The digital divide has held back the United States for too long. Now is the time to end it.

The first virtual edition of the Fiber Broadband Association’s annual conference, Fiber Connect, held in December, showcased many fiber community success stories and a variety of innovations that promise to expand fiber deployment. The show highlighted how communities are banding together and working with state and federal agencies to build out broadband in underserved communities. It also brought to light the need to increase bandwidth and provide flexible service during the pandemic, along with the problem of permitting obstacles and other challenges.

The new head of the Fiber Broadband Association shares his vision for the industry.

The 2021 broadband plans of incumbent telcos, independents, cable operators and electric co-ops will have a ripple effect on consumers and businesses.

Synergies between the organizations made the choice a natural one.

More than 5 million premises are likely to get broadband connectivity, but for some, it may not be as good as promised.

Broadband should bring people together, not drive them apart.

Charlie Vogt, a telecom veteran who has led a mix of voice, video and optical vendors, took the reins of DZS in August. He aims to solidify the company’s position in fiber to the home (FTTH), 5G, smart homes, connected building/city solutions and software-defined networking.

Because of COVID-19 facility closures, 50 million K–12 public school students have had to learn remotely from home.

In its annual conference, which will be held virtually from December 14–16, 2020, the Fiber Broadband Association will bring together experts in all aspects of fiber to the home (FTTH).

This year’s event is our best ever – 30 sessions with more than 100 of the industry’s top experts plus plenty of opportunities to network and engage.

At the Broadband Communities Virtual Summit 2020, participants shared stories about finding new methods to extend broadband into underserved and unserved rural markets. Following are some highlights of conference sessions focused on the rural broadband market.

Electric cooperatives and investor-owned utilities are partnering with competitive providers and telcos to close the systemic rural broadband gap.

The emerging model presents a scalable option for communities that lack the expertise or interest to operate networks or act as ISPs themselves but want to own and control the core communications assets in their communities as a means of securing the benefits of broadband internet. Here’s a look at the model’s business case, technical elements and risks.

A town may not be ready to take the plunge on building a network, but there are steps it can take to attract private investment.

Investors have been needlessly spooked about new satellite technology. Individual satellites are cheap, but thousands must be deployed and periodically replaced. So satellites are competitive – and welcome – but only in limited situations.

The city is the first in the nation to enable 911 staff to take and dispatch calls from home during the pandemic.

The partnership takes on Germany’s goals to nationally expand gigabit networks by 2025 and to expand fiber infrastructure in schools and local enterprises.

It’s actually cheaper to build in rural than in urban areas, and FTTH systems in rural areas can be profitable even with very few subscribers.

At the Broadband Communities Virtual Summit 2020, participants shared stories about how they are driving broadband into multifamily properties to enable higher speeds and provide a host of IoT services for residents and building owners. Following are some highlights of conference sessions focused on the multifamily market.

The pandemic has laid bare the critical importance of network infrastructure and the importance of the multifamily industry’s relationship with connectivity providers.

There are provisions common to multiple pending broadband funding bills; expect them to end up in H.R.2, which the Senate should vote on after the November 3 elections.

Many strategies used to promote universal telephone service are in use to expand broadband access today, but one needs a few tweaks.

With demand for remote health care and mental health services on the rise, pursuing telehealth is a smart marketing strategy for broadband service providers.

There’s a new reason to provide more funds for broadband deployments, and a new tool for deployers to target the counties most in need – especially in rural areas.

The I3 Connectivity Explorer allows users to assemble and analyze essential data needed to assess their communities’ current situations, envision their goals, and develop action plans.

The FCC’s support for mmWave wireless systems in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund gives rural operators another option to extend broadband services to more customers.

New research by the Fiber Broadband Association shows that all-fiber networks are much less expensive to operate than cable or copper networks.

COVID-19 is accelerating tech adoption in multifamily housing. Technologies that remain relevant post-pandemic will need strong connectivity, underscoring the importance of critical broadband infrastructure.

New research identifies tactics for connecting unserved communities.

The FCC’s upcoming RDOF auction, scheduled for October, will give rural communities a chance to bid on support for fiber-to-the-home networks.

Communities hoping to improve their broadband service have several different models to choose from. Here’s how to go about making the choice.

By defining goals, gathering data and asking the right questions, communities can develop broadband master plans that lay the groundwork for high-speed networks.

As the community overcomes its business-sector broadband challenges, it looks for ways to extend services to residents who have poor broadband access options.

Stacking subsidies may be the only way to get fiber to the home built in some of the most rural areas.

It is suddenly cost-effective to borrow money for small deployments, or to arrange a self-amortizing lease. Here’s why – and how.

