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Apr. 10, 2009

Earlier this week, the FCC took the first step in considering a plan to offer all Americans broadband Internet access.

The regulatory body put out a request for comments from the general public and the industry.

The FCC will assemble its plan and present it to Congress in the next 9 to 10 months, as ordered in the economic stimulus package passed in January.

In the past, Internet service providers have long stressed that overall freedom from regulation gives them a stronger incentive to invest more into their networks.

However, up to a certain degree, they also could gain from government involvement. The stimulus package contained about $7.2 billion in funding for high-speed Internet projects, and the development of the plan also could mean there is more to come in the near future.

During the previous U.S. administration, Democrats and consumer advocates called on the government to take a more hands-on approach to accelerate the overall adoption of broadband Internet access, pointing to the higher uptake and faster Internet speeds available in some other countries.

Republican FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell agreed that the U.S. can do more to improve access to high-speed Internet access, but pointed out that the number of broadband lines grew 17 times from 2000 to 2007.

"Despite the widespread recognition that high-speed Internet services are necessary, this is the first time a government agency will take a comprehensive look at the situation and recommend a course of action to remedy our rapidly declining broadband ranking," said Gigi Sohn, president of advocacy group Public Knowledge.

Susanne Guyer, senior v.p. for federal regulatory affairs at Verizon Wireless said "creating a climate for investment in advanced broadband networks should be Job One at the FCC." Verizon is currently the largest ISP in the U.S.

"Let's be sure to recognize what has gone right at least as much as we analyze any shortcomings," she said in a statement.

According to various instructions from Congress, the FCC's newly proposed plan should address both the price and availability of high-speed Internet access.

In 2007 and in 2008, when the Pew Internet and American Life Project asked households why they hadn't signed up for broadband Internet access, those two factors ranked second and fourth, respectively.

The largest factor, given by more than half, was that they didn't see the point.

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Source: The FCC.