The FCC has approved 13 smaller bidders to receive funding won in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction. The funding will go toward covering some of the costs of deploying broadband to unserved and underserved rural areas and had…
RDOF
Largest RDOF Winner LTD Broadband Accuses Attorney of “Egregious Misconduct”
LTD Broadband, which was the largest winning bidder in last year’s FCC Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction, has asked the commission to reconsider its decision involving the carrier’s application for eligible telecommunications carrier (ETC) status in California, alleging “egregious…
FCC Gets Pushback on RDOF Waiver Requests, But Some Big Winning Bidders Comply
The FCC is getting pushback on letters sent last month to 197 companies that had winning bids in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction. Each company received a list of census blocks for which it won funding to deploy…
Windstream CEO: Industry Should Not Repeat RDOF Mess, USF Reform Needed
Windstream CEO Tony Thomas addressed the fiber broadband industry today at Fiber Connect, taking place in Nashville. With a theme of Windstream’s growing broadband ambitions, Thomas also revealed he’s no fan of the RDOF program implementation and he is among…
FCC Ready to Authorize 48 RDOF Winning Bidders, Releases List of Defaults
The FCC today said it is ready to authorize $311 million in rural broadband funding to 48 companies that had winning bids in the RDOF (Rural Digital Opportunity Fund) auction. Also today, the commission released a list of RDOF defaults…
Charter Selects Gibson Technical Services for RDOF Buildout in 3 States
Gibson Technical Services has been selected by Charter Communications to build out 8,600 miles of full service construction across Louisiana, Alabama and North Carolina in an initiative partially funded by the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) program. Gibson, a subsidiary…
Senators Ask FCC Why RDOF Application Review is Taking So Long
Two senators have sent a letter to FCC Acting Chair Jessica Rosenworcel questioning why the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) long-form application review process is taking so long and asking for details about why and how much longer it’s going…
Heat is Giving Some SpaceX Starlink Users the Broadband Blues
It has been an unusually hot summer already, especially in the west. That heatwave is giving some SpaceX Starlink users some real trouble, in the form “thermal shutdowns,” where users are losing their internet connections from the satellite broadband service….
FCC Grants ETC Designation for Some of the Less Controversial RDOF Winning Bidders
The FCC announced yesterday that it has approved eligible telecommunications carrier (ETC) designation for 56 companies that had winning bids in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) auction. ETC designation is a requirement for participation in the RDOF program. Among…
Tombigbee Offers Details on CARES and RDOF Broadband Plans
Tombigbee Electric Cooperative provided some additional details about its plans for high-speed fiber broadband deployments in its home state of Alabama. The company received funding through the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) and the CARES Act to cover some costs…
XGS-PON or GPON or Something Better?
In a previous article, I made a case for why operators should consider deploying XGS-PON to gain the favor of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund’s (RDOF) prioritized support for services with faster speeds and lower latency. Making the switch to…
RCAP Act of 2021 Would Direct Spectrum Auction Proceeds To Rural Broadband
The Rural Connectivity Advancement Program (RCAP) Act of 2021 introduced in the Senate yesterday would direct 10% of revenues raised in FCC spectrum auctions toward rural broadband. If adopted, the bill would create a Rural Broadband Assessment and Deployment Fund…
