{"id":13900,"date":"2020-07-13T06:31:35","date_gmt":"2020-07-13T10:31:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mhgoldberg.com\/blog\/?p=13900"},"modified":"2020-07-12T17:59:42","modified_gmt":"2020-07-12T21:59:42","slug":"no-government-funds-for-broadband-in-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mhgoldberg.com\/blog\/?p=13900","title":{"rendered":"No government funds for broadband in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s already too late for government broadband funding programs to help rural Canadians get better broadband this year. But, there are still ways that governments can (and should) support new investment.<\/p>\n

A few weeks ago, I wrote “Announcing a coming announcement”<\/a>, which mentioned Ontario’s re-announcement of a program first announced almost a year ago. Last week, the Ontario Government finally released the application guide for ICON – Improved Connectivity for Ontario<\/a>. For the first round of funding, applications are due August 21 and the government will consider projects that only require up to 25% in provincial support. A little more digging into the Program Guide<\/a> [released by the government in Word docx<\/a> format] reveals that funding offers won’t be made until April 21, 2021, so construction may actually begin in the summer of 2021. <\/p>\n

In the case of federal funding, recall that<\/a> Rural Economic Development Minister Maryam Monsef told the Rural and Remote Broadband Conference that a call for applications for the Universal Broadband Fund would be released “in the coming days”<\/a>. That was over a month ago. <\/p>\n

I think we are now well past “in the coming days”, we’re past “in the coming weeks”, and now have to score this one as “in the coming months”. <\/p>\n

Remember, this is just to get to the point of announcing the application process. Not a single government subsidized shovel will go in the ground in 2020 to help extend the reach of high speed broadband service for rural Canadians. <\/p>\n

It is sometimes painful to watch the glacial pace of government responding to the need for more investment in broadband facilities. <\/p>\n

All hope should not be lost, however. <\/p>\n

There is still private investment being made. For months, there have been announcements of fibre routes being extended and fixed wireless capacity expansions from carriers large and small. And as I wrote<\/a>, the federal government can accelerate rural broadband expansion with immediate effect by simply reducing spectrum fees now, instead of waiting until next April 1. Recall<\/a>, the reduced fee schedule was originally set for 2020, but was delayed a year for no apparent reason.<\/p>\n

Not all investment in rural broadband needs to come from government coffers. Government funding of broadband distorts the marketplace. When government funds are provided to one service provider, it has a permanent advantage over its competitors. <\/p>\n

What is needed from governments, at all levels, is to enact policy in ways that encourage increased private sector investment in new facilities. <\/p>\n

Every policy pronouncement, every regulatory ruling, needs to be examined through lens that asks “will this help get broadband extended or expanded for more people?” We have a national service objective that we need to keep in focus. <\/p>\n

In the meantime, the overhang from potential government funding announcements<\/a> has the potential to delay private sector investment.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the promise of next year’s lower spectrum fees for point-to-point connections is delaying investment in upgrading umbilical connections to rural broadband radio towers, delaying service upgrades, and delaying availability for new subscriber connections. As I suggested 2 weeks ago<\/a>, the federal government should advance the implementation of the new fee schedule to take effect immediately.<\/p>\n

Fixing this needs to be a priority for the federal government. It will likely delivery the greatest impact for the least cost. <\/p>\n

More than 10% of Canadians still don’t have a residential broadband connection. The next school year opens in a month and a half and for many, we are looking at more online learning. <\/p>\n

How can government move faster to get more broadband access, and faster broadband access, available to more people? <\/p>\n

Sometimes, it can be easy as getting out of the way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s already too late for government broadband funding programs to help rural Canadians get better broadband this year. But, there are still ways that governments can (and should) support new investment. A few weeks ago, I wrote “Announcing a coming announcement”, which mentioned Ontario’s re-announcement of a program first announced almost a year ago. Last …<\/p>\n

No government funds for broadband in 2020<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","two_page_speed":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13900","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nNo government funds for broadband in 2020 • Telecom Trends<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It's already too late for government broadband funding programs to help rural Canadians get better broadband this year. 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