In 3-2 Decision, FCC Increases Broadband Speed Benchmark To 100 Mbps/20 Mbps, Eyes 1 Gbps/500 Mbps in Long Term

The National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors said, "Raising the Commission's benchmark for broadband speeds to 100/20 Mbps will ensure that low-income neighborhoods and rural communities will not be left behind during new broadband deployment and availability efforts by bringing the standard in line with federal broadband funding programs including the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), the NTIA's Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program (BEAD), and the FCC's Universal Service Fund (USF) programs." [...]the Commission deserves credit for taking a holistic view of broadband deployment by, for the first time, taking into account affordability and equitable access. Phoenix Report Analyzes Speed Change The FCC's increase in the broadband speed threshold will result in a "quite small" reduction in the overall number of consumers that have access to qualifying Internet service, but a larger reduction in the number of providers that can deliver service that meets the threshold, according to a report from the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies. Analyzing data from the June 2023 version of the National Broadband Map, the report by Phoenix Cen- ter Chief Economist George Ford estimates that overall broadband availability under the new standard drops by about 3%. Because "many modalities cannot satisfy the new speed threshold," the report said the average number of providers capable of delivering broadband service to a household falls