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights how the U.S. broadband deficit remains a glaring and painful gap between haves and have-nots.

The pandemic sheds light on the gaps in online education today – and opportunities for improving it now and in the future.

Communications infrastructure has the power to help rural, underserved areas of the United States achieve greater success, but it means the broadband industry must ramp up its commitment to connect more of the country.

Speed, continuity, flexibility and creativity enabled the company to meet the challenges staff and customers face as COVID-19 changed the ways people live and work overnight.

As pandemic-related disruptions make the United States more dependent than ever on reliable broadband, FTTH deployers find ways to continue building out their networks.

Lisa R. Youngers, president and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association, delivered this testimony before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation in March.

Fiber-to-the-home leaders and innovators for 2020

Independent providers are tackling the challenge of being an essential service for MDU residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

New technologies, new funding programs, and the vastly expanded need for work-at-home broadband have trashed old business plans but made many new plans possible. Here are key strategies for deployers to consider, and ways to fund their dreams and to make necessary changes in federal rules on such issues as spectrum use and lien priority.

Fiber to the home proves its worth during the pandemic.

The USDA’s ReConnect Program and the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund will help bridge the digital divide and drive the community broadband movement.

The technology is slated to support a broad range of applications for business and government in the year ahead.

As the multifamily industry embraces intelligent buildings and self-service apartments, the importance of telecom infrastructure comes into greater focus.

A feasibility study can sometimes seem like a necessary evil, but it can be a major contributor to the long-term success of a community’s broadband project.

NEXTGEN TV – the latest branding for ATSC 3.0 – has clear technical and moneymaking advantages over ATSC 1.0, the current standard for TV broadcasting and linear cable TV.

From managed Wi-Fi to DOCSIS to fiber to the unit, service providers have various options to pursue a successful MDU bulk internet strategy.

In its economic response to the coronavirus pandemic, Congress missed the chance to address the digital divide.

Several state-level political strategies can help convince policymakers to provide support to broadband providers that wish to deploy in unserved or underserved areas.

Everyone agrees the FCC should prioritize the construction of better broadband. What does that mean in practice? Two new studies commissioned by the Fiber Broadband Association help clarify.

Videos doctored using artificial intelligence to make them seem real, even though they are not, increasingly challenge viewers’ perceptions of truth. Congress and the tech industry are taking some action to stop them, but will their efforts work?

NEXTGEN TV – the latest branding for ATSC 3.0 – has clear technical and moneymaking advantages over ATSC 1.0, the current standard for TV broadcasting and linear cable TV.

At Broadband Communities’ 2019 economic development conference, held in October in Alexandria, Virginia, participants shared stories about how communities are improving broadband access to facilitate economic development, digital literacy and consumer choices. Following are some of the highlights of the conference sessions.

Broadband is essential to a community’s survival, but building out service to rural areas comes with financial challenges. Service providers have several options to help.

At the Broadband Communities economic development conference in October, FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks delivered a powerful call to make internet inequality across the United States a thing of the past. A data-driven review of what has and hasn’t worked over the past 10 years will help determine the path forward, he says.

As open FTTH networks emerge again in the United States, investors dedicate capital to community networks that will support an array of traditional internet, telehealth and building management services.

In Sweden, municipal broadband is the rule rather than the exception. That changes everything.

Ocala adds residential internet-only FTTH services to a multipurpose fiber network that will help it become a smart city.

5G, CBRS and Wi-Fi wireless services all have a place. Building owners and developers can choose one that best meets their specific needs.

Building out a 5G network will require a new set of network standards and operational methods. Operators should establish a set of best practices around planning, cost-to-revenue analysis, and architecture choices.

With school connectivity goals accomplished, the program prepares to end, leaving new programs in place to make sure the classroom gap stays closed.

Individuals and government alike worry about TikTok’s foreign ownership.

National policy is muddled, contradictory and almost certainly more drastic than security needs require. But facts don’t really seem to matter these days.

Every community shouldn’t have to reinvent the wheel.

The agency looks to deliver on rural broadband promises.

At least 28 states now offer some form of subsidy for broadband deployers serving rural or disadvantaged areas. But high costs of validating business plans often make the funds hard to get.

The proposed rules favor grant bidders who least need the money and are unlikely to bring permanent, high-quality broadband to rural areas.

Independents set stake in the growing MDU broadband market by focusing on providing good customer service and doing things the right way. Their approach benefits property owners and residents alike.

There’s evidence, but no promise, that a usable National Broadband Map is on the way. It will be awhile. We’re watching – and using artificial intelligence (AI) software to check.

The digital divide is widening. Without public and private policy changes, we’ll lose the battle for universal access.

