AT&T wants Big Tech companies to pay into telecom, broadband subsidy fund

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – AT&T CEO John Stankey said on Monday that Congress should give the Federal Communications Commission the power to require Big Tech firms to contribute to a government fund that subsidizes access to telecom and broadband services.

Under current law, fees are assessed on wireless and landline telephone service subscribers to support the Universal Service Fund.

“The seven largest and most profitable companies in the world built their franchises on the internet and the infrastructure we provide,” Stankey said in remarks at a telecom industry forum in Utah.

“Why shouldn’t they participate in ensuring affordable and equitable access to the services of today that are just as indispensable as the phone lines of yesteryear.”

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese)