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The US Desperately Needs a 'Fiber For All' Plan (eff.org)
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has published a new report calling for a "fiber for all" plan to combat the broadband access crisis in the United States. Government data and independent analysis show we are falling behind the rest of the developed world in this area, and "the U.S. is the only country that believes having no plan will solve this issue," writes Ernesto Falcon from the EFF. "We are the only country to completely abandon federal oversight of an uncompetitive, highly concentrated market that sells critical services to all people, yet we expect widely available, affordable, ultra-fast services. But if you live in a low-income neighborhood or in a rural market today, you know very well this is not working and the status quo is going to cement in your local broadband options to either one choice or no choice." From the report: Very small ISPs and local governments with limited budgets are at the frontline of deploying fiber to the home to fix these problems, but policymakers from the federal, state, and local level need to step up and lead. At least 19 states still have laws that prohibit local governments from deploying community broadband projects. Worst yet, both AT&T and Verizon are actively asking the FCC to make it even harder for small private ISPs to deploy fiber, so that the big incumbents can raise prices and suppress competition, a proposal EFF has urged the FCC to reject.
This is why we need to push our elected officials and regulators for a fiber-for-all-people plan to ensure everyone can obtain the next generation of broadband access. Otherwise, the next generation of applications and services won't be usable in most of the United States. They will be built instead for markets with better, faster, cheaper, and more accessible broadband. This dire outcome was the central thesis to a recently published book by Professor Susan Crawford (appropriately named Fiber) and EFF agrees with its findings. If American policymakers do not remedy the failings in the US market and actively pursue ways to drive fiber deployment with the goal of universal coverage, then a staggering number of Americans will miss out on the latest innovations that will occur on the Internet because it will be inaccessible or too expensive. As a result, we will see a worsening of the digital divide as advances in virtual reality, cloud computing, gaming, education, and things we have not invented yet are going to carry a monopoly price tag for a majority of us -- or just not be accessible here. This does not have to be so, but it requires federal, state, and local governments to get to work on policies that promote fiber infrastructure to all people. Most of the talk lately has been about 5G networks, but the less-spoken truth about these networks is that they need dense fiber networks to make them work. "One estimate on the amount of fiber investment that needs to occur is as much as $150 billion -- including fiber to the home deployments -- in the near future, and we are far below that level of commitment to fiber," the report says.
This is why we need to push our elected officials and regulators for a fiber-for-all-people plan to ensure everyone can obtain the next generation of broadband access. Otherwise, the next generation of applications and services won't be usable in most of the United States. They will be built instead for markets with better, faster, cheaper, and more accessible broadband. This dire outcome was the central thesis to a recently published book by Professor Susan Crawford (appropriately named Fiber) and EFF agrees with its findings. If American policymakers do not remedy the failings in the US market and actively pursue ways to drive fiber deployment with the goal of universal coverage, then a staggering number of Americans will miss out on the latest innovations that will occur on the Internet because it will be inaccessible or too expensive. As a result, we will see a worsening of the digital divide as advances in virtual reality, cloud computing, gaming, education, and things we have not invented yet are going to carry a monopoly price tag for a majority of us -- or just not be accessible here. This does not have to be so, but it requires federal, state, and local governments to get to work on policies that promote fiber infrastructure to all people. Most of the talk lately has been about 5G networks, but the less-spoken truth about these networks is that they need dense fiber networks to make them work. "One estimate on the amount of fiber investment that needs to occur is as much as $150 billion -- including fiber to the home deployments -- in the near future, and we are far below that level of commitment to fiber," the report says.
If they could prevent local cable companies from interfering with cities/towns setting up their own municipal Wi-Fi or networking, that could bootstrap the whole process. Looking at it as a whole-country fiber everywhere project sounds really expensive, with a lot of setup overhead. Plus, don't a lot of people in poorer areas (not sitting at a desk all day) access the internet primarily from their phones anyway?
I don't want to pay for fiber to rural homes. If someone wants to live in the mountains, let them or their local community pay for their infrastructure.
I misunderstood the title. I thought it was a suggestion to start taking Metamucil.
WISPS are doing just fine.. If you want a realistic boost, give them the same access rights to the poles that the big carriers have.