As Congress and the FCC look for solutions to fix the problem of broadband mapping, they should consider a variety of factors, including speeds, prices, availability and reliability of service and competition.

Insufficient government maps, plant records and marketing are a few of the challenges to accessing accurate data.

Hobbled by lack of technical insight on telecom trade, government policy remains muddled – and dangerous for network deployers.

Minnesota’s state broadband grant program has been praised as one of the nation’s best – but that doesn’t mean it can’t be improved, according to the bill’s author.

Proponents bill it as a win for apartment residents and owners, but apartment owners say the recently enacted San Francisco MDU ordinance ultimately creates more hurdles for delivering high-quality connectivity.

For many small communities, the USDA’s latest grant program may be too complex to be worth applying for.

Providers should explore the possible implications of the rule change and share comments with the FCC.

Worried about political opposition to buying from Huawei? Here’s a short guide and a possible solution.

To encourage new, local broadband providers, consider easing the regulatory burdens that make starting a new broadband venture costly.

Delivering great broadband to everyone in a community requires thinking about broadband in a new way. Some cities have already made that shift.

The Department of Agriculture experiments with new ways to drive rural broadband deployment.

Lesson learned: It does not pay to run roughshod over local concerns. The FCC finds out the hard way.

This issue of the magazine offers an advance look at 2019 Summit program highlights.

Do you hope to serve a rural area that already has some broadband service?  Work around it. Literally.

Why every 5G discussion turns to fiber infrastructure: The new head of the Fiber Broadband Association shares her vision of the industry.

The passage of the Agricultural Improvement Act and the opening of a funding window for the ReConnect program will help narrow the rural digital divide.

Hundreds of electric co-ops are considering deployment of residential or business broadband – and almost all want to use fiber.

Pole attachments have long been a problem for fiber overbuilders that need access to utility poles. With its new one-touch-make-ready rule, the FCC weighed in on their side.

The RUS has new funds to spend on connecting unserved areas. But how can applicants prove an area is unserved?

Auction winners will likely serve between 200,000 and 400,000 rural households and businesses – at best, about 40 percent of those eligible.

Regulations for spending the $600 million appropriated in March for rural broadband will be slow in coming. Here’s why.

If you’re wondering which rural broadband funding programs to apply for – or which will solve the rural broadband problem – here’s a brief primer.

Highlights of the 2018 Broadband Communities Summit held in May in Austin, Texas

The Broadband Communities Summit brings together participants in the multifamily, rural, economic development, technology and policy worlds. This issue of the magazine has something for all of them.

Use Broadband Communities’ free financial modeling tools to navigate the startling changes in broadband’s financial environment. And don’t trust Wall Street.

The FCC and a congressional committee are wrestling with recommendations to overcome the digital divide. Meanwhile, several innovative proposals before the Kansas House of Representatives offer simpler approaches to fund rural broadband.

In March, 36 local elected officials from Next Century Cities member communities sent the following letter to the FCC in defense of local decision-making for 5G investments, small-cell deployment and the use of public rights-of-way.

The evolution of technology is enabling cable companies to transition gradually to all-fiber networks.

Springtime was especially good to rural broadband hopefuls, with new money and potentially more flexible ways of disbursement.

What will it take to solve the problem?

Technology, economics and political change are driving a very special Broadband Communities Summit this year.

Deployments of fiber to the home in North America reached record levels in 2017, and according to all indications, they will continue to increase in 2018.

Here’s a good-news story: The drive to provide high-quality internet service to U.S. schools has made tremendous progress, and the goal of universal connectivity is within sight.

Economic development in rural areas depends on broadband access – but the FCC’s current initiatives won’t help.

The FCC’s Connect America Phase II reverse auction gives competitive providers a shot at getting USF support to build broadband networks in unserved rural areas where incumbent providers have chosen not to build. The process is complicated – at best.

In its annual assessment of the state of advanced telecommunications capability, the FCC should forget about speed and focus on the capacity to provide an excellent broadband experience.

The FCC stacks the deck against broadband in rural and poor urban districts.

At the 2017 Broadband Communities Summit, held in Dallas in May, fiber deployers shared their experiences and vendors displayed their new technology.

Bulk billing is in the crosshairs of the FCC’s most recent broadband notice of inquiry.

How can state legislators help spread the gigabit wealth to more constituents? That’s not a rhetorical question – this legislator is looking for new ideas.

Rural Georgians were falling ever further behind their metropolitan neighbors in terms of broadband access. Now the state legislature is preparing a comprehensive initiative to address the problem.

The United States needs two regulatory roads – one for urban areas and one for rural.