THE FCC DOES GOOD

CenturyLink is buying Qwest and the FCC approved the deal on condition that CenturyLink provide "low-income households computers for $150 and broadband starting at $10 per month for the first year after the merger. The minimum price will then rise to $15."   This will help a lot of people in Tucson and other parts of the country.

FCC OKs Qwest-CenturyLink merger
Denver Business Journal
Date: Friday, March 18, 2011, 2:57pm MDT

Qwest and CenturyLink have agreed to meet certain conditions as part of the merger, including:

• Expand broadband access to low-income customers in the combined company’s territory, with qualifying households receiving high-speed Internet access for less than $10 a month and a computer for less than $150.

• Significantly increase the capacity of the network to at least 4 megabits per second to at least 4 million more homes and businesses.

• More than double the number of homes and businesses that can get broadband of 12 megabits per second, and more than triple the number that can get speeds of 40 megabits per second.