The State of the Union, the Economy & Broadband

[Commentary] Here’s how I see broadband working hand-in-hand with President Barack Obama’s efforts to turn the economy around. It’s a straightforward path; just follow the money.

Broadband improves how local businesses communicate and execute core business operations. Better broadband, along with appropriate support from local economic development agencies, enables businesses to compete regionally, nationally and internationally. Furthermore, communities can supplement these services with wireless access for the general public in depressed business districts as part of local programs to drive consumer traffic and revenue to these areas. None of these are easy tasks, and many efforts likely will struggle before they fly. None of these results will happen with just broadband networks alone. But broadband is a key element that contributes to success. It’s not enough to increase new job opportunities, we also must train those who've been unemployed for many months how to handle new skills demanded by today’s jobs. A concept moving within the Department of Education called open online learning offers one potential way to achieve this. Besides making local businesses more productive and competitive, the Administration needs to aggressively embrace the concept of assisting communities use broadband to make onshoring more appealing than offshoring.

Finally, we must empower local communities. The best thing Washington can do is ask communities “what would you create with a network fast enough to meet current and future needs; how would you do it; who in the private sector would you partner with; how do you ensure financial sustainability? Establish standard criteria and questions to resolve so communities benefit from common technologies, but still develop solutions that meet their specific needs. Return the billions of dollars collected from all of us Americans for the Universal Service Fund on a straightforward path to our communities in a way that enables greater community participation, and leads to a higher return on the investment. If we could put a man on the moon within 10 years given the limited technology and knowledge available in 1961, then surely we can use broadband to transform our economy throughout America sooner rather than later.