Rise Broadband Rebrands as Rise Internet
Rise Broadband announced it is rebranding as Rise Internet, signaling a shift toward stronger connectivity and customer experience. The company plans to extend service to 3.2 million Texas households and businesses within 12 months, leveraging Wi‑Fi 7 and gigabit speeds. It also moved its headquarters to the Dallas‑Fort Worth area and opened a new call center creating over 100 jobs. Rise Internet continues to serve customers in 16 states while pursuing broader national growth.
States Push to Redirect BEAD Excess Funds Toward Public Safety Gaps
State broadband leaders from Virginia, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont are urging the Federal Communications Commission to allocate the $21 million of excess BEAD (Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment) funds toward public‑safety and emergency‑management projects. They cite dead zones that leave...
Telecom Act Aides Say Partisanship Is Behind Lack of Universal Service, Broadband Access
John Windhausen, a staff architect of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, warned that partisan politics have stalled universal broadband, leaving up to 15% of Americans offline. He cited delays in the BEAD program and insufficient, poorly overseen Universal Service Fund financing...
FCC, DOJ Defend USF to Fifth Circuit
The FCC and DOJ are defending the $8 billion‑per‑year Universal Service Fund (USF) before the Fifth Circuit, arguing the program complies with the Constitution. The challenge, filed by Consumers’ Research, targets the “additional” and “advanced” service provisions that allow subsidies for...
U.S. Should Streamline Spectrum Allocation, Congressional Report Says
The U.S.-China Economic Security and Review Commission released a report urging Congress to direct the FCC and the NTIA to study ways to streamline spectrum allocation. It highlights China’s rapid 5G licensing—completed within months—versus the United States’ slower, auction‑driven process...
Some BEAD Winners Seeing Tight Fiber Market
Rural broadband providers participating in the $42.45 billion BEAD program are encountering unexpected cancellations of orders for Build America, Buy America‑compliant fiber. Prices for BABA‑qualified cable have surged roughly 40 percent, straining project budgets and timelines. Manufacturers such as Corning cite...
O’Rielly Wants Lutnick to Help Kill USDA’s Broadband Programs
Former FCC commissioner Michael O’Rielly wrote an op‑ed urging Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to block the renewal of three USDA broadband programs, arguing they duplicate the NTIA’s BEAD initiative and the FCC’s Universal Service Fund. O’Rielly points to $109 million in...
Study Says Universal Service Fund Critical for Rural Broadband
A new NTCA‑Cartesian report finds the $8.5 billion Universal Service Fund essential for keeping rural broadband and voice services viable. It shows that operating expenses in sparsely populated areas are about 44 % higher, with labor accounting for half of costs, leading...
Maryland ISP, State Agencies Spar Over FCC Preemption
Talkie Communication, a Maryland ISP, filed a petition with the FCC seeking preemption of state zoning rules and annual fees that it says block the deployment of fixed‑wireless equipment on a utility pole. Maryland state agencies and Queen Anne’s County...
Connecticut Law to Require Affordable Broadband for Eligible Households
Connecticut’s Net Equality Program, enacted in June 2025 and effective Oct. 1 2026, obligates ISPs with state contracts to provide a low‑cost broadband plan of $40 per month or less to households receiving public assistance. The law guarantees minimum speeds of 100 Mbps...
Sen. Blumenthal Announces Bill To Regulate Prediction Markets
Sen. Richard Blumenthal introduced the Prediction Markets Security and Integrity Act, targeting prediction‑market platforms that allow wagers on geopolitical events, insider trading, and underage gambling. The bill seeks to ban war‑related bets, impose consumer‑protection safeguards, and align these platforms with...
8 Years After Its Founding at Mobile World Congress, Can Open RAN Scale?
Eight years after its 2018 launch at Mobile World Congress, the O‑RAN Alliance is moving from proof‑of‑concept to large‑scale commercial deployment. Rakuten Mobile posted its first profit, operating a fully open, cloud‑native network for 10.2 million subscribers across 350,000 cells. Major...
