Could Stimulus Grants Be about the Path of Least Resistance?

[Commentary] Even though it probably the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's intention, it has established in this first round of broadband stimulus awards parameters for following the path of least resistance. Many of those funded are middle mile projects, each serving a lot of people and/or covering a huge amount of geography. It's probably easier (read: faster) for a reviewer to make award decisions to fund five middle mile projects, each covering 10 counties, than to make decisions for 50 individual county proposals. A sizable portion of infrastructure grants went to public/private partnerships and nonprofits versus private entities that are the sole operator of the network. Smaller telecommunications companies seemed to win the day. Traditionally in technology and in telecommunications, it is most often the small companies that are the leaders of innovation. They are the problem solvers. Almost all of NTIA's grants were awarded to projects recommended by their respective states' governors.