At least 18 million Americans have no access to broadband Internet connectivity, and the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission wants to do something about that. Julius Genachowski sketched out a proposal at the FCC offices Thursday that would shift subsidies from telecom services in rural areas to broadband Internet access. The FCC has $8 billion in subsidies that it puts toward landline telephony services in mostly rural areas. Genachowski wants to use some of those funds for broadband. He called the current system under the USF outdated, given the importance of Internet connectivity.
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FCC Champing at Bit to Broaden High-Speed Internet Access
Posted by: Rob Spiegel October 7, 2011 12:37 PMAt least 18 million Americans have no access to broadband Internet connectivity, and the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission wants to do something about that. Julius Genachowski sketched out a proposal at the FCC offices Thursday that would shift subsidies from telecom services in rural areas to broadband Internet access. The FCC has $8 billion in subsidies that it puts toward landline telephony services in mostly rural areas. Genachowski wants to use some of those funds for broadband. He called the current system under the USF outdated, given the importance of Internet connectivity.