The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is poised to include new broadband affordability requirements as part of the state’s looming approval of Verizon’s massive $20 billion merger with Frontier Communications, even as some consumer advocacy groups worry the changes may not go quite far enough to hold Verizon accountable.

The CPUC’s Public Advocates Office has struck a partial settlement with Verizon that the state hopes will take some of the sting out of the telecom industry’s latest consolidation spree.

Verizon’s $20 billion proposed merger with Frontier would merge two of the nation’s top four traditional phone companies, resulting in a telecom giant with assets across 31 states. The merged new company would have more than 9.6 million customers with a fiber network that ultimately passes more than 25 million fiber homes and businesses.

While the two companies don’t directly compete, Verizon’s political influence and market power will still increase. Both companies have long been criticized for lobbying to undermine U.S. broadband competition, then leveraging the resulting regional market failure to jack up consumer costs and neglecting aging DSL network upgrades and repairs.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is poised to include new broadband affordability requirements as part of the state’s looming approval of Verizon’s massive $20 billion merger with Frontier Communications, even as some consumer advocacy groups worry the changes may not go quite far enough to hold Verizon accountable.

The CPUC’s Public Advocates Office has struck a partial settlement with Verizon that the state hopes will take some of the sting out of the telecom industry’s latest consolidation spree.

Verizon’s $20 billion proposed merger with Frontier would merge two of the nation’s top four traditional phone companies, resulting in a telecom giant with assets across 31 states. The merged new company would have more than 9.6 million customers with a fiber network that ultimately passes more than 25 million fiber homes and businesses.

While the two companies don’t directly compete, Verizon’s political influence and market power will still increase. Both companies have long been criticized for lobbying to undermine U.S. broadband competition, then leveraging the resulting regional market failure to jack up consumer costs and neglecting aging DSL network upgrades and repairs.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is poised to include new broadband affordability requirements as part of the state’s looming approval of Verizon’s massive $20 billion merger with Frontier Communications, even as some consumer advocacy groups worry the changes may not go quite far enough to hold Verizon accountable.

The CPUC’s Public Advocates Office has struck a partial settlement with Verizon that the state hopes will take some of the sting out of the telecom industry’s latest consolidation spree.

Verizon’s $20 billion proposed merger with Frontier would merge two of the nation’s top four traditional phone companies, resulting in a telecom giant with assets across 31 states. The merged new company would have more than 9.6 million customers with a fiber network that ultimately passes more than 25 million fiber homes and businesses.

While the two companies don’t directly compete, Verizon’s political influence and market power will still increase. Both companies have long been criticized for lobbying to undermine U.S. broadband competition, then leveraging the resulting regional market failure to jack up consumer costs and neglecting aging DSL network upgrades and repairs.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is poised to include new broadband affordability requirements as part of the state’s looming approval of Verizon’s massive $20 billion merger with Frontier Communications, even as some consumer advocacy groups worry the changes may not go quite far enough to hold Verizon accountable.

The CPUC’s Public Advocates Office has struck a partial settlement with Verizon that the state hopes will take some of the sting out of the telecom industry’s latest consolidation spree.

Verizon’s $20 billion proposed merger with Frontier would merge two of the nation’s top four traditional phone companies, resulting in a telecom giant with assets across 31 states. The merged new company would have more than 9.6 million customers with a fiber network that ultimately passes more than 25 million fiber homes and businesses.

While the two companies don’t directly compete, Verizon’s political influence and market power will still increase. Both companies have long been criticized for lobbying to undermine U.S. broadband competition, then leveraging the resulting regional market failure to jack up consumer costs and neglecting aging DSL network upgrades and repairs.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is poised to include new broadband affordability requirements as part of the state’s looming approval of Verizon’s massive $20 billion merger with Frontier Communications, even as some consumer advocacy groups worry the changes may not go quite far enough to hold Verizon accountable.

The CPUC’s Public Advocates Office has struck a partial settlement with Verizon that the state hopes will take some of the sting out of the telecom industry’s latest consolidation spree.

Verizon’s $20 billion proposed merger with Frontier would merge two of the nation’s top four traditional phone companies, resulting in a telecom giant with assets across 31 states. The merged new company would have more than 9.6 million customers with a fiber network that ultimately passes more than 25 million fiber homes and businesses.

While the two companies don’t directly compete, Verizon’s political influence and market power will still increase. Both companies have long been criticized for lobbying to undermine U.S. broadband competition, then leveraging the resulting regional market failure to jack up consumer costs and neglecting aging DSL network upgrades and repairs.

The second installment in the ongoing Community Broadband Film Series spotlights  “Rocketeers: The UTOPIA Fiber Story” – an eye-opening documentary that tells the story of how a publicly-owned fiber network has ignited local Internet choice and competition across dozens of cities, delivering connectivity at the speed of light.

Hosted by ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), the screening will be streamed to a live audience on September 3 at 4pm ET.

Register now for the virtual event here.

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The event  will begin with a screening of the 24-minute film and then treat attendees to a live Red Carpet discussion with UTOPIA Fiber CEO Roger Timmerman and key leaders of two communities that are now part of the fast growing UTOPIA network – Sid Boswell, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber in Bozeman, Montana; and Bountiful, Utah Councilmember Kate Bradshaw.

