US ranks 15th in ITIF’s composite ranking

It is hard to follow broadband telecommunications policy without hearing almost weekly that the United States ranks 15th out of 30 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations in broadband adoption. But it is much less apparent why the United States is behind. Indeed, relatively little work has been done to understand why some nations are ahead, and why some, like the United States, are lagging. By examining OECD nations through statistical analysis and in-depth case studies of nine nations, including the United States, this report attempts to do just that.

Slate: Jump-starting our tech policy

Perhaps the only thing that’s actually improved over the last eight years under President Bush is technology (if not tech policy). In the sense that Nixon presided over an age of great films like The Godfather, the Bush era was also the age of Wikipedia, search engines, YouTube, and Facebook. But the Bush system of benign neglect can only go so far, leaving plenty to fix as soon as the next president takes office.

A Framework For A National Broadband Policy

The report pulls together two sets of discussions and an array of background readings to outline a new direction for a U.S. national broadband policy. The Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program convened a top-flight group of academics, policymakers, and industry leaders for two conferences — one on the Wye River in Maryland, May 17-18, 2007, and another in Aspen, Colorado, August 15-18, 2007 — to discuss the future of American broadband policy.

Comparing the broadband positions of the major presidential candidates

Senators Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John McCain differ on many major issues, but when it comes to broadband deployment, they appear to agree on most points, either explicitly or tacitly. To be sure, they do differ in some significant ways, but these differences do not appear to be irreconcilable. 

EDUCAUSE: A Blueprint for Big Broadband

The United States is facing a crisis in broadband connectivity. The demand for bandwidth is accelerating well beyond the capacity of our current broadband networks, especially as video traffic and home-based businesses become more prevalent. In the very near future, members of a single family will be watching HDTV video at the same time that they engage in remote health monitoring, videoconferencing, gaming, distance education class lectures, and social networking. Moore’s Law, as well as several studies of future Internet growth, predicts that homes and businesses will need a minimum of 100 megabits per second (Mbps) of capacity within the next three to five years and will need even greater capacity going forward.

Science Progress: The Case for Federal Investment in Broadband

The United States will not meet President Bush’s goal of universal broadband by the end of 2007—not by a long shot. The number of subscribers to Internet services is growing faster than the adoption of “dial-up,” yet for the most part these subscribers are not connected to the broadband technology Congress described in 1996 as a two-way communications service capable of high-speed delivery of data, voice, and video.

The ‘ConnectKentucky’ Model: A Limited Step in the Right Direction

Many interested parties have asked me to comment on the emerging controversy surrounding ConnectKentucky/Connected Nation. The controversy involves the extent to which CK/CN is fulfilling its promises. But in my opinion, we should be focusing on an even more important question: What role should “the CK model” play in America’s broadband policy?

Report of the California Broadband Task Force

As a result of Executive Order S-23-06, the California Broadband Task Force has spent the last year identifying opportunities for—and challenges to—broadband deployment and adoption. The enclosed report represents the culmination of that work,including maps of current broadband availability and speed, recommendations to achieve ubiquitous access and increased use, and a timeframe in which to meet these critical goals.

Japan Eyes 10 Gigs by 2010 as United States Sweats 200 Kbps

In Japan today, the “point of competition” is a gigabit, and by 2010 it will be at 10 gigabits, observed telecommunication lawyer and broadband champion Jim Baller as he kicked off the panel “Broadband Policy Imperatives from the Bottom Up” at the 15th Digital Cities Convention in Washington, DC (December 11-12, 2007).

Benton Foundation: Universal Affordable Broadband for All Americans

For more than 200 years, Americans have approached the future the same way that Huck Finn looked a the bend in the river: even though we didn’t know for sure what was coming next, we always had a sense of limitless possibility about where we were going and where it could take us. Americans, whose ideas have changed the world, are the ones who have been able to see around that bend, catch a glimpse of the future, capture its potential, and ensure that all Americans can partake.