Make Affordable Internet at Home Possible — It Is Up to You!

The California Emerging Technology Fund, which is a legal party before both the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in the Comcast Corporation application to acquire Time Warner Cable (TWC) and trade serve areas with Charter Communications, is very grateful for the opportunity to work with more than 120 community and civic leadership organizations to document the facts about the Comcast problems in implementing their Internet Essentials program and to mobilize people across the nation to call for Internet For All Now. We also appreciate the time that FCC and CPUC Commissioners and professional staff have taken to review the legal filings and to listen to our input. Given that Comcast declined to offer a significant public benefit as part of the proposed merger, it is wise that this corporate consolidation has been abandoned. Now the FCC and other regulators can turn immediately to the imperative of developing a Broadband Lifeline Program-a widely-available affordable rate for all low-income households coupled with funding for community-based organizations, schools and libraries as “trusted messengers” to reach the target populations. The 25% of Americans and Californians who are not connected at home are being left behind at an accelerating pace in a digital economy. Thus, time is of the essence and we call upon federal and state regulators and policymakers to take immediate action.