Wireless Industry: Light Poles Covered Under Pole Access Rules
The wireless industry, represented by CTIA, has asked the FCC to confirm that utility‑owned light poles fall under Section 224 of the Communications Act, granting statutory pole‑attachment rights. Clarifying that light poles are “poles” would give carriers clear authority to...
Cable One’s Sparklight Launches Mobile Service with Free Line Promotion
Cable One’s Sparklight brand has rolled out Sparklight Mobile, a prepaid wireless service available only to its broadband subscribers. The launch includes a limited‑time promotion that gives eligible customers one unlimited talk‑and‑text line free for twelve months. Three data tiers...
Verizon Closes Starry Acquisition
Verizon announced the closing of its acquisition of fixed‑wireless provider Starry, adding proprietary MDU‑focused technology to its portfolio. The deal, disclosed at a Deutsche Bank telecom conference, expands Verizon’s fixed‑wireless capacity as it moves from macro C‑band sites to small‑cell...
Michigan Lawmakers Propose Letting Voters Elect Utility Regulators
Michigan lawmakers introduced a bill to make the three‑member Public Service Commission elected rather than governor‑appointed, expanding it to five members. The measure would place the positions on statewide ballots beginning in 2028, with staggered four‑year terms and a 12‑year...
Trump Wants Court to Toss Suit Trying to Protect Digital Equity Act
The federal government has moved to dismiss the National Digital Inclusion Alliance’s lawsuit challenging the termination of the Digital Equity Act’s funding. The motion argues the program’s race‑based grant criteria violate the Fifth Amendment’s equal‑protection clause and that the district...
Federal Circuit Sends Spectrum Property Rights Case Back for More Briefing
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit remanded Ligado Communications' claim that the Department of Defense’s use of spectrum interferes with its FCC‑granted license, citing insufficient factual detail to decide whether such licenses constitute property rights. The panel...
Malik Khan: The Beginning of a Post-Satellite Era for B2B Media Distribution?
The FCC’s ongoing C‑band auctions have stripped B2B media distributors of roughly 60% of their satellite spectrum, and a second auction of Upper C‑band is slated for mid‑2027. Broadcasters now face a shrinking pool of transponder capacity and must redesign...
City of Bellevue In Iowa to Sunset Cable TV, Citing Streaming Network Competition
The City of Bellevue, Iowa, announced it will discontinue its municipal cable television service on October 1, 2026 after nearly twenty years of operation. The decision cites mounting competition from streaming platforms and rising financial pressures. Residents were notified through...
Charter, Comcast Focused on Customer Service, Savings to Win Customers Back
Cable operators Charter and Comcast are doubling down on customer‑service initiatives and bundled pricing to stem broadband subscriber losses. Charter promises up to $1,000 annual savings when customers combine broadband with two mobile lines, while Comcast has introduced price‑lock, all‑inclusive...
Carr’s FCC Hands Historic Regulatory Victory to African-American TV Station Owner
The FCC granted a waiver allowing DuJuan McCoy’s Circle City Broadcasting to purchase Indianapolis ABC affiliate WRTV from Scripps for $83 million, exceeding the agency’s two‑stations‑per‑market rule. Media Bureau Chief Erin Boone ruled the exception would not harm competition and would protect local...
Cable One Down 10.9k Subs, Shentel Up 5.4k
Cable One shed 10,900 broadband subscribers in Q4 2025, a smaller decline than the 21,300 lost in Q3, as disconnect rates improved. CFO Todd Koetje cited intense competition from fixed‑wireless and fiber overbuilds and a challenging macro environment. New CEO Jim...
New Bill Would Impose Shot Clocks on FCC Merger Reviews
Two bipartisan lawmakers introduced the Keep It Moving Act to impose strict shot clocks on Federal Communications Commission merger reviews, formalizing the agency's informal 180‑day deadline. If the FCC exceeds the timeline, applicants could seek a court order to compel...
Charter Warns California Delay Could Jeopardize Cox Merger Timeline
Charter Communications has asked the California Public Utilities Commission to render a decision on its proposed acquisition of Cox Communications by July 16, 2026. The request stems from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Hart‑Scott‑Rodino antitrust clearance, which expires on September...
