The elimination of the U.S. government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is beginning to cut internet service access for low-income Americans. Charter Communications announced on Friday that it had lost 154,000 internet subscribers. The company said most of these customers were canceled because they no longer received federal discounts. About 100,000 of those customers were reportedly receiving discounts, but in some cases they were not. Free internet service To consumers.
ACP offers $30/month broadband discount Ends in May After Congress failed to allocate more funds, the Biden administration request $6 billion will be pumped into the ACP through December 2024, The Republican Party This program is a waste.
A major complaint from Republicans was that most of the ACP funding went to households that already had broadband before the subsidies were created, and Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel warned that eliminating the discounts would reduce internet access. To tell According to the FCC survey, 77% of participating households said they would change their plan or stop using their internet service altogether when the discount expired.
Charter’s second quarter 2024 earnings report This is some of the first evidence that users are canceling internet service after discounts run out. “The number of residential internet users decreased by 154,000 in the second quarter, primarily due to the end of the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program subsidy in the second quarter, while the number increased by 70,000 in the second quarter of 2023,” Charter said.
Combined across all ISPs, 23 million U.S. households are registered with the ACP. Research published in January 2024 Charter serves more than four million ACP recipients, and the agency found that up to 300,000 of its customers are “at risk” of losing their internet service when the discounts expire. Because ACP recipients must meet low-income eligibility requirements, the loss of the discounts could put a strain on their overall finances, even if they continue to pay for their internet service.
“The real issue is the customer’s ability to pay.”
Charter, which operates under the brand name Spectrum, has 28.3 million residential internet customers in 41 states. In its earnings report, Charter said it made retention offers to customers who previously received ACP subsidies. Without those offers, customer losses would likely have been much greater.
Light reading reported Charter attributes about 100,000 of its 154,000 customer losses to the ACP closure. Charter has so far retained most of its ACP subscribers, but says low-income households may not be able to continue paying for internet service for much longer without new subsidies.
The ACP only lasted a few years, and the FCC introduced a $30 per month subsidy in early 2022, replacing the previous $50 per month subsidy. Emergency Broadband Grant Program User registration began in May 2021.
Meanwhile, the F.C.C. Lifeline Program The service offering a discounted price of $9.25 per month is in danger Court ruling Last week it was revealed that the cost of Lifeline is paid for by the Universal Service Fund, which was the subject of a constitutional challenge.
The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the universal service fee on telephone bills is an unconstitutional “unjust tax.” However, in a similar case, the Sixth and Eleventh Circuits have ruled that the fund is constitutional. The split in the Circuits makes it more likely that the Supreme Court will hear the case.
Disclosure: Advance/Newhouse Partnership, which owns 12.4% of Charter, is part of Advance Publications, which also owns Ars Technica and WIRED parent company Condé Nast.
This story originally Ars Technical.
