The Affordable Connectivity Program Died—and Thousands of Households Have Already Lost Their Internet

image via WIRED

July 30, 2024, 8:36 PM

• •Charter Communications lost 154,000 internet subscribers in the second quarter of 2024, mostly due to customers canceling after losing a federal broadband discount.
• •The $30 monthly broadband discounts provided by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) ended in May after Congress failed to allocate more funding.
• •FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel warned that killing the discounts would reduce internet access, saying an FCC survey found that 77 percent of participating households would change their plan or drop internet service entirely once the discounts expired.

The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) ended in May after Congress failed to allocate more funding. Charter Communications reported a net loss of 154,000 internet subscribers that it said was mostly driven by customers canceling after losing the federal discount. About 100,000 of those subscribers were reportedly getting the discount, which in some cases made internet service free to the consumer.

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