Some of the nation’s leading thinkers and doers in the community broadband sector will connect and collaborate in the nation’s capital for the inaugural Community First: The Future of Public Broadband Conference and Hill Day next week.

Slated for May 14 and 15, the two-day conference is being hosted by the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) and New America Open Technology Institute (OTI), in partnership with ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and the Community Broadband Action Network.

The in-person gathering will bring together public broadband champions, community leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to focus on strategy and advocacy in the face of potentially dramatic changes to the $42.5 billion BEAD program – the single-largest federal investment to ensure every household in the nation has access to high speed Internet connectivity.

Registration and tickets are still available here.

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With the rise of community-owned broadband networks and cooperatives now flourishing across the nation, organizers are hoping to create “an essential space to share best practices, discuss financing, shape public policy, and support the development and expansion of public broadband networks.”

Some of the nation’s leading thinkers and doers in the community broadband sector will connect and collaborate in the nation’s capital for the inaugural Community First: The Future of Public Broadband Conference and Hill Day next week.

Slated for May 14 and 15, the two-day conference is being hosted by the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) and New America Open Technology Institute (OTI), in partnership with ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and the Community Broadband Action Network.

The in-person gathering will bring together public broadband champions, community leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to focus on strategy and advocacy in the face of potentially dramatic changes to the $42.5 billion BEAD program – the single-largest federal investment to ensure every household in the nation has access to high speed Internet connectivity.

Registration and tickets are still available here.

Image

With the rise of community-owned broadband networks and cooperatives now flourishing across the nation, organizers are hoping to create “an essential space to share best practices, discuss financing, shape public policy, and support the development and expansion of public broadband networks.”

Some of the nation’s leading thinkers and doers in the community broadband sector will connect and collaborate in the nation’s capital for the inaugural Community First: The Future of Public Broadband Conference and Hill Day next week.

Slated for May 14 and 15, the two-day conference is being hosted by the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) and New America Open Technology Institute (OTI), in partnership with ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and the Community Broadband Action Network.

The in-person gathering will bring together public broadband champions, community leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to focus on strategy and advocacy in the face of potentially dramatic changes to the $42.5 billion BEAD program – the single-largest federal investment to ensure every household in the nation has access to high speed Internet connectivity.

Registration and tickets are still available here.

Image

With the rise of community-owned broadband networks and cooperatives now flourishing across the nation, organizers are hoping to create “an essential space to share best practices, discuss financing, shape public policy, and support the development and expansion of public broadband networks.”

Some of the nation’s leading thinkers and doers in the community broadband sector will connect and collaborate in the nation’s capital for the inaugural Community First: The Future of Public Broadband Conference and Hill Day next week.

Slated for May 14 and 15, the two-day conference is being hosted by the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) and New America Open Technology Institute (OTI), in partnership with ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and the Community Broadband Action Network.

The in-person gathering will bring together public broadband champions, community leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to focus on strategy and advocacy in the face of potentially dramatic changes to the $42.5 billion BEAD program – the single-largest federal investment to ensure every household in the nation has access to high speed Internet connectivity.

Registration and tickets are still available here.

Image

With the rise of community-owned broadband networks and cooperatives now flourishing across the nation, organizers are hoping to create “an essential space to share best practices, discuss financing, shape public policy, and support the development and expansion of public broadband networks.”

Some of the nation’s leading thinkers and doers in the community broadband sector will connect and collaborate in the nation’s capital for the inaugural Community First: The Future of Public Broadband Conference and Hill Day next week.

Slated for May 14 and 15, the two-day conference is being hosted by the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB) and New America Open Technology Institute (OTI), in partnership with ILSR's Community Broadband Networks Initiative, the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, and the Community Broadband Action Network.

The in-person gathering will bring together public broadband champions, community leaders, policymakers, and industry experts to focus on strategy and advocacy in the face of potentially dramatic changes to the $42.5 billion BEAD program – the single-largest federal investment to ensure every household in the nation has access to high speed Internet connectivity.

Registration and tickets are still available here.

Image

With the rise of community-owned broadband networks and cooperatives now flourishing across the nation, organizers are hoping to create “an essential space to share best practices, discuss financing, shape public policy, and support the development and expansion of public broadband networks.”

Nearly one year ago on November 15, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained significant legislation around broadband. One piece, which the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has studied closely over the past year and a half, is the implementation of a broadband nutrition label which would require the transparent disclosure of broadband pricing and service information.

While this issue gets very little news coverage, it is an important undertaking as the big providers have a long-established habit of hiding pricing and speed information from subscribers, which prevents them from making informed choices and can leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Our advocacy for the label, and the original research behind our position, can be found here. The FCC is now under deadline to release an order to “promulgate regulations to require the display of” the label by November 15 of this year. We’ve taken a moment here to re-access the issue, offer a few updates, and highlight the ingredients of a strong broadband nutrition label. 

