Taking the single largest step so far to bridge the digital divide, the FCC announced that bidding in the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund Phase I auction closed on November 25, 2020. A total of 180 winning bidders won funding to deploy high-speed broadband to over 5.2 million unserved homes and businesses, many of which will receive broadband with speeds of at least 100/20 Mbps, in 49 states and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
The auction appears to have been competitive since, of the $16 billion of support that was made available, $9.2 billion was allocated. The remaining $6.8 billion will be rolled over into a future Phase II auction, which will now have a budget of up to $11.2 billion to target partially-served areas and those areas that did not receive Phase I funding. Phase I winning bidders will still need to submit a long-form application, which are due in January, to finalize their support. But hopefully the close of this auction represents a nice holiday treat for those areas in need of support for broadband services!
“I’m thrilled with the incredible success of this auction, which brings welcome news to millions of unconnected rural Americans who for too long have been on the wrong side of the digital divide. They now stand to gain access to high-speed, high-quality broadband service,” said FCC Chairman Ajit Pai.
