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Industry witnesses tell Assembly competition and investment have driven broadband prices down; warn against targeted surcharges
Summary
At an Assembly informational hearing on broadband affordability, US Telecom and CTIA witnesses said real prices for common broadband plans have fallen and credited competition and massive private investment; they urged policymakers to remove regulatory barriers to deployment and cautioned that flat surcharges would disproportionately hit wireless consumers.
Industry witnesses told the California State Assembly Communications and Conveyance Committee that competition and sustained infrastructure investment, not price regulation, have been the main drivers of lower broadband costs for many consumers. Lynn Follinsbee, vice president of strategic initiatives and partnerships at US Telecom, testified that "real prices for the most popular broadband plans ... fell 8.7% in just 1 year," and said gigabit prices also declined in recent years even as overall consumer inflation rose.
Follinsbee acknowledged California faces higher-than-average deployment costs and identified several causes: permitting delays, higher taxes, widespread copper theft and vandalism, and regulatory obligations that, in her words, force some providers to "run…
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