The New England Cable and Telecommunications Association (NECTA) as well as Frontier Communications are voicing criticism over a report issued by the Office of Consumer Counsel criticizing high-speed broadband services in Connecticut.
Paul Cianelli, NECTA president, says the report is wrong, arguing it relied on hand-picked samples that it then extrapolated to include the entire state.
The report, “A Brief Overview of Broadband Deficiencies in Connecticut” claimed serious broadband challenges in the state including deficient speeds, limited or no affordable competitive options for broadband services for businesses in urban areas, delays in service, and a significant need for investments to upgrade service.
Cianelli said the facts are completely different with the state ranked high for its broadband speeds, which he said have increased annually for the past 14 years. “Those numbers just don’t seem to add up,” he said, adding there is a high penetration of broadband service in Connecticut. “We are pretty ubiquitous,” he added.
In a statement, Frontier spokesperson Liz Grey Godbout echoed Cianelli. She said the report is based on a mere handful of pre-selected sites, egregiously misrepresents Connecticut’s highly competitive broadband landscape and the broad availability of high-speed broadband services in the state, and ignores the significant work Frontier has done since it acquired SNET in October 2014 to enhance broadband speed, access and affordability in Connecticut.
Comcast spokesperson Laura Brubaker Crisco defended her company as well. She said in a statement, “Comcast operates one of the most extensive fiber-based networks in the country, delivering the fastest, most reliable Internet speeds from 3 Mbps up to 2 Gigabits per second for residential customers and up to 10 Gigabits for business customers.” She added, “Our network is capable of supporting next-generation broadband speeds well into the future.”
Cianelli also said the Office of Consumer Counsel should have reached out to his group. “We don’t consider this a professionally done report,” Cianelli said. “It’s very troubling the nature and tone of this report.”
Consumer Counsel Elin Katz defended the report, standing by it conclusions. In an interview, she said many businesses in the state still struggle to get the broadband they need. She said it’s neither responsible nor accurate to describe broadband as affordable and available in a wide area of the state.
“We’re stepping out in front to make broadband even better for our businesses,” Katz said, adding her office is going to seek $15 million for a pilot program for fiber networks and increasing high speed Internet availability.
The broadband report was issued as part of a $250,000 consulting contract. Katz said she was not able to break out the report’s specific cost. The consultants will be delivering a white paper on Connecticut broadband at the end of February. That will be followed by a conference in mid-March for municipal leaders and interested state officials.
Read more
