On August 6, 2015, the Federal Communications Commission launched a Notice of Inquiry seeking comment (due by September 8, 2015) on whether consumer access to mobile broadband should be included in its annual review of the country’s broadband market. The annual review is created to assess whether Americans are receiving broadband on a “reasonable and timely basis.”
According to the 2015 Broadband Progress Report released in February, “55 million Americans do not have broadband capable of delivering high-quality voice, data, graphics and video offerings.” The FCC also noted in the Inquiry that Americans use fixed and mobile broadband for different purposes. Mobile broadband has become increasingly more important because of its use for social media, navigation, communication, and news updates while fixed terrestrial broadband remains important to “high-capacity” home use.
The FCC is seeking comments specific to:
- Whether consumer access to both mobile and fixed broadband should now be the standard by which to assess broadband deployment?
- What speed of service should serve as the benchmark for assessing availability?
- Whether to consider standards beyond speed when assessing broadband deployment, including latency and consistency of service?
- Whether to consider factor beyond physical deployment, including pricing and data allowances, privacy, and broadband adoption?
In Utah, 99.9% of households have access to broadband speeds of at least 3 Mbps Down/768 Kbps Up, 96.7% of households have access to broadband speeds of at least 10 Mbps Down/3 Mbps Up, and 92.6% of households have access to broadband speeds of at least 25 Mbps Down/3 Mbps Up (the new federal definition).
Utah Residents can view broadband availability and speeds on the Utah Broadband Map.
Click here to file a comment in response to the Notice of Inquiry. The proceeding number is 15-101.
Click here to view the 2015 Broadband Progress Report.
Click here to view the Notice of Inquiry.