2021.11.12 – Open Broadband News

Kerching! US House passes Biden’s infrastructure bill with $65B for broadband

The US House of Representatives passed President Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill late Friday night, which includes $65 billion for broadband deployment, access and affordability.

• 45 billion for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program (BEAD), overseen by the NTIA, which will make grants available to states to fund broadband deployment and adoption in underserved areas.
• $14.2 billion for the FCC to create an Affordable Connectivity Program, an extension and revision of the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) that provides a $30 monthly broadband subsidy for eligible households (down from the EBB’s $50, and $75 for homes on tribal land).
• $2.75 billion for a Digital Equity Program to ensure that “individuals and communities have the information technology capacity that is needed for full participation in the society and economy of the United States.”
• Billions for existing programs, including $2 billion for RUS ReConnect; and $2 billion for the Tribal Broadband Program.
• $1 billion for a new middle-mile program overseen by NTIA.
• $0.6 billion for Private Activity Bonds (PABs) for broadband deployments.

The Wireless Internet Service Providers Association (WISPA), which lobbied for a “tech-neutral” approach to the bill rather than one that favored fiber, said: “WISPA’s members connect communities in the toughest reaches of America, and we worked hard with congressional leadership on both sides of the aisle to make sure all technologies remain available to bring high-quality, ever-evolving internet connectivity to all Americans. This ‘open toolbox’ approach will help consumers by driving innovation and keeping internet plans affordable and accessible to all.”

It’s as if you never left! Global Fixed broadband back to normal growth

The top line finding of a new Point Topic survey of 131 countries was that at the end of Q2 2021, the number of global fixed broadband connections grew by 1.7% and stood at 1.22 billion. The growth rate was almost identical to that in Q2 2020 and Q2 2019.

Fixed broadband subscribers grew in 88% of the countries covered in the report and all but two of the largest 20 broadband markets saw growth this quarter, though in 15 of these markets it was slower than in Q1 2021. Yet the extent of growth varied across different markets, with 16 countries reporting a decline in fixed broadband subscriptions in Q2 2021, up from 15 in Q1 2021.

The decline was mainly either in saturated broadband markets such as Spain and Israel or those where mobile connections are the preferred way of getting online. In Q2 2021, the growth rate was slower in all regions, compared to the previous quarter, which was in line with seasonal trends. In terms of Fiber-To-The-Home (FTTH) net additions, China led with 12.3 million, while Brazil added more than a million and France almost a million fiber broadband subscriptions. In terms of annual changes, between Q2 2020 and Q2 2021, the number of copper lines globally fell by 11.1%, while FTTH connections increased by 13.7%.

More than 75% of people in six Southeast Asian countries now have access to the internet

More than 75% of the population in six major Southeast Asian countries have access to the internet and a majority of them have shopped online at least once, according to a new report from Google, Temasek Holdings and Bain & Company.

As many as 40 million people across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand came online for the first time this year, according to the report. That pushed the number of internet users in those six countries to over 440 million people, of which 80% made an online purchase at least once, the report said.

“The world is awash with liquidity and people are looking for growth opportunities in a zero-interest rate world environment,” Rohit Sipahimalani, chief investment strategist at Singapore state investor Temasek, told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Wednesday.

Gigabit broadband: Half-a-million rural homes to get boost

Half-a-million homes in rural areas of England are to get access to faster broadband. Some 567,000 properties in parts of Cheshire, Devon, Dorset, Somerset, Essex, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, Lincolnshire, East Yorkshire and North Yorkshire are in line for the boost. Equivalent to 1,000 megabits per second, users will be able to download HD movies in less than 30 seconds.

The investment is part of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s target of achieving at least 85% gigabit-capable UK coverage by 2025, which officials say is “on track”. At present, the UK has 57% coverage, up from less than 6% in 2019, according to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

“The latest stage of our £5bn Project Gigabit plan will help hard-to-reach homes and businesses out of the broadband slow lane and plug them into the fastest and most reliable connections available,” said Digital Secretary Nadine Dorries. “This investment is levelling up in action – building new internet connections in our rural communities so people have the speed, reliability and freedom to live and work flexibly, and take advantage of new technologies.”

5G accounts for Lion’s share of FWA Market in 2026

The worldwide Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) market is expanding quickly to fulfil the need of high-speed broadband connectivity for both business and consumer segments. 5G FWA, a powerful platform providing fiber-like broadband service, will be accelerating the FWA market.

Global technology intelligence firm ABI Research forecasts that in 2026, the FWA market will exceed 180 million subscriptions and generate $70 billion in revenue. The 5G FWA market will then account for 40% of total FWA market. Since 5G deployments continue to accelerate, operators are taking advantage of the 5G technology to provide high capacity FWA services. High-speed and low latency supported by 5G networks enable providers to offer an attractive alternative to fixed broadband services in the areas where fiber-optic broadband doesn’t reach.

“5G FWA services can be deployed faster and at lower cost compared to installing FTTH. Faster time-to-market at a lower CAPEX is the key advantage of FWA deployments to expand the service coverage and boost adoption,” explains Khin Sandi Lynn, industry analyst at ABI Research.