FCC Will Slam U.S. Broadband Again

The Federal Communications Commission is expected to report soon that broadband providers are not deploying services in a reasonable and timely way to all Americans. That wouldn't be surprising: the FCC said so in 2010, and it is hard to see what could have changed in just a year.

That predictably will be irritating to most service providers, who have been steadily upgrading broadband facilities almost across the board, using 4G wireless, DOCSIS upgrades and more fiber deployments at a steady clip over the last year.

Comcast, the largest provider of cable internet in the country, just announced that is provides 40 million residential homes the ability to buy 105 Mbps service. See http://www.comcast.com/About/PressRelease/PressReleaseDetail.ashx?PRID=1067.

Verizon and lots of other cable companies also have been selling 50 Mbps service for a couple of years, at least. The issue is not "availability" in a growing number of cases, but "purchasing." Some observers might argue that the prices charged for either 50 Mbps or 100 Mbps service are "too high." But that is a different matter than claiming such access is not available.

Lots of people make rational choices to buy fixed-line service at lower speeds, say 10 Mbps to 20 Mbps, as a better value-price proposition.

Also, U.S. subscribers have access to multiple national and regional wireless services running at fourth-generation speeds. Some observers likewise will object that these wireless offerings also are "too slow." But some observers are going to see a growing disconnect between what the FCC claims is the case, and what generally-available offers suggest.

FCC poised to give broadband deployment a failing grade