Conexon Blog
Discover stories, thinking, and expertise from members of our team about topics and insights for electric cooperatives considering or operating rural broadband networks.
Sunk Costs: A Cautionary Tale
How the FCC wasted $45 billion on rural “broadband” and what the current FCC/Congress/Administration should have learned.
A New Section 254: A “Connect All Americans” Proposal
If you live in rural America, how is government planning for broadband working for you? After tens of billions of dollars of public money spent in this manner, and nearly half of rural America still lacking broadband service, I’d suggest it is time to try a different approach.
Fix the RDOF Now (part 2)
CAF I funding was wasted money. CAF II ROFR funding was wasted money. Three-quarters of CAF II auction funding is wasted money. Is it too late for RDOF? That’s now up to the Rosenworcel FCC.
Fix the RDOF now
CAF I funding was wasted money. CAF II ROFR funding was wasted money. Three-quarters of CAF II auction funding is wasted money. Is it too late for RDOF? That’s now up to the Rosenworcel FCC.
The Rural Broadband Acceleration Act: An Explainer
The idea started out simply enough. In January, the FCC had adopted its RDOF auction design whereby Gigabit tier bidders would win in the auction against all other bidders. In March, the FCC had identified the eligible census blocks and the amount of funding.
Accelerate the RDOF: How to Spend Billions for Long-Term Critical Broadband Infrastructure, Create Jobs and Stimulate the Rural Economy NOW
At a time of uncertainty, one thing is certain. The world is interconnected in many ways, and the future of information, education, work, health care, shopping, social connection and entertainment are all tied to internet access.
SpaceX is Aptly Named (Space Pig-in-a-Poke was apparently already taken)
Earlier this week, the FCC released a Public Notice that proposed the most significant change to date to Chairman Pai’s signature broadband policy, the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF).
The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund: Conexon’s Comments filed with the FCC
A decade ago, the FCC set a course to put rural America at a long-term disadvantage to the rest of the country.
A Lost Decade: Ten years ago, the federal government began to implement a broadband policy that put rural America at a structural economic disadvantage to the rest of the country. We can do better.
It’s been over a decade since passage of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA), which in part allocated many millions of dollars to the FCC to write a national broadband plan.
The Rural Digital Opportunity Fund: A Proposal to Include Local Community Support in the RDOF Auction
Chairman Pai’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) is the most significant rural infrastructure initiative of our time.
Correcting a Fatal Flaw in the ReConnect Program: A Proposal for a Safe Harbor Procedure
For the most part, the ReConnect program rules are well constructed and put an emphasis on the right metrics: those areas of the country most expensive to serve and least well-served.
