FCC’s Gigi Sohn at the European Competitive Telecommunications Association Regulatory Conference

More than four billion people on our planet are not yet connected to the Internet. In the 49 least developed countries, over 90 percent of the population is not online. About 10 million Americans can’t get wired broadband at any speed if they wanted it because the infrastructure is not in place. Additionally, at the end of 2014, approximately 22 million Europeans were without fixed broadband coverage. To help solve this divide, international governments, non-governmental organizations, and major corporations have come together to sponsor initiatives like “Global Connect” -- a program that seeks to connect an additional 1.5 billion people to the Internet by 2020.

I’d like to highlight what we see as the most effective tool for achieving our goals: competition. Simply put, a thriving, competitive market advances the public interest and promotes innovation and investment across the information and communication technology sector.

The Federal Communications Commission strongly supports policy that recognizes access to broadband as essential to full participation in our society and economy. Creating opportunities for such access through light-touch regulations simultaneously promotes both competition and the public interest. It’s been my honor to share some of the FCC’s accomplishments today. Working together, we can continue to harness the power of broadband technology, expand opportunity, and promote competition around the globe.