Broadband Data: Closing the Digital Divide With Broadband Adoption Programs
While the COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on the digital divide in the United States, cable internet service providers have long been committed to providing connectivity to as many Americans as possible. Using a multi-pronged approach, at the start of the pandemic in 2020 cable ISPs responded to the global health crisis by further expanding their successful broadband adoption programs to more qualifying households. Over the past decade, low-cost broadband adoption programs have connected over 14 million Americans to the internet. These low-cost programs offer broadband service for as low
The Consistent Success of LGBTQ Inclusive Shows
June is LGBTQ pride month, a time to celebrate and reflect on progress made for LGBTQ people and a time to take a look at where things could be better. Over the last 25 years, GLAAD, a nonprofit that advocates for better LGBTQ representation in the entertainment world, has tracked the number of LGBTQ characters on TV. In that time, the amount of representation on screen has expanded far beyond those first years. That progress of getting LGBTQ characters on screen is an important step, but only the first one in creating a space for authentic queer stories. GLAAD has issued challenges to the TV
A Look Back at Remote Learning as the School Year Wraps up
June marks the start of summer, which also means the end of the school year and graduation celebrations. Millions of students and teachers had to adapt to a new style of academic instruction as classes went virtual when the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to close their doors in March 2020 and for a large part of the past year. While many schools reopened and offered hybrid learning plans this past spring, it's worth taking a look back at America's first year of remote learning and the lessons gleaned as graduates leave their respective schools to start on new paths and students get ready for
ViacomCBS Special Addresses Racism Against AAPI Community and Calls for Change
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI), and with the tragic rise in hate crimes against this community over the past year of the pandemic, it is more important than ever for media, television, and Hollywood to find ways to not only honor and celebrate their contributions, but to educate audiences about the discrimination and challenges that many of them undergo. To help with these efforts, ViacomCBS joined forces this month with the Asian American Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the MacArthur Foundation to raise awareness about acts of racism against Asian
How Broadband Met the Challenge and Is Ready for the Future
After an unprecedented past year, more Americans are not only connecting online a lot more to work, learn, and socialize, they are also recognizing and appreciating the reliability of their internet connections during the COVID-19 pandemic. This should come as no surprise given how America's broadband networks performed resiliently over the last year despite the historic surges in internet traffic that occurred when more people than ever before began working and learning remotely from home. According to a recent Morning Consult survey, 86% of American adults rate their internet as excellent or
Americans Highly Satisfied With Broadband Service
Recent polling by Morning Consult shows that Americans are overwhelmingly satisfied with their home internet service and are confident that broadband providers will continue to improve their networks to meet future needs. Consumers also favor targeted solutions to closing the remaining broadband gaps including dedicating government funding first to areas without any broadband service and permanently funding a subsidy to help low-income Americans purchase broadband service.
Cable Operators Begin to Roll Out Emergency Broadband Benefit
This past year has underscored the importance of broadband in the home more than ever before. During the COVID-19 pandemic, broadband connectivity has allowed millions of Americans to work and learn from home, to attend telehealth appointments, to connect with loved ones, and to continue a semblance of their pre-pandemic lives online. In recognition of this necessity and in response to the pandemic, Congress has provided the Federal Communications Commission with $3.2 billion to implement the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB) program. Beginning today, the EBB gives Americans who meet certain
Setting the Record Straight About Broadband Pricing
Some advocacy groups, like The Open Technology Institute (OTI), are repeating the assertion that prices for broadband service in the U.S. are significantly higher than in Europe and other countries around the world. That is just not true. And misinformation is not helpful to the critical discussion of how to get everyone in America connected. The statements that advocates often make don’t hold up when the cherry-picked data is subjected to closer scrutiny. No amount of repetition or volume changes these false claims. The OTI report has been soundly debunked (more than once) including in a new
Recognizing the Importance of School Partnerships During Teacher Appreciation Week
When the COVID-19 pandemic sent students home from school, many educators were forced to move their classes entirely online. This shift to distance learning was a significant endeavor, especially as some students did not have internet access at home. In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, NCTA celebrates the educators who rose to meet these new challenges. Teachers have gone to great lengths to continue the learning process online. As distance learning plans evolved, educators and broadband providers across the country collaborated to connect students and families in need. These partnerships
As Upstream Consumption Increases, Cable Networks Are Ready
With millions of people working and learning from home (via the internet) last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, America witnessed its biggest ever surge in internet traffic with spikes of 60% in some markets. Since last March, NCTA has tracked and published data showing how online usage has changed during the pandemic and how cable’s broadband networks have risen to the challenge of these traffic spikes. Not surprisingly, a new study by OpenVault found that upstream traffic consumption hit an all-time record in 2020, increasing by 63% between December 2019 to December 2020. This growth rate