GAO’s www.gao.gov Report www.gao.gov/assets/680/670588.pdf “Broadband: Intended Outcomes and Effectiveness of Efforts to Address Adoption Barriers are Unclear” (GAO-15-473) discusses adoption barriers and why some Americans are not yet able to enjoy the benefits of broadband.
GAO interviewed the FCC www.fcc.gov, National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) www.ntia.doc.gov, 14 of the 42 Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program (BTOP) www.ntia.doc.gov/category/broadband grantees, and 21 public and private stakeholders. GAO found that affordability, lack of perceived relevance, and lack of computer skills are the principal barriers to broadband adoption.
GAO reports that the FCC has limited information available on the performance of their broadband adoption efforts and have not established goals suggesting the outcomes that should be achieved.
GAO also reports, although NTIA has compiled and published self-reported information from its BTOP grantees about best practices, the agency has not yet assessed the effectiveness of these approaches in addressing adoption barriers.
GAO reports that since BTOP has concluded, NTIA missed an opportunity to evaluate which grantees’ approaches were the most effective. Also, NTIA’s strategic plan includes a goal to increase broadband use, but the agency’s performance plan does not include an outcome-based goal and performance indicator for its ongoing broadband adoption efforts, which makes it unclear how the agency will progress towards their strategic goal.
The report also says that although FCC’s previous strategic plan included a goal to support broadband adoption, the FCC issued a revised plan in 2015 with fewer broader goals. The strategic plan does not clearly reflect FCC’s actions and whether broadband adoption is a priority for the commission.