Ismail, Sherille and Irene Wu (2007). Broadband Internet Access in OECD
Countries: A Comparative Analysis. FCC Staff Report of the Office of
Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis and International Bureau,
October 2003.
http://www.coe.montana.edu/ee/rwolff/ee543%20papers/fcc-broadband.pdf
This paper, written by the FCC, reviews the broadband policy experiences of
South Korea, Canada, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, the United States,
Switzerland, Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom – that is, the
policies they have implemented and how effective they have been. These
countries have used a variety of strategies to promote broadband
growth, including open access requirements, local loop unbundling, line
sharing, duopoly competition, etc. This document can help readers gain
a better understanding of the US broadband environment in general, and
also in comparison to the approaches of other countries.
-See the section “Broadband Pricing” (p. 7) for a comparison of
broadband price per megabit. The US has neither the most or the least
costly service. -See the Dial Up vs. Broadband Price Chart (p. 10),
which indicates that the price for broadband and dial-up service differ
by different margins in different countries, meaning that users may
have more or less of an incentive to switch from dial-up to broadband
(though, price is not the only factor that may the decision to switch).
-See Section III (p. 13) for a comparison of competition in broadband
markets and what affect this has had on service available. -See the
Conclusion (p. 21) for a point-by-point summary of the report findings.