This sounds to me like more money and more subsidies to the same fucking telcos that have been screwing us over all along.
Capitalism always finds a way.. Crony-capitalism not so much...
$300 billion.. That's the amount of subsidies and tax breaks AT&T has been given to deliver on their promise of "45 megabits for everyone". They delivered NONE of it in the time frame they were given.. Not a single fucking residential household. We supposed to give them more? Or are we supposed to put governments in charge of internet? Yeah, all those fiscally responsible local/county/state governments we have? Fuck that too.
Make life easier on the WISPs (more frequency, less regulation, less paperwork, less red-tape in general, and you'll have your coverage.. I'm not suggesting there should be ZERO oversight, but the amount of red-tape we already have to deal with is ridiculous.
No subsidies for ANYONE. Just less paperwork and easier access to telephone poles and possibly federal/state lands for transmitters... That's all we need..
There are always benefits to living in denser areas, and disadvantages, as with rural areas. Why not just move to the place that has the things you most value, that is, make your own trade-offs? You're basically saying that while you have your cake, you want the rest of us (taxpayers) to give you the icing. Good grief!
that's why we're discussing this. It's too expensive to get internet out to the boonies. Just like it was too expensive to get electricity and phones there. We did it anyway because it was good for the country. A connected, modern and well educated rural population was much less likely to do boneheaded things at the polls.
Bullshit. I've covered 100 sq miles of some of the most inaccessible and remote areas in my county. Your statement is false. It's false because the cost is the burdensome regulations and the competition with companies getting taxpayer subsidies. It's damn hard to compete with a company that isn't actually spending its own money..
Internet is not capitalistic in the United States.. It's crony-capitalism where some companies (AT&T) get HUGE taxpayer subsidies and the small guys get nothing.. I don't want subsidies, but AT&T should be getting ZERO.. They are a hugely profitable company. There is no damn reason us WISPs should have to compete against a billion dollar company that has access to what should be taxpayer funds.
They have voting power over their local issues, which is as it should be. If the majority were to decide on every issue, then every minority would be at risk of losing its rights. Imagine if there was a proposed law that people who work in IT should give 30% of their income to everyone else: the majority of the population - who do not work in IT - would surely vote for it! This is why the majority should not make the rules: it is why we have a senate with two senators from each state, and it is why we have the electoral college - to prevent the "tyranny of the majority" and give each state some authority to have a say about what rules are imposed on it by the other more populous states.
Half the US population
It's interesting that you say "half", as Finland has high-speed Internet with roughly half the population density of the USA.
Finland: 17 people per km^2
USA: 35 people per km^2
Are you saying it would be better to have tyranny of the minority? So a minority of people, lets say farmers, could vote that everyone in IT should give 30% of their income to everyone else even if most people disagreed?
Never could understand those who think that a tyranny of the minority is a better form of tyranny. I guess they just think they'll be the tyrants.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inverted_totalitarianism
1. Ask the monopoly ISP to upgrade their network in your community to 1000/1000 ready services.
Wait for the offical "no".
2. Take the offical "no" to your gov and ask them to allow in a new ISP that can build a 1000/1000 ready service.
Wait for the monopoly ISP to block the new ISP attempt.
3. Ask for community broadband as the monopoly granted to the ISP is not keeping up with advancements in network tech.
The monopoly ISP is also using its monopoly position to block competition in your community.
4. Allow the monopoly ISP to state when it would have a 1000/1000 ready network.
5. Did the monopoly network get a 1000/1000 network ready when asked?
6. Show the monopoly network did not have a 1000/1000 network and that it also used its monopoly position to block any new ISP that could offer a 1000/1000 network.
The granted ISP monopoly is no longer worth keeping as the ISP has not delivered what is needed to stay as a protected monopoly.
7. Go with community broadband and bring an open 1000/1000 network to your community. Time for some new trenches and fibre optic cables.
8. The community has a 1000/1000 network ready to connect to private land. Connect when a connection is requested to private land.
Land owners can help if they want. Connect when they want.
9. Invite different ISP from all over the USA onto your network. Enjoy some selection in ISP services.
10. People can enjoy fast internet connections like in a US city.
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"