Indie cable ops encouraged to play offense and defense with BEAD

MINNEAPOLIS – THE INDEPENDENT SHOW – Now that billions of dollars have been allocated to individual states for the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, independent operators here are being encouraged to play both offense and defense.

On the offensive side, small and midsized operators should be on the lookout for build opportunities in adjacent and nearby areas. On the defensive end, they should also keep a close eye on the ever-evolving FCC broadband map and be prepared to lodge challenges if it's possible that dollars might go to an area that is already being served with broadband and possibly fund a competitive overbuilder.

The FCC broadband map serves as the "bible" for determining unserved and underserved areas, Thomas Cohen, a lawyer with Kelley Drye & Warren, said Tuesday during a panel dedicated to regulatory issues facing independent operators. The map will change, so operators need to remain diligent and "stick with it," he added.

"You are all going to be involved whether you like it or not," Cohen said, predicting that all operators in the room will have to play some defense to avoid getting overbuilt.

'Clock is ticking'

To help operators get a fix on the maps, how dollars are being divvied up and where the opportunities are, ACA Connects, an organization that represents the interests of small and independent operators, and Cartesian recently posted the 3.1 version of a BEAD "framework" study.

Cohen said state broadband offices are drafting initial proposals on their five-year action plans, so operators need to be wary of those and determine whether to take an offensive or defensive position, or possibly both.

"The clock is ticking" after BEAD dollars were allocated on June 30, with states then having 180 days to come up with their initial proposals, Cohen said. While some states, like Louisiana, are already on top of it and could have proposals together relatively quickly, others, such as California, might use up all their time.

Importantly, those state proposals will provide details about their respective challenge processes, something expected to occur in the first half of 2024. Operators going on the offensive should prepare to put in proposals during the second half of 2024, when states start to go through the competitive process, Cohen said.

Operators should also be wary of the timing of next November's election, as politicians will be eager to do some "ribbon-cutting" on BEAD initiatives ahead of it, said Rhod Shaw, principal and chairman with the Alpine Group. The BEAD funding spigot will be "open full-throttle" before November 2024, he predicted.

Bracing for an ACP funding shortfall

The panel also discussed the funding gap that is hovering over the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which supplies monthly financial aid toward broadband services for qualified lower-income households. Without a remedy, ACP funding could run out sometime in 2024.

Some progress is being made on the issue, but it's clear that it will require a cross-party, joint appropriation in the US Senate to come to consensus, said Brian Hurley, chief regulatory counsel at ACA Connects.

BEAD, which has a requirement for low-income options, might be a source of aid, Cohen said. "At the end of the day, it [the ACP funding shortfall] is going to suck some money out of BEAD," he predicted.

'Buckle up' for a full FCC

Operators here were also encouraged to keep an eye on the FCC as it moves closer to confirming Anna Gomez as its third Democratic commissioner, with a possible vote following the Senate's August recess.

Though today's 2-2 split at the FCC has been dubbed a "deadlock" by some, Hurley noted that the FCC has been able to get plenty of nonpartisan work done, such as setting up the ACP and pushing ahead the broadband labeling proceeding.

But if Gomez is confirmed, "it will change the dynamic" at the Commission. The big issue is the expectation that the FCC will again try to reclassify broadband as a more highly-regulated Title II service as part of new network neutrality rules.

"Our members are very committed to Internet openness principles and net neutrality – that's never really been the primary concern," Hurley said. "It's really the Title II regime and the overhang of regulation there and you start to get into rate regulation and other types of regulations."

He added: "Buckle up, we're going to be busy going into the end of the year and into next year."

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— Jeff Baumgartner, Senior Editor, Light Reading