Published by Route Fifty, January 30, 2020
The Federal Communications Commission voted January 30, 2020 to approve a $20.4 billion plan to subsidize the construction of high-speed broadband networks in rural America. FCC Chairman Ajit Pai called the vote the “biggest step the FCC has ever taken to close the rural digital divide.”
The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund will help internet service providers deploy broadband over 10 years to areas currently lacking service of at least 25 megabits per second download and 3 Mbps upload speeds. The federal agency estimates about six million rural homes and businesses are located in areas that could benefit from the initiative. Internet service providers, including telecoms and government utilities, would bid to provide broadband and voice services to the locations. Read more.