Lower-income Americans now have more options for free high-speed internet access, including at least eight providers that serve Southern California, the White House announced Monday.
The federal government launched the Affordable Connectivity Program at the end of last year to provide $30-per-month subsidies for households with incomes at no more than twice the federal poverty level. But that subsidy was less than the amount many internet service providers charged for a high-speed connection fast enough to support a whole family of active users.
On Monday, the White House revealed that 20 broadband providers across the country, including five of the largest cable TV and telephone companies, had agreed to provide "sufficiently high-speed" connections at no more than $30 a month to qualifying homes. Eight of those serve communities in Southern California: AT&T, Comcast, Cox, Frontier, Mediacom, Spectrum, Starry and Verizon.
