AT&T Gives Five Thumbs Down on Berkman Report

AT&T firmly believes the Federal Communications Commission can learn valuable lessons from the broadband experiences of other countries, and it commends the FCC for seeking "an independent expert review of existing literature and studies about broadband deployment and usage throughout the world." Unfortunately, the Report delivered by the Berkman Center is neither comprehensive nor competent. It ignores or summarily dismisses a wealth of literature and analysis that directly contradicts its conclusions; it relies on data sets regarding broadband performance that are unreliable on their face and even more so when subjected to expert review; it makes bald misstatements regarding the United States' experience with "open access" regulation; and it attempts to disguise its subjective bias by employing an econometric model that experts in the field have condemned as unprofessional and lacking in objectivity. In light of these many failings, the Commission cannot rationally rely upon the Report's analysis or conclusions in formulating the National Broadband Plan. The centerpiece of the Report's analysis - its ranking of individual countries' broadband performance in price, speed, and penetration - is analytically flawed