Joe Kane

Director of Broadband and Spectrum Policy at Information Technology and Innovation Foundation

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itif.org

Articles

Uncapped Fiber Fixation Can’t Close the Digital Divide

2 days ago | itif.org | Joe Kane

As states weigh how to reform their Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) programs, they face a stark and urgent tradeoff: Spend marginal dollars on reaching the last few unserved homes with fiber—or use those same dollars to help far more Americans actually adopt broadband. That tradeoff must be informed by three key facts:Lack of deployment accounts for just 3 percent of the digital divide. Adoption issues—such as lack of interest or affordability—account for 71 percent.
Comments to the FCC Regarding Identifying and Eliminating Unnecessary Rules and Regulations

1 week ago | itif.org | Joe Kane |Ellis Scherer

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) submits these comments in response to the Commission’s Public Notice on identifying and eliminating unnecessary FCC rules and regulations.[1]This retrospective review is a welcome opportunity to modernize the FCC’s regulatory framework in light of today’s rapidly evolving communications marketplace and the buildup of ill-advised or outdated rules. Rules gradually accrue over time, like barnacles on a ship.
Fiber Bias, Not Tech Neutrality, Delays BEAD Success

4 weeks ago | itif.org | Joe Kane

At today’s confirmation hearing for Arielle Roth, President Trump’s nominee to head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, some Senators expressed concerns that removing the bias toward fiber deployment in the $42 billion Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) program will delay getting broadband to people.
Texas Cracked the Code on Broadband Deployment. Now It Can Lead on Affordability.

1 month ago | itif.org | Joe Kane

Texas is shaping up to be a model of how efficient broadband deployment is our best tool for closing the digital divide. In a recent letter to Senator Ted Cruz, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Glenn Hegar, described how the state will complete universal broadband deployment and likely have “nearly $1 billion in funding” leftover from its Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program allocation.
Expression Over Radio Waves Is Not Exempt from the First Amendment

2 months ago | itif.org | Joe Kane

|February 11, 2025In a recent op-ed, Joe Kane examines the legal foundations of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) authority to regulate broadcast content, especially in light of FCC Chairman Brendan Carr's reinstatement of complaints against broadcasters for their 2024 election coverage.
BEAD Needs All Technologies to Succeed

Jan 21, 2025 | benton.org | Joe Kane

The $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program faces serious hurdles in its goal to “make sure that every American has access to reliable, affordable, high-speed Internet.”For one, traditional broadband is capital intensive, requiring large initial investments to deploy infrastructure.
A Blueprint for Broadband Affordability

Jan 13, 2025 | benton.org | Joe Kane

Private and federal broadband investments have achieved universal broadband deployment throughout the United States. Still, barriers that prevent some households from accessing the Internet remain. This lack of broadband adoption, not lack of deployment, is the central reason for the remaining digital divide. Therefore, identifying and addressing barriers to broadband adoption should be the core of broadband policy.
A Blueprint for Broadband Affordability

Jan 13, 2025 | itif.org | Joe Kane

KEY TAKEAWAYSOngoing private and federal investments combined with new technologies such as ubiquitous low earth orbit satellite coverage have made universal broadband deployment a reality. Lack of deployment is no longer a cause of the digital divide. One major cause of the digital divide is lack of affordability, and funding priorities should shift from deployment to a targeted affordability program.
Opposition to Petitions to Deny Applications of T-Mobile and US Cellular For Consent To Transfer Control of Licenses and Authorizations

Jan 10, 2025 | itif.org | Joe Kane

|January 10, 2025The Commission should reject the petitions to deny the applications of T-Mobile US, Inc. (T-Mobile) and United States Cellular Corporation (UScellular) for consent to transfer control of licenses and authorizations because, contrary to the conclusory statements of those petitions, the deal would be in the public interest.
Nevada’s BEAD Plan is Shortchanging Real Digital Divide Progress

Dec 19, 2024 | itif.org | Joe Kane

Nevada’s provisional choices for how to spend its share of the $42.45 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program reflect a misunderstanding of the digital divide. To be fair, this misunderstanding is coming from the top: Nevada’s plan needs the approval of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), whose guidance requires strong preferences for costly fiber projects at the expense of addressing more widespread causes of the digital divide.