Bush Calls for Universal Broadband by 2007, by Colin C. Haley (InternetNews.com, March 31, 2004):

"President Bush has set a goal of broadband access for all Americans in three years to boost competitiveness with other nations and create new business opportunities at home. ... In addition to economic advantages of broadband, Bush said the technology could advance tele-medicine and distance learning."

4:23:26 PM    
comment []  trackback []

President Bush has finally entered the national broadband dialog, as reported in The Promise Of a Broader Superhighway by Leslie Walker (Washington Post, April 1, 2004). He wants "universal, affordable access for broadband technology by the year 2007" and "plenty of choices when it comes to purchasing the broadband carrier." Yeah. Now let's get to the specifics. Bush doesn't offer any, but Leslie Walker does. I'll summarize in the form of a FAQ.

What exactly does broadband mean? It's a poorly defined buzzword: "Broadband is slang for any form of Internet access faster than dial-up."

How much faster is it? "...depends on who's selling it, and there are lots of competing flavors." That answer is just too squishy. Try this instead: "the Federal Communications Commission once set the threshold at a measly 200,000 bits per second -- roughly four times dial-up speeds." Not fast enough! "Fiber-optic lines, by contrast, let people move data either to or from the Internet at rates starting at 3 million bits per second and increasing to more than 100 million bits per second. "

OK - dial-up: 50,000 bits per second. "Slow" Fiber: 3,000,000 bits per second. That's what we want.

Why do we need it? "Proponents contend that speedier communication will translate to higher personal and business productivity."

When can we get it? "Verizon is planning to replace copper wiring with fiber outside 1 million homes this year and says it may do twice as many next year." But when it does come to your home, it will be twice the maximum speed of cable at about the same cost ($40-$60 per month)

What can we get now? "...cable Internet service typically costs from $40 to $60 a month, while slower DSL service ranges from $30 to $40 a month." There's also satellite, which has been slower and more expensive to date, but may be due for a reevaluation next year, and broadband over power-lines, a newcomer on the scene. Wireless technologies weren't included in this article, but are another option for some areas.

3:58:23 PM    
comment []  trackback []