Trump's New Rural Broadband Executive Order Doesn't Actually Do Much Of Anything
from the Comcastic dept
You have probably noticed by now that the biggest problem in the U.S. broadband market is a lack of vibrant competition in many areas. This lack of competition over the "last mile" is the core reason for the majority of the problems in the sector, from privacy violations to net neutrality infractions. And while lawmakers from both parties adore paying empty lip service to making broadband faster, cheaper, and more available, very few have the courage to stand up to AT&T, Verizon, and Comcast and actually implement policies that improve our competitive options.
More often than not, government's "solution" for the broadband market involves first ignoring that there's any real competition problem whatsoever, then hyping "broadband expansion" efforts that fail to truly address the underlying problems.
That's usually accomplished via programs with "goals" that would have been accomplished anyway. Like when Obama promised in 2011 to ensure wireless broadband reached 98% of the public (ignoring the problem of high prices and usage caps, or the fact this coverage was going to occur anyway), or when Obama's former FCC boss Julius Genachowski promised a gigabit ISP in each one of the fifty states (also something that would have happened without government involvement). Such efforts usually comically ignore how limited competition and high prices are the biggest problem.
Keeping this proud tradition alive, President Trump this week held a rally to hype his purported dedication to the nation's forgotten rural areas. This dedication, according to a breakdown by Reuters, will involve "making it easier for the private sector to locate broadband infrastructure on federal land and buildings":
"U.S. President Donald Trump was expected on Monday to sign an executive order to make it easier for the private sector to locate broadband infrastructure on federal land and buildings, part of a push to expand high-speed internet in rural America. Faster internet speeds in rural areas have long been seen as key to addressing the economic divide between rural and urban America, but the costs have so far been prohibitive."
But if you bother to read the actual order, the "new efforts" cited within are nothing new. They're simply part of a concerted effort to speed up construction and placement of cellular towers and other essential gear on government property at the behest of AT&T and Verizon, a priority at the FCC for several years now. In Trump fashion however, the President took ample time to insist this looming surge in "great, great broadband" was exclusively thanks to his leadership and the creation of this new executive order:
"Those towers are going to go up and you’re going to have great, great broadband,” Trump told the annual convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation. "Farm country is God’s country,” he declared..."Oh, are you happy you voted for me,” he added. “You are so lucky that I gave you that privilege."
While faster cellular tower placement is great and all, it doesn't solve the real problem in the sector: a lack of competition. FCC data indicates that two-thirds of American homes lack access to modern broadband (25 Mbps) from more than one ISP. Instead of addressing that problem, the Trump FCC has been actively working to undermine how broadband is measured in a blatant attempt to hide coverage and competition gaps. Trump's FCC has also started taking a hatchet to programs that help bring broadband to the poor, an increasing problem given that incumbent providers refuse to upgrade countless poor or rural markets.
Reuters' and other mainstream coverage of Trump's EO also ignores the countless problems that will be caused by the Trump administration's attack on net neutrality, elimination of consumer broadband privacy protections, or industry-backed efforts to gut nearly all meaningful oversight of entrenched telecom duopolies, something that history repeatedly tells us only makes service worse and more expensive. Unsurprisingly, reports fail to note the fact that the Trump FCC has taken steps to protect the entrenched monopoly at the heart of the cellular backhaul and business data services (BDS) markets, ensuring competition there remains tepid and cellular connectivity remains expensive.
Here's a tip: you'll know a politician's "broadband plan" is worth anything if it makes Comcast, AT&T and Verizon lawyers, lobbyists and lackeys angry. Any plan worth its salt would drive competition to the sector, eroding revenues for duopolies all-too-comfortable nursing the status quo. If they approve of it, it likely doesn't actually tackle the heart of the dysfunction that is the American broadband market.
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Filed Under: broadband, cell towers, competition, donald trump, executive order
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Inflated ego full of nothing. He would be the world's laughingstock if he didn't have so much power to screw up everything. I mean, he already is but there's the sad part following it.
