Localizing the U.S. Broadband Problem

Bleha, T.(2005). Down to the Wire. Foreign Affairs. May/June 2005. http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20050501faessay84311/thomas-bleha/down-to-...
This article illustrates just how far behind the US is in terms of broadband connectivity by comparing broadband in the US to broadband in Japan. The lag in availability and quality of broadband in the US will mean that the US will miss out on social, economic benefits, and innovation benefits that will be available to Japan and its neighbors - the current leaders in internet innovation. The article shows how Japan`s success and the US failure in terms of broadband was the result of a strong, forward looking national internet policy in Japan, and lack of such policy in the US. This has not always been the case. From the 1960s to the 1990s the US government played an important role in the development of the internet: "The private sector did the work, but the (US) government offered a clear vision and strong leadership that created a competitive playing field for early broadband providers". Meanwhile, Japan's broadband growth has happened largely during the Bush administration: "In 2001, Japan was well behind the United States in the broadband race. But thanks to top-level political leadership and ambitious goals, it soon began to move ahead." As of 2005 nearly all Japanese had access to "high-speed" broadband, with an average connection speed 16 times faster than in the United States -- for only about $22 a month. In addition, Japan enjoyed much higher levels of Internet access through mobile phones. This is important because: "More and more, mobile phones can be used for tasks traditionally performed on computers. Except for the most office-oriented applications, such as word processing, spreadsheets, and presentation software, mobile phones will soon be used for nearly everything." The article also critiques the defacto US policy of leaving the development of competitive high speed internet to the market:"New services will probably appear only slowly, and competition between the telephone and cable companies will remain limited. The reasons are simple: cheap, high-speed broadband would lead to widespread use of Internet telephones and thus threaten the phone companies' lucrative voice-telephone business, and more inexpensive broadband would multiply outside video and movie offerings and endanger the cable companies' profitability. So, although both the telephone and cable companies could provide cheap, high-speed broadband if they chose to, they are not rushing to develop it." Overall, the article is a good introduction to the larger policy issues surrounding broadband, and clearly shows how important a national broadband policy is. It can help local leaders to contextualize their community in the wider context of broadband in US, and to clarify their community's role in increasing US connectivity. The following article provides a critical response to this one, arguing that the US is not as far behind as it seems: The Economist (2005): Prophet of American Technodoom. The Economist. http://www.freepress.net/news