AT&T CEO: Tech Investment Should Be A Priority Under Obama

AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson called for President-elect Barack Obama to adopt policies to encourage investments in technology infrastructure. Stephenson said that AT&T's own investment in its broadband network helped give birth to Internet giants Google, Amazon.com and eBay. If the government encourages further infrastructure investments, job and commercial growth will follow, he said. Stephenson applauded Obama's decision to appoint a chief technology officer, and said there were opportunities to streamline government costs and improve services. Stephenson also pushed for Obama to explore alternative ways to deliver health care, noting that AT&T offers a consumer-driven health care plan that covers 272,000 managers, retirees and dependents. He said the plan has resulted in a 5% decrease in total costs each year since the program began in 2005. The company's portion of the cost has declined more rapidly at 8% each year. He called for improvement in education, and said businesses had to have a hand in helping the school system, along with educators, parents and the government. He touted AT&T's $100 million program to improve education in partnership with America's Promise Alliance and Junior Achievement.