Industry News – 12-11-20

On Tuesday, the FCC announced the results of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction, allocating more than $9 billion nationwide. A total of 180 bidders won support aimed at delivering high-speed BB to more than 5.2 million homes. From a state perspective, Pennsylvania had 13 winning bidders who will deploy to 184,505 locations with almost $370 million. PUC Chairman Gladys Brown Dutrielle offered that “This is a success for everyone in Pennsylvania who has worked to educate stakeholders about the FCC auction process. This hard work will help residents and businesses in underserved regions get access to more high-speed broadband services.” Of course, with any BB story and this amount of money on the table, the naysayers are plenty. Free Press, in an article yesterday entitled “Fiber to the Clubhouse: Pai  Subsidizes Broadband for the Rich”, was critical of  how the money is to be spent; Saying that instead of addressing the rural-urban digital divide, the program will close the “golf course and parking lot digital divide.” (See related story in Daily Number Section).