Steve Andriole
It’s Time For An Internet-For-All Public Utility (Before Corona Crashes It)
If ever there was a wake-up call to an immediate infrastructure threat, Corona is it. So let’s make the case for a public digital infrastructure (PDI). Is it even reasonable to ask the federal government to fund and govern a world-class broadband network utility – for everyone? The argument here is yes. The government should provide directed, comprehensive funding to broadband deployment across all parts of the country versus off-loading much of the cost to the states (who then enable ISPs to set prices). The cost? Around $100B to provide 100MB service everywhere.