this post was submitted on 15 Aug 2025
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Starlink operator SpaceX is fighting Virginia's plan to deploy fiber Internet service to residents, claiming that federal grant money should be given to Starlink instead. SpaceX is already in line to win over $3 million in grant money in the state but is seeking $60 million.

Starlink is poised to benefit from the Trump administration rewriting rules for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program. While the Biden administration decided that states should prioritize fiber in order to build more future-proof networks, the Trump administration ordered states to revise their plans with a "tech-neutral approach" and lower the average cost of serving each location.

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[–] Ilixtze@lemmy.ml 4 points 1 day ago (1 children)

Capitalism is truly wonderful

[–] deafboy@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago (7 children)

I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you're referring to as Capitalism, is in fact, Fascism, or as I've recently taken to calling it, Government with Benefits.

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[–] ms_lane@lemmy.world -2 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (8 children)

As much as I dislike the muskrat, is this fiber actually real?

ISPs in US have been given billions of dollars, multiple times to bring Fiber out and each time they've pocketed the cash and done nothing.

Starlink at the very least, exists.

  • If this is going to counties and cities to build out municipal fiber, then screw StarLink.

  • If this is going to AT&T, again, for the fourth time to build this fiber, then no, give it to StarLink since AT&T will never actually build out that service, fourth time is not the charm.

I take umbrage with StarLink's notion that Fiber is slow to build out though - the single biggest expense and time consuming part of rolling out a GPON network is getting it from the street to inside a premesis.

Guess which part StarLink still has to do and it isn't any cheaper...

[–] Glitchvid@lemmy.world 2 points 23 hours ago

BEAD funds are more or less administered by the state, and nothing is fundementally stopping them from doing the right thing and preferring local bids.

It's entirely possible too, look at North Dakota, it has near 100% fiber coverage for the entire state, because the same model that brought electrification to them brought them fiber. In Utah and surrounding states there are municipal networks building out to member cities.

The real threat is the states capitulating to the incumbent providers like Comcast – but at least it's a State level issue instead of being totally a given at the federal level.

[–] MonkderVierte@lemmy.zip 1 points 22 hours ago

and each time they've pocketed the cash and done nothing.

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