Officials debate improving national wi-fi coverage
Politicians at the Democratic National Convention focus on broadband access Tuesday morning
By Francesca Chambers (Contact)
Wednesday, August 27th, 2008
KU students enjoy free high-speed Internet access in most buildings on campus and in their residences, yet when students move out of Lawrence, it’s unlikely they will have this technology at their fingertips.
Few U.S. cities currently offer free high-speed Internet, but Democrats hope to change that if Barack Obama is elected. U.S. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) stressed on Tuesday morning the importance of creating the infrastructure to provide high-speed Internet, or broadband, to every home in America at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.
“I have watched as the United States went from world leader to lagger in the world broadband ranks. I am embarrassed,” Rockefeller told the audience.
Rockefeller said the U.S. had dropped from first to 15th among countries with the best Internet access, listed behind countries such as Denmark, Iceland and Sweden.
He said the size and complex geography of the U.S. was partially to blame for the Bush administration’s failure to provide broadband access to all Americans by 2007, but he also said that was no longer a good excuse.
“It has to be done,” Rockefeller said.
Rockefeller said if private companies and the government were able to negotiate a way to provide broadband access to every school and workplace like they did with the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the two should be able to provide the same service to private citizens.
Larry Irving, president and CEO of the Irving Information Group, a consulting firm for telecommunications and information technology companies, said the government needed to take the initiative even further and provide free wireless Internet access to all U.S. residents. Irving said only one in 30 people had wireless Internet at home.
Wireless Internet is only one form of broadband. Broadband also includes Ethernet and DSL and is faster than lower-speed Internet access, such dial-up.
Michael Katz, former chief economist of the Federal Communications Commission, said data ranking the U.S. as 15th was skewed, and that the U.S. actually ranked eighth in the world.
“I don’t want to be eighth at anything in life,” Irving replied. “I don’t think eighth got a bronze, silver or gold.”
Katz also said widespread broadband access would be too expensive.
“Yes, broadband access for everyone would be great, but let’s look at the cost,” Katz said.
Irving said the reason broadband Internet technology was not at the forefront of policy-making in the U.S. was because it was not a “sexy issue.”
He said he thought it should be a top government priority, though, because applications such as Google Maps and Pandora, an internet radio program, can be accessed on cell phones using broadband Internet.
—Edited by Mary Sorrick
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