The discussion will be moderated by AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn and ILSR’s own Sean Gonsalves, the Community Broadband Network team’s Associate Director for Communications.

On the virtual red carpet, the special guests will dive into UTOPIA Fiber's open-access journey and the network of people bringing future-proof connectivity and local Internet choice to thousands of homes and businesses.

Bring your popcorn and join us for another exciting showcase of how local communities are seizing control of their digital futures.

The second installment in the ongoing Community Broadband Film Series spotlights  “Rocketeers: The UTOPIA Fiber Story” – an eye-opening documentary that tells the story of how a publicly-owned fiber network has ignited local Internet choice and competition across dozens of cities, delivering connectivity at the speed of light.

Hosted by ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), the screening will be streamed to a live audience on September 3 at 4pm ET.

Register now for the virtual event here.

Image

The event  will begin with a screening of the 24-minute film and then treat attendees to a live Red Carpet discussion with UTOPIA Fiber CEO Roger Timmerman and key leaders of two communities that are now part of the fast growing UTOPIA network – Sid Boswell, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber in Bozeman, Montana; and Bountiful, Utah Councilmember Kate Bradshaw.

The discussion will be moderated by AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn and ILSR’s own Sean Gonsalves, the Community Broadband Network team’s Associate Director for Communications.

On the virtual red carpet, the special guests will dive into UTOPIA Fiber's open-access journey and the network of people bringing future-proof connectivity and local Internet choice to thousands of homes and businesses.

Bring your popcorn and join us for another exciting showcase of how local communities are seizing control of their digital futures.

The second installment in the ongoing Community Broadband Film Series spotlights  “Rocketeers: The UTOPIA Fiber Story” – an eye-opening documentary that tells the story of how a publicly-owned fiber network has ignited local Internet choice and competition across dozens of cities, delivering connectivity at the speed of light.

Hosted by ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), the screening will be streamed to a live audience on September 3 at 4pm ET.

Register now for the virtual event here.

Image

The event  will begin with a screening of the 24-minute film and then treat attendees to a live Red Carpet discussion with UTOPIA Fiber CEO Roger Timmerman and key leaders of two communities that are now part of the fast growing UTOPIA network – Sid Boswell, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber in Bozeman, Montana; and Bountiful, Utah Councilmember Kate Bradshaw.

The discussion will be moderated by AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn and ILSR’s own Sean Gonsalves, the Community Broadband Network team’s Associate Director for Communications.

On the virtual red carpet, the special guests will dive into UTOPIA Fiber's open-access journey and the network of people bringing future-proof connectivity and local Internet choice to thousands of homes and businesses.

Bring your popcorn and join us for another exciting showcase of how local communities are seizing control of their digital futures.

The second installment in the ongoing Community Broadband Film Series spotlights  “Rocketeers: The UTOPIA Fiber Story” – an eye-opening documentary that tells the story of how a publicly-owned fiber network has ignited local Internet choice and competition across dozens of cities, delivering connectivity at the speed of light.

Hosted by ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), the screening will be streamed to a live audience on September 3 at 4pm ET.

Register now for the virtual event here.

Image

The event  will begin with a screening of the 24-minute film and then treat attendees to a live Red Carpet discussion with UTOPIA Fiber CEO Roger Timmerman and key leaders of two communities that are now part of the fast growing UTOPIA network – Sid Boswell, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber in Bozeman, Montana; and Bountiful, Utah Councilmember Kate Bradshaw.

The discussion will be moderated by AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn and ILSR’s own Sean Gonsalves, the Community Broadband Network team’s Associate Director for Communications.

On the virtual red carpet, the special guests will dive into UTOPIA Fiber's open-access journey and the network of people bringing future-proof connectivity and local Internet choice to thousands of homes and businesses.

Bring your popcorn and join us for another exciting showcase of how local communities are seizing control of their digital futures.

The second installment in the ongoing Community Broadband Film Series spotlights  “Rocketeers: The UTOPIA Fiber Story” – an eye-opening documentary that tells the story of how a publicly-owned fiber network has ignited local Internet choice and competition across dozens of cities, delivering connectivity at the speed of light.

Hosted by ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the American Association for Public Broadband (AAPB), the screening will be streamed to a live audience on September 3 at 4pm ET.

Register now for the virtual event here.

Image

The event  will begin with a screening of the 24-minute film and then treat attendees to a live Red Carpet discussion with UTOPIA Fiber CEO Roger Timmerman and key leaders of two communities that are now part of the fast growing UTOPIA network – Sid Boswell, CEO of Yellowstone Fiber in Bozeman, Montana; and Bountiful, Utah Councilmember Kate Bradshaw.

The discussion will be moderated by AAPB Executive Director Gigi Sohn and ILSR’s own Sean Gonsalves, the Community Broadband Network team’s Associate Director for Communications.

On the virtual red carpet, the special guests will dive into UTOPIA Fiber's open-access journey and the network of people bringing future-proof connectivity and local Internet choice to thousands of homes and businesses.

Bring your popcorn and join us for another exciting showcase of how local communities are seizing control of their digital futures.