An influx of federal funding for high-speed internet expansion has created an opportunity in Iowa that must be met, agriculture and business leaders in Iowa said during a June 29 roundtable discussion with Andrew Berke, the special representative for broadband with the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).
I’ve long been confused by the term “technological neutrality” in broadband deployment conversations. Advocates would say that if a provider can hit certain performance benchmarks, it doesn’t matter what technology is used. But all these technologies are not created equal. Using provider-reported performance benchmarks alone ignores valuable data on the access technology. For example, there are 210,000 housing units where the best available technology is DSL yet they are still considered served by 100/20 broadband and thus ineligible for any funding under the IIJA.
How does one even measure the state of the highly dynamic, many layered internet? With its obvious flaws and increasing hazards blended among new services and conveniences, is deprivatization an answer? What does that mean and is it possible? Tune in to hear from three people who look at these and related issues like trust, identity and privacy, IT security full time. Might increasingly powerful AI tools help or hurt and whom?
The Commerce Spectrum Management Advisory Committee (CSMAC) advises the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information at NTIA on a broad range of spectrum policy issues. The members are spectrum policy experts, appointed as "Special Government Employees," from outside the Federal government. Committee members offer expertise and perspective on reforms to enable new technologies and services, including reforms that expedite the American public's access to broadband services, public safety, and long-range spectrum planning.
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