FCC Mulling Free Broadband Plan, Again

What’s old is new again at the FCC, it seems. The commission has tipped its hand that the forthcoming national broadband plan will suggest the idea of allocating a swath of spectrum for a free or low-cost wireless broadband network to spur adoption of high-speed service.

Of course, that sounds very similar to a proposal that’s been before the commission for several years, inviting the possibility that the clash between the idea’s backer, M2Z, and T-Mobile, which worries about spectrum interference, could again reemerge. Enterprise Networking Planet has the story.

When the Federal Communications Commission delivers its national broadband plan to Congress next week, it will include a litany of recommendations for addressing the demand side of the digital divide. For millions of Americans, broadband service is available, but they simply choose not to subscribe.

But what if it were free?

That could certainly sweeten the deal. Among the proposals to get more people online with high-speed connections that the FCC will suggest in the plan is to “consider use of spectrum for a free or very low-cost wireless broadband service.”

If that sounds familiar, there’s a reason.

Read the full story at Enterprise Networking Planet:


Free Broadband Plan Could Be Back on the Table