DIGITAL DIVIDE
Group To Train Eritrean Teachers (SJM)
Internet Use In Africa Is Rare But Growing (WSJ)
BROADBAND
Europe To Remain In Broadband Slow Lane - Report (Newsbytes)
Cable Firms Clinging To Lead In High-Speed Race (USA)
Judiciary Plan Would Kill Tauzin-Dingell Bill - Update (Newsbytes)
INTERNET
ICANN Chief Strikes Back (Wired)
DIGITAL DIVIDE
INTERNET USE IN AFRICA IS RARE BUT GROWING
Issue: Digital Divide
While computer use on the world's least-developed continent remains rare, a
recent rash of Internet cafes and service providers have emerged, sometimes
using clever wireless and satellite technologies to skirt moribund
government phone monopolies. Only one out of every 250 Africans is an
Internet user -- compared to a world average of one in 35 people, or one of
three in North America and Europe, according to a study by South African
Internet consultant Mike Jensen. Mr. Jensen estimates the legions of
computer-users are growing by as much as 20% a month. Government regulations
and lack of bandwidth are the major obstacles to the growth in information
technology. Only 15 out of 51 countries are capable of transmitting data
overseas at the modest broadband rate of 1 megabit per second, a data speed
common for a single small business in the developed world.
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Associated Press]
(http://interactive.wsj.com/articles/SB992392227346851548.htm)
(requires subscription)
GROUP TO TRAIN ERITREAN TEACHERS
Issue: Digital Divide
Joyce Blueford was sent to Eritrea by NetAfrica, a non-profit company
founded to develop Internet services so that Eritrea -- the second-poorest
in the world -- could get back on track and join the rest of the world
online. Blueford recently visited to Eritrea as the nation celebrated its
independence day, the end of the 30-year war with Ethiopia. In September,
Blueford will go to the capital city of Asmara to train 31 future trainers
who will in turn educate 600 teachers over the next year.
[SOURCE: San Jose Mercury, AUTHOR: T.T. Nhu]
(http://www.siliconvalley.com/docs/news/depth/blue061301.htm)
BROADBAND
EUROPE TO REMAIN IN BROADBAND SLOW LANE - REPORT
Issue: Broadband
According to the "Residential Broadband Market Forecast" study by Strategy
Analytics, only 3.3 percent of European homes will have broadband Internet
service by the end of the year, compared to 14.1 percent of North American
homes. Despite the rapid deployment of broadband in Germany, the
Netherlands, and Sweden, Europe lags behind North America primarily because
more Americans and Canadians own and use personal computers than Europeans,
the study found. In addition, Europe's weak cable-modem industry will
maintain what Strategy Analytics researchers call the "Atlantic divide." In
four years, broadband service to European consumers will reach 24.2 percent,
compared to North American consumer penetration levels at 53.1 percent.
[SOURCE: Newsbytes, AUTHOR: Steve Gold]
(http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/166740.html)
JUDICIARY PLAN WOULD KILL TAUZIN-DINGELL BILL - UPDATE
Issue: Broadband
The Tauzin-Dingell bill to deregulate broadband is under attack from the
House Judiciary Committee leadership, who is planning to introduce
amendments and an alternative bill that would gut the measure. The Judiciary
Committee has also backed opposing legislation introduced by ranking
Democrat John Conyers of Michigan that would allow a state to halt Baby
Bells from offering long-distance service in areas where they control more
than 85 percent of local markets. The Judiciary Committee Chairman James
Sensenbrenner (R-WI) will introduce an amendment to the Tauzin-Dingell bill
that would give the role of evaluating the process of opening markets to the
Justice Department, a role the bill would take from the FCC, according to
reliable sources. Because the Judiciary Committee was restricted from
amending the bill beyond the oversight of the Justice Department,
Sensenbrenner plans to vote against the bill even if his amendment passes,
sources said.
[SOURCE: Newsbytes, AUTHOR: Brian Krebs]
(http://www.newsbytes.com/news/01/166759.html)
CABLE FIRMS CLINGING TO LEAD IN HIGH-SPEED RACE
Issue: Broadband
Cable companies, meeting in Chicago this week for their annual convention,
are exploiting every advantage in trying to build on their commanding lead
in selling superfast Internet service to consumers. As providers of digital
subscriber lines (DSL) have faced serious financial woes in recent months,
some going out of business, cable has moved aggressively to pick up the
pieces. Cable companies already enjoy a comfortable lead in offering
high-speed access, with 4.7 million customers in the United States,
according to the Yankee Group. About 2.2 million people subscribe to DSL
service from a phone company or other Internet provider, while 98,000
customers hook up to high-speed Internet via satellite.
[SOURCE: USAToday, AUTHOR: Associated Press]
(http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/tech/2001-06-12-high-speed-cable.htm)
INTERNET
ICANN CHIEF STRIKES BACK
Issue: Internet
Board members of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
disputed charges made against the organization by colleagues on the board
who said in a recent Wired story that ICANN is unrepresentative of the
majority of Internet users and needs to be structurally reformed. At-large
board member Karl Auerbach proposed that all of ICANN's board members should
be elected. ICANN's chief executive officer M. Stuart Lynn protested that
low voter turnout for last year's at-large board elections demonstrates that
elected members are not representative of the Internet population. "The
amount of people who actually voted was minuscule, compared to the number of
users on the Internet," Lynn said. "There is a concern that they represent a
very narrow segment of viewpoints."
[SOURCE: Wired, AUTHOR: Steve Kettmann]
(http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,44480,00.html)
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