Many rural communities and those living in remote areas often have difficulty accessing the internet or using broadband to the extent that their urban counterparts can achieve. There has been a great deal of discussion about bridging the digital divide between urban and rural communities. In seeking solutions to this disparity, technology companies have been […]
In college, during a discussion of surveys in one of my political science classes, I learned that survey writers often skew questions to achieve the desired results. A prime example of how this occurs can be found in a survey that was frequently cited on March 6, 2019, when Democrats in Congress announced the introduction […]
On March 6, 2019, Congressional Democratic leaders joined together to announce legislation that would ensure “net neutrality.” This legislation would codify former Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler’s government takeover of the internet by repealing the Restoring Internet Freedom Order (RIFO) of 2017, reinstituting the Open Internet Order (OIO) of 2015, and prohibiting the […]
Much like robocalls to cell phones, text messaging scams are on the increase. This was one of the reasons the Fresno County Department of Social Services issued a warning on December 5, 2018, that anyone receiving a text message prompting its clients to call a number and provide information that could allow another individual access […]
Broadband overbuild using taxpayer dollars has been an ongoing problem across this country. Some providers will obtain a grant or loan from a federal agency to build out broadband in rural communities and then use the funding to either deploy or upgrade equipment where broadband already exists rather than spend taxpayer resources on unserved communities […]
One wonders if the “Force” is working against the Department of Defense (DOD) with its Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure project (JEDI). The contract bid request that by some estimates could reach $10 billion to build an enterprise-level commercial cloud solution, including Infrastructure as a Service and Platform as a Service, to support the all defense agencies […]
While not unexpected, it was still disappointing to see California Governor Jerry Brown (D) sign into law Senate Bill 822, creating the most restrictive set of rules for internet service providers (ISPs) in U.S. history. California has often attempted to set standards for the rest of the nation in everything from the environment to technology, […]
Publicly-funded broadband overbuild is an ongoing problem across the country. It is far easier to deploy new services alongside existing infrastructure than to build-out to those who remain in unserved areas. On March 23, 2018, President Trump signed into law H.R. 1625, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018, which funds the government through September 30, […]
The National Emergency Number Association estimates that 240 million 9-1-1 calls are made each year, with more than 80 percent of those calls originating from wireless devices in some areas of the country. The 9-1-1 emergency systems, including fire and rescue operations, are funded, in part, through fees imposed on consumer telephone bills. Unfortunately, over […]
On June 28, 2018, Sens. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) introduced S. 3157, the Streamlining The Rapid Evolution And Modernization of Leading-edge Infrastructure Necessary to Enhance Small Cell Deployment Act (STREAMLINE Small Cell Deployment Act), which seeks to reduce barriers to deploying small cell technology. Creating a network of small cells is crucial […]
