Metrics Workshop: Measuring Current Network Versus Internet Users' Needs

The Federal Communication Commission's workshop on how to best benchmark broadband for evaluating the various dimensions of broadband across geographic areas highlighted the difference between measuring the current network versus focusing on Internet users' needs. Richard Clarke, assistant vice president of public policy at AT&T, said that the FCC should benchmark broadband very broadly. This would allow the agency to cope with different classes of user necessity and service differentiation across user capabilities and time of day. Clarke also argued that the FCC must establish benchmarks that do not vary over time. Taking a different point of view was Harold Feld, legal director of Public Knowledge and Catherine Sandoval, Assistant Professor of Law, Santa Clara University. Feld and Sandoral said that the focus of benchmarks should be upon the American citizens' right to use broadband - and should not be limited by usage availability or cost. They also said that FCC benchmarks must somewhat be adaptive to the changing needs of consumers, and will inevitably change over time.