Six more states released their proposed awards in the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program last week. The awards were made under the new rules for the program established in June. Awards will not be final until they are approved by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).
The BEAD recommendations vary considerably among the six states: Arkansas, Colorado, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, and Pennsylvania.
Arkansas
Arkansas was able to award funding to make broadband available to all eligible locations in the state. More than three-quarters (76%) of locations will get fiber broadband, with 16% getting low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite, 7% getting licensed fixed wireless, and 1% getting “hybrid” technologies.
“Arkansas’ total BEAD grant outlay stands at $308.3 million, a savings of more than $275 million compared to the prior version of the program,” wrote Arkansas State Broadband Director Glen E. Howie, Jr., in a message accompanying the state’s final proposal, which is available for public comment. The biggest winners , measured in dollars, were Hometown Internet and Aristotle Unified Communications, followed by Brightspeed and Comcast. Both LEO operators — SpaceX and Amazon Kuiper — are slated to receive funding.
Arkansas BEAD Benefit of the Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
Entities awarded less than $50k appear as zero due to rounding.
Colorado
Recommendations are considerably different in Colorado, where 60% of locations will be served by satellite or fixed wireless, with most of the 60% going toward satellite, according to New Street Research (NSR). Under the initial rules, only 30% of locations would have been served by fixed wireless or satellite, NSR said.
Amazon won considerably more funding than SpaceX ($25.3 million versus $9.2 million for Space X).
The biggest winners, measured in dollars, were Maverix Broadband and Inventive Wireless of NE.
Colorado BEAD Benefit of the Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
Maine
Maine had a relatively small BEAD budget, and funding will go to just five companies. Most locations (85.7%) will get fiber broadband, while 14% will get LEO satellite, and .03% will get hybrid fiber coax (HFC).
All the LEO funding ($6.8 million) will go to SpaceX.
Maine BEAD Benefit of Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
Montana
Montana is another state that will be relying heavily on LEO satellites, where SpaceX was the biggest winner, measured in dollars. The company is slated to take home $119.3 million there. Amazon Kuiper also won $25.9 million.
The second and third biggest winners — Gallatin Wireless and Inland MT — plan to use a mix of fiber and fixed wireless. Montana’s awards cover all eligible locations in the state, according to the state’s final proposal.
Montana BEAD Benefit of Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
North Dakota
North Dakota also had a relatively small BEAD budget, with just two providers appearing on the state’s awards list. BEK Communications is slated to receive $6.5 million for fiber broadband. Midco is slated to receive about $200,000 for fiber and HFC deployments.
North Dakota BEAD Benefit of the Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
Pennsylvania
Although Pennsylvania didn’t provide a breakdown of awards by technology, it appears to rely heavily on wired options. The biggest winners were Comcast and Verizon, at $228.9 million and $121 million, respectively.)
Amazon and SpaceX both won funding, however. Amazon is slated to receive $10.8 million, and SpaceX is slated to receive $8.1 million.
Pennsylvania BEAD Benefit of the Bargain Awardees (Proposed)
Entities awarded less than $50k appear as zero due to rounding.
With BEAD final proposals due to NTIA by September 4, the next two weeks promise to be busy ones at state broadband offices nationwide.
