The FCC Broadband Report You Didn't Hear About

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If you follow broadband policy, you probably know that last week the FCC released its annual Broadband Progress Report (often referred to as the Section 706 Report) in which it concludes (erroneously) that broadband is not being deployed in a reasonable and timely manner.

But did you hear about the other broadband report issued by the FCC last week, the one demonstrating how deployment and performance of broadband in the United States is far outpacing European broadband? Didn’t think so.

In conjunction with the well-known Section 706 Report that reviews the progress of broadband deployment in the U.S., Congress also requires the Commission to prepare an international comparison of broadband. While there was much fanfare surrounding the adoption of the 706 Report at the FCC’s public meeting last week, a separate report with the required international broadband comparison was released by the International Bureau without comment on Friday evening.

Given all the negative commentary from the FCC majority on the state of deployment in the U.S., you could be forgiven for thinking that the U.S. would not fare well in the international comparison. But in fact the FCC’s international report demonstrates that American broadband performance is well ahead of our friends in Europe.

How much better is the U.S. doing in deployment? Overall, 89 percent of American households have access to broadband at speeds of 30 Mbps (the broadband speed tracked in Europe), while only 68 percent of Europeans have access to 30 Mbps broadband.

What about rural broadband coverage? In the U.S., 58 percent of households had access to 30 Mbps broadband. The comparable number for Europe was 25 percent, notwithstanding the significantly higher population density of Europe.

But that’s not all. Not only do more Americans have access to fast broadband, but American broadband services also continue to perform more reliably than their European counterparts. As the FCC report concludes, “U.S. broadband providers are more effective than European providers in delivering promised speeds to consumers.” Indeed, the data show that, on average, American cable operators significantly exceed advertised speeds, even during peak periods, while European broadband providers deliver less than 90 percent of advertised speeds.

So notwithstanding the doom and gloom that was on display at the FCC’s meeting last week, the Commission’s own report confirms that the state of U.S. broadband continues to be extremely strong. The U.S. is much closer to universal deployment of broadband than Europe and American consumers can be more confident than European consumers that their broadband provider is delivering the advertised level of service.

Based on the comparison to European broadband, the FCC’s conclusion that deployment in the U.S. is not reasonable and timely is hard to fathom. It does not seem too much to ask that the FCC take its own factual findings seriously rather than continuing to perpetuate the fiction that American broadband is languishing.

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