Cox sues state in attempt to block $109 million in funding for rival ISPs

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Cox Communications asked a court to block Rhode Island’s plan for distributing $108.7 million in federal funding for broadband deployment. If successful, Cox’s lawsuit could prevent other Internet service providers from obtaining grants to expand into areas that Cox says it already serves with high-speed broadband.

The cable company claims Rhode Island used “flawed Internet speed data” to determine which areas are underserved and that the plan “will benefit wealthy parts of the State already served with high-speed Internet in contravention of the program that it purports to implement.”

Cox filed the lawsuit on Monday in Superior Court in Providence, Rhode Island. It seeks an injunction prohibiting Rhode Island from using the allegedly flawed speed test data to determine where broadband grants should be directed.