Many cities seeking to offer cheap service to the community, despite telecom industry pushback The fallout from the FCC?s decision to repeal net neutrality?the principle that all internet traffic and data must be treated the same without favoritism?is still taking shape. But some see the policy shift as a potential boost to the movement for more municipal broadband networks.
In an era where broadband connection and competition comes from just a handful of large companies, it?s tempting for many to envision high-speed internet access as a true public utility, controlled by local government and managed in a way that provides maximum access. More than 185 communities nationwide offer some form of publicly controlled broadband service, including many that have laid their own fiber networks. If the worst fears of consumer advocates come true, that repealing net neutrality rules leads to big telecom companies such as Comcast favoring content, charging access fees to new startups, and placing barriers to competitors, it may hasten the rise of publicly owned networks (Comcast?s NBCUniversal unit is an investor in Vox Media, which owns this site). A more public internet would certainly offer some much-needed competition. According to a 2015 White House study, three out of every four Americans have access to just a single provider offering high-speed service (then considered 25 Mbps).

Karen Culp
The Tomorrow Building in Chattanooga, Tennessee, a new d...