Information Technology and Innovation Foundation

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.

1 week ago | itif.org | Daniel Castro

|April 17, 2025One of the key principles of President Trump’s “America First” trade policy is to inject reciprocity into trade practices with partner nations. In other words, the United States should treat other countries the way they treat the United States. However, this policy requires looking beyond top-line tariff rates, as many countries use non-tariff barriers to penalize U.S. companies—especially in the digital economy.

1 week ago | itif.org | Robin Gaster

KEY TAKEAWAYSSmall modular reactors (SMRs) are the future of nuclear power, and they could become an important strategic export industry in the next two decades. SMRs must get to sufficient scale so they can become cost competitive with other energy sources including large reactors, renewables, and fossil fuels. DOE needs to develop independent assessment capabilities for SMRs (and other technologies) that focus on the pathway to price and performance parity (P3).

1 week ago | itif.org | Daniel Castro

Global online piracy costs the U.S. economy an estimated $29 billion a year, threatening millions of jobs in America’s creative industries—from film and television to music and video games. Foreign criminal organizations exploit weak intellectual property (IP) enforcement abroad and loopholes in U.S. law to run piracy sites that offer free access to stolen content. These sites often serve up malware along with movies, all while earning millions in ad revenue.

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.