AT&T Dropping DSL Leaves Low Income Households Without Internet


By

on

in

, ,

After sharing the news yesterday that AT&T is discontinuing its DSL internet service, a report has been released, showing that the move will leave millions without a fiber internet option. 

The report, created by Communications Workers of America and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance, begins by stating that AT&T is “is making the digital divide worse” by not building out its fiber service to reach customers in the company’s network. 

Rural and low-income areas will be hit the hardest by AT&T’s decision to discontinue DSL without bringing fiber to customers as a replacement. (As we mentioned yesterday, current subscribers will be able to keep their service for the time being, according to the announcement from AT&T, but service cannot be transferred if a resident moves to a new location and sign-ups are closed to new customers.)

“We are focused on enhancing our network with more advanced, higher speed technologies like fiber and wireless, which consumers are demanding,” AT&T said in a statement announcing that DSL service would end on October 1. Unfortunately, the company has focused on bringing fiber to wealthier areas, leaving lower income areas without options.  

“AT&T has made fiber-to-the-home available to fewer than a third (28 percent) of the households in its footprint as of June 30, 2019,” the report says. “Across the predominantly nrural counties in AT&T’s national footprint, only 5 percent of households (217,284 out of 4,442,675) have access to fiber.”

Even in areas where customers may have the option of receiving internet service from another company, the report says that AT&T is doing a disservice by eliminating competition. Without multiple service providers in an area, “price, choice, and service quality” are all negatively impacted. 

“AT&T prioritizes network upgrades to wealthier areas, leaving lower-income communities with outdated technologies—households with fiber available have median income 34 percent higher than those with DSL only,” the report says. 

Disclaimer: To address the growing use of ad blockers we now use affiliate links to sites like http://Amazon.com, streaming services, and others. Affiliate links help sites like Cord Cutters News, stay open. Affiliate links cost you nothing but help me support my family. We do not allow paid reviews on this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

* indicates required

Please select all the ways you would like to hear from :

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. For information about our privacy practices, please visit our website.

We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By clicking below to subscribe, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing. Learn more about Mailchimp’s privacy practices here.