Jury Still Out On Universal Broadband

Speaking at the conference of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors last week, former FCC Chief of Staff Blair Levin said the future of high-speed Internet is so unclear that Congress should not foreclose the possibility of Bell telecommunications firms, cable companies or municipal governments becoming full providers. Levin said the core dispute between telecom and cable companies is how to get universal broadband. "How do we get broadband everywhere is the fundamentally difficult public policy issue, and the most important one," said Levin, who worked for the Clinton administration’s first FCC chief, Reed Hundt. He added, "We still have somewhere between 20 and 30 percent of this country that has no Internet connectivity," and more with only "narrowband" Internet connections. Levin referred to a presentation by another Bell company, SBC Communications, in which it said it would provide fiber optic wires to serve 90 percent of "high-value," 70 percent of "mid-value" and 5 percent of "low-value" consumers. He defended SBC, saying: "It only makes sense for them to build to 52 percent of their customers. That is not SBC's problem; it is the government's problem and your problem." However Congress and municipalities choose to encourage universal broadband, Levin observed, “When you require companies to do things not in their economic interest, it is very problematic."
[SOURCE: Technology Daily, AUTHOR: Drew Clark]
See also:
* Verizon Wins Franchise in Virginia
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/26/AR200509...