March 15, 2024 – The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Enforcement Bureau has entered into a Consent Decree with Jefferson County Cable TV Inc. which resolves an investigation into whether the company reported false broadband deployment data to the FCC.[1] Among other things, Jefferson County Cable will pay a $10,000 civil penalty to the U.S. Treasury and implement a compliance plan to ensure it follows the FCC’s Broadband Data Collection rules.

The Enforcement Bureau’s investigation concerned Jefferson County Cable’s two Broadband Data Collection submissions showing broadband service availability in 2022:

• In an August 2022 broadband data filing showing deployment as of June 30, 2022, Jefferson County Cable reported 8,178 addresses to the FCC’s Broadband Data Collection; and

• In a March 2023 broadband data filing showing deployment as of December 31, 2022, Jefferson County Cable reported 6,605 addresses to the FCC’s Broadband Data Collection.

The Enforcement Bureau began investigating after “an individual challenged Jefferson County Cable about its claim that it could provide broadband service at a location in Bergholz, Ohio.” Ultimately, Jefferson County Cable corrected its submissions covering 2022 deployment data by removing approximately 1,500 locations. In a response to the Bureau’s first letter of inquiry, the company stated it “could not provide broadband service at or connect those locations within 10 business days of a request for service, as required by the Broadband Data Collection Rules.”

According to online technology publication Ars Technica,[2] in an email response to the individual that challenged the deployment data, a Jefferson County Cable executive admitted that the company was making false claims about service availability to block potential broadband funding from being allocated in the area. The individual that made the challenge operates Smart Way Communications, a wireless Internet service provider:

Jefferson County Cable's false claim came to light thanks to Ryan Grewell, who runs a small wireless Internet service provider called Smart Way Communications. He heard about the false claims from his own customers and used the FCC's map system to file challenges at specific addresses.

One of Grewell's challenges at an address in Bergholz, Ohio, led to the cable company admitting its false claims. Last week's FCC order said this address was one of the 1,500 incorrectly claimed locations.

As we reported, Grewell got a response from a Jefferson County Cable executive who mistakenly thought Grewell was a potential customer instead of a competitor. The email said that Jefferson County Cable didn't serve the area yet, but wanted to prevent potential competitors from getting deployment grants.

"You challenged that we do not have service at your residence and indeed we don't today," said the January 2023 email from Jefferson County Cable executive Bob Loveridge. "With our huge investment in upgrading our service to provide xgpon we reported to the BDC [Broadband Data Collection] that we have service at your residence so that they would not allocate addition [sic] broadband expansion money over [the] top of our private investment in our plant."

Well, it’s about time. Someone finally got caught for doing something that happens all the time and has been happening for a long time – lying about broadband deployment data. It should be noted, however, that the only reason this broadband provider got caught is because a company executive slipped up and admitted to filing false data in an email to the person who challenged some of the data. The company executive thought the individual who made the challenge was a potential customer, but it turns out the individual runs a WISP and was doing his due diligence. In the end though, this $10,000 fine seems small and probably won’t deter all the other bad actors out there.

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[1] Jefferson County Cable TV Inc., File No.: EB-FD-23-00034823, CD Acct. No.: 202432200004, FRN: 0003749082, Order, Consent Decree, DA 24-258 (Mar. 15, 2024), https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-24-258A1.pdf.

[2] Cable ISP Fined $10,000 For Lying To FCC About Where It Offers Broadband, Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, Mar. 3, 2024, https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/03/cable-isp-fined-10000-for-lying-to-fcc-about-where-it-offers-broadband/. See also ISP Admits Lying To FCC About Size Of Network To Block Funding To Rivals, Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, Feb. 2, 2023, https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/02/cable-company-tries-to-block-grants-to-rivals-by-lying-about-coverage-area/.