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1 [1] (January 2, 2019)

handle is hein.crs/govyvp0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research SenAce Informing the legislative debate since 1914 Updated January 2, 2019 Broadband Deployment: Status and Federal Programs Broadband-whether delivered via fiber, cable modem, mobile or fixed wireless, copper wire, or satellite-is increasingly the technology underlying telecommunications services such as voice, video, and data. Since the initial deployment of high-speed internet in the late 1990s, broadband technologies have been deployed throughout the United States primarily by the private sector. These providers include telephone, cable, wireless, and satellite companies as well as other entities that provide broadband services to residential, business, and institutional customers. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC's) 2010 National Broadband Plan identified broadband as a basic infrastructure necessary for improving economic growth, job creation, civic engagement, global competitiveness, and a better quality of life. Broadband enables or enhances applications such as e-commerce, telemedicine, distance education, telework, entertainment, public safety, and energy conservation. Increasingly viewing broadband as a basic infrastructure, Congress and successive Administrations have focused on addressing gaps specifically related to broadband availability and adoption. Broadband availability refers to whether or not broadband service is offered, while broadband adoption refers to the extent to which American households actually subscribe to and use broadband. Availability The lack of adequate broadband is most pressing in rural America (especially tribal lands), where the costs of serving large geographical areas, coupled with low population densities, often reduce economic incentives for telecommunications providers to invest in and maintain broadband infrastructure and service. According to the latest FCC data (as of Dec. 2017), 94% of Americans have access to terrestrial broadband (e.g., fiber and cable modem connections) at minimum speeds of 25 Mbps (download speed)/3 Mbps (upload speed). The breakdown is 98.5% urban, 75.7% rural, and 68% tribal. Table 1 shows the broadband availability gap in recent years. Table 2 shows percentages of Americans with access to multiple providers. Table I. Percentage of Americans with Access to Fixed Terrestrial Broadband (2513 Mbps) 2014 2015 2016 2017 United States 89.4% 89.9% 91.9% 94.0% Rural Areas 60.4% 61.5% 67.8% 75.7% Urban Areas 96.4% 96.7% 97.7% 98.5% Tribal Lands 57.2% 57.8% 63.1% 68.0% Source: FCC, Communications Marketplace Report released December 26. 2018, p. 132, available at: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-18-181Al.pdf Table 2. Percentage of Americans With Multiple Options for Fixed Terrestrial Broadband (2513 Mbps) No provider I provider 2 providers 3 or more Nationwide 6.0% 23.7% 42.4% 28.0% Urban 1.5% 20.1% 45.8% 32.5% Rural 24.3% 38.4% 28.0% 9.3% Tribal 32.0% 36.1% 21.1% 10.8% Source: FCC, Communications Marketplace Report pp. 97-98. Data as of December 31, 2017. Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-104) requires the FCC to regularly initiate an inquiry and release a report (commonly called the 706 report) assessing the status of broadband deployment to all Americans. In its 2018 Broadband Deployment Report, the FCC concluded that broadband is being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion, asserting that FCC policies are now encouraging reasonable and timely deployment by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and promoting competition in the telecommunications market. The FCC determined that the current speed benchmark of 25 Mbps/3 Mbps remains an appropriate measure by which to assess whether a fixed service provides advanced telecommunications capability. Regarding mobile broadband, the FCC found that adoption of a single mobile benchmark is currently unworkable, given available data and the inherent variability of actual mobile speeds. The FCC concluded that mobile broadband service is not a full substitute for fixed service at this time. Adoption The National Broadband Plan also identified broadband adoption as a problem, with a significant number of Americans having broadband available, but choosing not to subscribe. According to a November 2017 Census Bureau survey compiled and reported by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), 85.9% of American households use wired broadband at home. Table 3 shows that populations continuing to lag behind in broadband adoption include people with low incomes, certain minority populations, the less-educated, the unemployed, the disabled, and households in rural areas. According to the Pew Research Center, in its broadband adoption survey Home Broadband 2015, the cost of monthly subscriptions is the leading reason people do not have broadband connections. https://crsreport

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