NEWS RELEASE
MAY 10, 2023
Media Contact: Jennifer Algoe Keaton
717.214.2000 or 717.979.3986
jkeaton@bcapa.com
Statewide trade organization brings together industry
to focus on advancement, best practices, and federal funding
LANCASTER – On the verge of a once-in-a-generation opportunity, the state’s leaders from the broadband communications industry met in Lancaster in late April for the inaugural Pennsylvania Broadband Summit, according to Todd Eachus, president of the Broadband Communications Association of Pennsylvania (BCAP).
The summit, which was rebranded this year from BCAP’s traditional Cable Academy, focused on the innovations occurring within the broadband space. Most notably, many topics dealt with the influx of federal funding – Capital Projects Funding and Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program.
“With a billion-plus of federal money available to the Commonwealth, Pennsylvania has a tremendous chance to ensure that those who want and need broadband can access it,” Eachus said of both federal and state efforts to deploy broadband to unserved and underserved areas. “This year’s summit is all about discussing both the opportunities and challenges ahead and looking toward the future. By bringing our industry together, we can learn from each other, adopt best practices, and ensure that every dollar in funding is used to its maximum benefit for years to come.”
“As we have said from the beginning, while there is generational opportunity to ensure access for every Pennsylvanian, there is a high degree of implementation risk as the Commonwealth begins to execute on the distribution of more than a billion dollars,” he continued. “We must maintain laser focus on the task at hand, which is providing service to the unserved and underserved. If we allow these programs to be used for other purposes or policy experiments, we will only serve to dilute the effectiveness of these funds, but will drive up the cost, time, and complexity of these projects. Ultimately, we as a Commonwealth would not achieve the goals of service to every citizen.”
The summit was organized by BCAP along with its educational entity, the Pennsylvania Cable and Telecommunications Foundation.
In total, 33 panelists and moderators spoke to more than 170 broadband experts over the course of eight sessions at the Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square. Panels included those dealing with state and congressional legislation, executive concerns, federal funding for rural deployment, network technology, broadband equity access and adoption, business opportunities, and customer care.
Some of the most frequently discussed topics over the course of the summit were workforce needs, supply chain challenges, and assurances that the influx of federal funding coming into Pennsylvania is used as efficiently as possible and to respond to future demands.
The Broadband Communications Association of Pennsylvania, a member-driven organization based in Harrisburg, actively promotes broadband cable and telecommunications industry issues in Pennsylvania. BCAP – the nation’s first state cable association – represents cable operators, programmers and equipment suppliers that collectively provide service to nearly 3 million Pennsylvania households and businesses.
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Broadband Communications Association of Pennsylvania
127 State St., Harrisburg PA 17101
717.214.2000 * www.BCAPA.com * @BCAPisBroadband
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