Pushing for Clarity, Easy Accessibility, and Enforcement

ILSR, along with 30 other digital equity organizations, recently filed a letter to the FCC supporting the creation of the broadband consumer label and advocating that it be published in a way that makes it clear and easily accessible for customers. While ILSR believes the label is a key decision-making tool and should be published at the point of sale, we reject proposals to limit the label’s display to the point-of-sale only. We emphasize in this letter that the label should also be published on the monthly bill to provide an additional provider accountability mechanism that allows customers to understand what they're paying for.  

Nearly one year ago on November 15, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained significant legislation around broadband. One piece, which the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has studied closely over the past year and a half, is the implementation of a broadband nutrition label which would require the transparent disclosure of broadband pricing and service information.

While this issue gets very little news coverage, it is an important undertaking as the big providers have a long-established habit of hiding pricing and speed information from subscribers, which prevents them from making informed choices and can leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Our advocacy for the label, and the original research behind our position, can be found here. The FCC is now under deadline to release an order to “promulgate regulations to require the display of” the label by November 15 of this year. We’ve taken a moment here to re-access the issue, offer a few updates, and highlight the ingredients of a strong broadband nutrition label. 

Pushing for Clarity, Easy Accessibility, and Enforcement

ILSR, along with 30 other digital equity organizations, recently filed a letter to the FCC supporting the creation of the broadband consumer label and advocating that it be published in a way that makes it clear and easily accessible for customers. While ILSR believes the label is a key decision-making tool and should be published at the point of sale, we reject proposals to limit the label’s display to the point-of-sale only. We emphasize in this letter that the label should also be published on the monthly bill to provide an additional provider accountability mechanism that allows customers to understand what they're paying for.  

Nearly one year ago on November 15, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained significant legislation around broadband. One piece, which the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has studied closely over the past year and a half, is the implementation of a broadband nutrition label which would require the transparent disclosure of broadband pricing and service information.

While this issue gets very little news coverage, it is an important undertaking as the big providers have a long-established habit of hiding pricing and speed information from subscribers, which prevents them from making informed choices and can leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Our advocacy for the label, and the original research behind our position, can be found here. The FCC is now under deadline to release an order to “promulgate regulations to require the display of” the label by November 15 of this year. We’ve taken a moment here to re-access the issue, offer a few updates, and highlight the ingredients of a strong broadband nutrition label. 

Pushing for Clarity, Easy Accessibility, and Enforcement

ILSR, along with 30 other digital equity organizations, recently filed a letter to the FCC supporting the creation of the broadband consumer label and advocating that it be published in a way that makes it clear and easily accessible for customers. While ILSR believes the label is a key decision-making tool and should be published at the point of sale, we reject proposals to limit the label’s display to the point-of-sale only. We emphasize in this letter that the label should also be published on the monthly bill to provide an additional provider accountability mechanism that allows customers to understand what they're paying for.  

Nearly one year ago on November 15, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained significant legislation around broadband. One piece, which the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has studied closely over the past year and a half, is the implementation of a broadband nutrition label which would require the transparent disclosure of broadband pricing and service information.

While this issue gets very little news coverage, it is an important undertaking as the big providers have a long-established habit of hiding pricing and speed information from subscribers, which prevents them from making informed choices and can leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Our advocacy for the label, and the original research behind our position, can be found here. The FCC is now under deadline to release an order to “promulgate regulations to require the display of” the label by November 15 of this year. We’ve taken a moment here to re-access the issue, offer a few updates, and highlight the ingredients of a strong broadband nutrition label. 

Pushing for Clarity, Easy Accessibility, and Enforcement

ILSR, along with 30 other digital equity organizations, recently filed a letter to the FCC supporting the creation of the broadband consumer label and advocating that it be published in a way that makes it clear and easily accessible for customers. While ILSR believes the label is a key decision-making tool and should be published at the point of sale, we reject proposals to limit the label’s display to the point-of-sale only. We emphasize in this letter that the label should also be published on the monthly bill to provide an additional provider accountability mechanism that allows customers to understand what they're paying for.  

Nearly one year ago on November 15, 2021, Congress passed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which contained significant legislation around broadband. One piece, which the Institute for Local Self-Reliance (ILSR) has studied closely over the past year and a half, is the implementation of a broadband nutrition label which would require the transparent disclosure of broadband pricing and service information.

While this issue gets very little news coverage, it is an important undertaking as the big providers have a long-established habit of hiding pricing and speed information from subscribers, which prevents them from making informed choices and can leave them vulnerable to exploitation. Our advocacy for the label, and the original research behind our position, can be found here. The FCC is now under deadline to release an order to “promulgate regulations to require the display of” the label by November 15 of this year. We’ve taken a moment here to re-access the issue, offer a few updates, and highlight the ingredients of a strong broadband nutrition label. 

Pushing for Clarity, Easy Accessibility, and Enforcement

ILSR, along with 30 other digital equity organizations, recently filed a letter to the FCC supporting the creation of the broadband consumer label and advocating that it be published in a way that makes it clear and easily accessible for customers. While ILSR believes the label is a key decision-making tool and should be published at the point of sale, we reject proposals to limit the label’s display to the point-of-sale only. We emphasize in this letter that the label should also be published on the monthly bill to provide an additional provider accountability mechanism that allows customers to understand what they're paying for.