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Section 706 Broadband Progress Reports

This report details the current state of broadband access in the United States, highlighting progress made and areas still lacking. Despite advancements, millions of Americans remain without adequate service, particularly in rural and tribal areas. The report emphasizes the need for continued efforts to accelerate broadband deployment nationwide. State and local governments are urged to explore the data provided for informed decision-making. Interactive maps offer a comprehensive view of broadband availability by county and technology type. The report signals future inquiries into mobile services and high-speed broadband to enhance future evaluations.

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Section 706 Broadband Progress Reports

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  1. Section 706 Broadband Progress Reports September 27, 2012

  2. Background • The Commission is required to report annually on “the availability of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans” and determine whether “advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion.” 47 U.S.C. § 1302(b). • The Commission must also provide “[d]emographic information for unserved areas.” 47 U.S.C. § 1302(c). • If the Commission finds that broadband is not being deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion, the Commission “shall take immediate action to accelerate deployment of such capability by removing barriers to infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the telecommunications market.” 47 U.S.C. § 1302(b). 2

  3. Broadband Benchmark • Section 1302(d)(1) defines “advanced telecommunications capability as “high-speed, switched, broadband telecommunications capability that enables users to originate and receive high-quality voice, data, graphics, and video telecommunications using any technology.” 47 U.S.C. § 1302(d)(1). • On August 14, 2012, the Commission released the Eighth Broadband Progress Report. • In the Eighth Broadband Progress Report, the Commission adopted the speed benchmark of 4 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 1 Mbps upload (4 Mbps/1 Mbps, or “speed benchmark”), originally adopted in the Sixth Broadband Progress Report. 3

  4. Summary of Eighth Broadband Progress Report • The Commission recognized that the nation has made significant progress expanding high-speed Internet access in recent years. • Notwithstanding this progress, the Eighth Broadband Progress Report finds that approximately 19 million Americans—6 percent of the population—still lack access to fixed broadband service. • In rural areas, nearly one-fourth of the population—14.5 million people—lack access to this service. • In tribal areas, nearly one-third of the population lacks access. • Even in areas where broadband is available, approximately 100 million Americans still do not subscribe. 4

  5. Summary of Eighth Broadband Progress Report • Because millions still lack access to or have not adopted broadband, the Report concludes broadband is not yet being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion. • Because higher-speed broadband is increasingly available and market offerings continue to change, the Report indicated that in the next Notice of Inquiry, the Commission will explore how to keep the broadband report up-to-date, including further examining the role of mobile services and next-generation, high-speed services in the FCC’s next annual evaluation of broadband availability. 5

  6. State and Local GovernmentInterest in the Eighth Broadband Progress Report • The Eighth Broadband Progress Report has the most accurate up-to-date deployment and adoption estimates and presents our analysis at the most granular level. • We rely on the deployment data collected as part of the SBI Grant Program (called “SBI Data”), which also helped populate the national broadband inventory map that was first made public in February 2011. We based our analysis on SBI Data collected as of June 30, 2011. • This is our first progress report ever to include extensive data on mobile broadband and the availability of next-generation, high-speed services (see Tables 15-16). 6

  7. State and Local GovernmentInterest in the Eighth Broadband Progress Report • In this report, for the first time, we also calculate fixed broadband adoption rates using the Commission’s subscription data (called “Form 477 Data”) and SBI Data (see Tables 17-23). • The report includes online, interactive maps which show exactly where broadband is and isn’t available, and deployment statistics—by technology type—for every county in the nation. • See ONLINE SECTION 706 FIXED BROADBAND DEPLOYMENTMAP: http://www.fcc.gov/maps/section-706-fixed-broadband-deployment-map • See ONLINE SECTION 706 MOBILE DEPLOYMENT MAP: http://www.fcc.gov/maps/section-706-mobile-deployment-map 7

  8. Some Deployment Estimates

  9. Some Deployment Estimates

  10. Some Deployment Estimates

  11. Adoption Estimates

  12. State and Local Governments Might Also Be Interested in the Appendices • Americans Without Access to Fixed Broadband Meeting the Speed Benchmark by State (Appendix C) • Americans Without Access to Fixed Broadband Meeting the Speed Benchmark by County (Appendix D) • Tribal Lands Without Access to Fixed Broadband Meeting the Speed Benchmark by State (Appendix E) • Americans Without Access to Fixed Broadband Meeting the Speed Benchmark on Certain Tribal Lands (Appendix F) • Overall Fixed Broadband Deployment Rates by State (Appendix G) • Overall Fixed Broadband Adoption Rates by State (Appendix H) • Section 706 Fixed Broadband Deployment Map (Appendix I) • Section 706 Mobile Deployment Map (Appendix J)

  13. Ninth Broadband Progress Notice of Inquiry • On August 15, 2012, the FCC adopted the Ninth Broadband Progress Notice of Inquiry (FCC 12-91, GN Docket No. 12-228). • This Inquiry initiates the Commission’s ninth assessment of the “availability of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans (including, in particular, elementary and secondary schools and classrooms).” • Comments were due September 20, 2012 • Replies are due October 22, 2012

  14. Some Questions Presented in the Ninth Inquiry • Whether the Commission should update its benchmark and consider, for example, three core characteristics—speed, latency, and data capacity—for the purposes of determining whether advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed to all Americans? • Whether mobile services should be evaluated separately from fixed services in the Commission’s evaluation of broadband deployment and availability under section 706? • Whether the Commission should identify multiple speed tiers to assess the country’s progress for our universalization goal, as well as additional goals—such as affordable access to 100 Mbps/50 Mbps to 100 million homes by 2020? • What actions can and should the Commission take to accelerate broadband deployment and availability?

  15. Conclusion • We encourage State and local governments to participate in the inquiry and submit comments on these questions for consideration in the Ninth Broadband Progress Report. • Any questions on the annual broadband reports, please contact Matt Warner at (202) 418-2419 or Denise Coca at (202) 418-0574.

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