For all its novelty, the technology industry is not immune to the laws of economics. The principles of competition and the rules of supply and demand still apply, even to the most cutting-edge devices. Efforts to manipulate the market through bureaucratic regulation threaten to stifle both innovation from businesses and the consumer experience. Recent developments in the world of broadband internet offer a case study in the power of competition. 

 

Internet access is becoming more affordable because competition between different methods of home internet services are driving down prices. A new report commissioned by the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA) quantifies that competition from 5G wireless broadband brought down home cable prices by 17%. This change benefitted not just those who subscribed to a 5G wireless method of broadband delivery, but also those who remained cable users. The author of the report, James Prieger, Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Pepperdine University, reached the following conclusion. “Competition, in short supply in many broadband markets for years, is doing here what it is supposed to do: lowering prices and improving the overall value and terms of broadband service through market competition, without any heavy-handed regulation.” The absence of overly prescriptive mandates did not leave broadband users floundering in a market run amuck; rather, it gave room for competition to create a more affordable and accessible broadband ecosystem. 

 

This is not the first time competition has transformed the broadband market. Louisiana’s experience with the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program is another endorsement of free market principles at work. Louisiana’s broadband office, ConnectLA, prioritized competition between providers vying for funding from the program in order to provide broadband to underserved areas. The broadband office ensured that all broadband technologies were considered throughout the process, so that the one most efficient for its respective location was chosen. Furthermore, ConnectLA created project areas that allowed both local and national providers to compete for bids, rather than having a preference for one over the other. Providers competed based on their own merits, and the result was statewide leadership in meeting BEAD milestones. 

 

The full impact of ConnectLA’s competition-forward approach is yet to be seen, but early numbers indicate that Louisiana is well on its way to strong, widespread connectivity. In October alone, the state was celebrated by industry publication Broadband Now for jumping 13 spots in its state broadband ranking: “Louisiana has treated broadband as an economic development priority for years, and the early returns are now visible in the consumer experience, with median downloads up roughly 16% and uploads more than doubling since last year’s report.” Consumers will undoubtedly continue to experience these benefits as more projects are completed. 

 

While the technology might be complicated, the outcomes described are not. Consumers are benefitting in tangible ways from businesses competing with each other for their business. Anti-competitive measures, particularly common attacks on the technology industry today, such as aggressive antitrust action, state-by-state red tape, or preemptive restrictions, work in the opposite direction. For lawmakers focused on better outcomes for their constituents, fostering competition and removing roadblocks to it is the best place to start. 

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