The US fell from 23rd to 25th place in worldwide broadband penetration in the last half of 2006, according to a recent survey by Point Topic. OECD data confirms the slowdown, with the US falling to 15th in broadband penetration among OECD countries surveyed. US broadband penetration grew 0.65 percentage points to 80.81% among active Internet users in March.
Category: Other Materials
Former FCC Commissioner Harold Furchgott-Roth
“In the next few weeks, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development will issue its semiannual report on broadband penetration, and America is likely to have a middling ranking (it was 12th out of 30 countries in the most recent OECD numbers of a few months ago). Its standing is fodder for many politicians, including several candidates for president, who say we need a national broadband policy. They are wrong: Industrial policies, including for broadband, are bad ideas.”
“When it Comes to Broadband, U.S. Plays Follow the Leader”
The United States often views itself as a paragon of technology innovation and deployment. In some cases, that view is correct, but not when it comes to broadband deployment, where the country lags considerably behind other major nations. Here’s why.
Esme Vos on the State of US Broadband and the National Broadband Strategy
“As a nation that prides itself on technology leadership, it’s mystifying why the U.S. doesn’t have a clear, well-planned strategy and supporting policies for broadband. No matter what your personal beliefs are as to whether the federal government or market forces should actually provide tomorrow’s high-speed networks, it’s impossible to ignore the fact that the lack of a coherent plan for how the country will use bandwidth to enhance its citizens’ lives, and maintain its competitiveness in world markets, is a huge problem.”
MetroNetIQ on Gordon Cook’s post and the National Broadband Strategy
Broadband Leadership? It Starts at Home
Gordon Cook on the National Broadband Strategy
In the absence of Jim Baller’s plan, the US has no initiative to move past status quo. Many informed people have rung the alarm, but he’s the first to articulate the steps necessary to achieve results. Kudos to him. Any concerns expressed should be seen against the backdrop of his commitment. The timing (before the next election) is about right for getting the matter into the political domain.
Rich Tehrani from TMCnet on “Eight Bold Steps”
“A few of my friends have ordered FiOS from Verizon and they seem happy to have broadband access at speeds once unavailable from phone companies. The sad thing is that even though broadband speeds are increasing in the US, the cost of the connections are higher than in many other parts of the world, and the speeds are still only a fraction of what others are experiencing in places like Asia.”
Ed Gubbins on “Eight Bold Steps”
“The Baller-Herbst law firm, a vocal broadband advocate best known as a supporter of municipal broadband, has published an eight-step plan to achieve a national broadband strategy.”
Eight Bold Steps to a National Broadband Strategy
Recent developments underscore the need for a national broadband strategy
Key Legal and Technical Requirements and Options Under CALEA
The Communications Assistance to Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (CALEA) requires providers of telecommunications services, Internet access, or certain kinds of Voice over Internet Protocol to acquire or build into their networks the technical capabilities necessary to enable them to assist law enforcement in conducting authorized interceptions of communications content or call-identifying information.
Benton Foundation
Benton Foundation’s letter to George Bush discussing universal broadband availability.
100 Mbps available nationwide in Singapore
Singapore will become the first country in the world to commercially launch 100Mbps residential broadband services nation-wide, as StarHub marks another milestone with its deployment of DOCSIS 3.0 technology.
FCC Form 445
FCC Form 445 is used to monitor the progress of telecommunications carriers that provide facilities-based broadband Internet access or interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) services in complying with the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA) and the Commission’s requirements for such facilities and services.