AT&T and Verizon declined to comment directly, and instead pointed me to a representative at USTelecom, an industry trade group. The USTelecom spokesman, citing the group’s recent study on broadband pricing trends, said, “The data shows a decline in prices and an overall increase in broadband speeds in recent years.”
But groups advocating for antitrust enforcement of internet services disagree. Americans pay the highest monthly price for broadband service—$68.23 in the U.S. on average, compared with $44.71 in Europe and $62.41 in Asia—according to a pricing study by New America’s Open Technology Institute, a center-left Washington think tank that studies the impact of new technologies on society. That research also found that after promotional rates expire, monthly prices increase by $22.25 on average, and consolidation in the market means many Americans have only one or two broadband providers to choose from.