs go up by 25 percent, it may make more sense to cut that budget item, or, for schools that still don't have internet, never add it at all. Add it to the list of things that well-funded schools in already-rich neighborhoods get that schools in low-income neighborhoods don't. New textbooks. Gyms. Advanced Placement classes that let students earn college credits. Computers. Internet access.
In our area, the broadband providers are required to provide internet access to schools (both public and private) and libraries for FREE as part of the agreements with the municipality. Sounds like the other municipalities need to do a better job of negotiating.
Actually.. the markets work when there is sufficient competition to drive down costs... But basically as we continue to consolidate... (in most cases, there is only ONE provider of service in a given area), there is ZERO competition (or zero meaningful competition). And in today's tech landscape, its not like internet is a "toy" that can be easily dismissed unlike say "cable TV" in which there are over the air options (for now). Basically the landscape is coming back to the old "ma bell" days of "this is the price, and suck it because where else will you go"?
God made the Idiot for practice, and then He made the School Board -- Mark Twain Look for http://Thebar.steelbeachca
Do you really think that, with all of the competition in markets, they will actually raise their prices? Seriously?
"All of the competition?" My area is widely served by exactly two ISPs: Cox and Verizon.
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
This is what everybody wanted right? right!?
If by "everybody" you mean 46.1% of the popular vote (to Hillary's 48.2%), then sure.
It must have been something you assimilated. . . .
Kids don't need internet. They will have great new jobs working in the revived coal mines.