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FCC considers free wireless internet service plan
The winner of a planned airwaves auction may be required to offer free wireless internet service, under plans considered by the FCC. The free internet service would reportedly have to cover wide areas of the nation within the next few years.
Several media sources report that the US telecoms regulator will, at its 12 Jun meeting, likely vote on an order establishing terms of a spectrum auction that could include a free internet service provision. A similar proposal was rejected last year.
Although the plan hasn't yet been finalised, the agency is hoping that it will boost the nation's broadband penetration. Over the past seven years, the US has fallen from fourth to fifteenth among 30 developed nations in the percentage of households that use a broadband internet service, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.