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"Actually, throughout my life, my two greatest assets have been mental stability and being, like, really smart." "Oh, are you happy you voted for me,” “You are so lucky that I gave you that privilege."
This seriously sounds like a snobby little girl that just got voted class president. Sadly though, it is a grown man who is our President. This is just embarrassing.
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Pretty sure you'd be dead of alcohol poisoning withing a day if such a game existed, so probably not a good idea.
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Would be? You might want to sit down, I've got some news for you.
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But that's certainly not what his handlers have told him.
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That can be shortened down to "Trump Doesn't Actually Do Much Of Anything." and still have the same meaning...
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The system has been designed to build upon Hammer Fiber's already successfully deployed wireless technology suite, expanding it to fully support LTE Frequencies. This expansion will now allow Hammer Fiber to add ultra-high capacity cellular broadband applications to its product portfolio. This expanded product portfolio is expected to include wholesale services, such as backhaul support for cellular network operators. Hammer Fiber, in conjunction with its technology partners in Europe, have been running both laboratory and field trials on the live network of a prominent LTE mobile operator for the past 12 months and the results have surpassed expectations.
Hammer Fiber now plans to deploy this Fixed LTE version of its successful DOCSIS platform in a pilot initiative in New Jersey starting in early 2018. The system has been developed to complement Hammer Fiber's core business of home residential services. Hammer operates a full service wireless network in the Atlantic City New Jersey area, with expansion recently announced for the greater Baltimore, MD area.
"5G is the inevitable next step in the evolution of telecommunications, and we are proud to be on the front lines of developing the technology to support the vision of things to come," said Michael Cothill, Executive Chairman of Hammer Fiber. "We believe this system fits perfectly into our overall ecosystem and pairing this platform with our existing DOCSIS platform is going to expand our reach and extend our next generation fixed LTE initiative to include wholesale services to both the mainstream LTE operators and Competitive Carriers across the USA."
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http://lmgtfy.com/?q=population+of+US
Huh. So it turns out they'll be reaching ~9% of the population. Yep. Real Competition®
Other problems: You say GLW holds 12GHz spectrum in those markets. That implies wireless connectivity. We've gone into the problems with calling Wireless 'Broadband' in the past... Still, baby steps forward, I guess.
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Doesn't change anything thats wrong in the market.
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In other words this had nothing to do with Trump's EO. It was already in the works for a year before he got around to his show and pony dance.
What we have here in the sum of this corporate blurb, is a dress up for 'we're gonna be able to charge you more than standard broadband would cost you'.
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Putting up a tower that can serve 200 people is much cheaper than running lines to 200 homes.
Trying to tether off of an iPhone is a bad way to connect, but they have been offering pretty good 4G hotspots (if you are in a good coverage area) so don't think 5G is the devil.
Technology marches forward, it's getting the 3 telcos to use it that is the problem. Of course if 5G is this wonderous, it might let 'GoogleFiber' come to more towns & not need to wait to connect to poles.
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In a way, that’s a relief.
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Competition isn't necessarily the answer
The only way it's going to happen is with a broadband version of the Rural Electrification Act: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_Electrification_Act
(Although it could happen via wireless towers, but only with *mandated* competition.)
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Re: Competition isn't necessarily the answer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferengi
Some things are necessary regardless of whether there is a profit to be made. This is a simple concept to grasp, but many seem to be unable - it's weird.
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Partisan?
Pretending it's one side's issue and the other side would solve it totally ignores the fact that this has been around through N different administrations...and isn't solved yet.
Are you really that dumb, or just a useful idiot?
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Re: Partisan?
Yes, but you ignore the constant complains over that same time period from a few who were ignored and/or trashed politically for their stance. The present admin has done less than nothing about it but we are all supposed to just stfu because both parties suck? ... I don't think so.
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Re: Partisan?
Third paragraph:
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