FCC may force Internet providers to stop calling their slow, crappy speeds 'broadband'

The FCC is considering a new definition of “broadband,” a term which defines high-speed Internet as 4Mbps and better.

The new definition would raise the minimum speed above 10Mbps or even 25Mbps, the Washington Post reports. At this time, the agency appears to be nowhere near legally issuing a new definition — rather, the FCC reportedly intends to solicit public comments on the matter soon.

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If the FCC were to raise the definition to 25Mbps, numerous ISPs would be legally required to either redefine their baseline services or raise the speed of entry-level offerings. Comcast’s entry-level Internet service in New York, for example, only peaks at 25Mbps. A majority of AT&T’s services, however, provide significantly slower speeds.

In fact, average U.S. Internet speeds rank statistically lower than those of nine other countries, including Latvia, Switzerland, and Romaina.

Considering the United State’s dismal speed rankings and the emergence of bandwidth-intensive services like Netflix, the original definition of broadband may no longer be realistic for consumers.