Recently in the Rural Broadband Category

Earlier today I had the pleasure of attending a briefing hosted by Connected Nation in which they released a new report, "The Economic Impact of Stimulating Broadband Nationally".

The briefing provided a good number of statistics about increases in jobs, healthcare savings and reduced CO2 emissions.  But so often we hear about these benefits, and well, I even regulary spout them in these pages, but really, it is the personal stories about real people that matters.  Well, today, I heard some of the real stories behind those statistics.  The first was about a single mom.  Through the digital literacy program that was established as a part of the ConnectKentucky, her children were able to learn how to use computers and the internet to enhance their education.  This was one of the successes of a community based initiative that initially began when the local food bank created a program to provide computers to its clients on site along with a computer literacy program.  An outgrowth of the food bank's efforts was enhanced considerably when  a local bank then began providing computers for those who had completed the program.

The other story that struck me was one in which local healthcare profressionals and a local coal mining company were connected via an an eCommunity goup in  eastern Kentucky.  In doing so they were able to develop a program for addressing some of the healthcare needs of the miners through an on-site tele-health initiative.  The net result for the business was better health for their workers and a significant reduction in employee's sick leave.  

I am sure there are many more stories like this.  And I find them just as compelling as the statistics that show the growth in broadband deployment, jobs and economic development.  All of the impressive statistics can be found in the report.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of speaking with the folks from Connected Nation and learned so much more about all the good work they are doing in Kentucky, Tennessee, Ohio and now West Virginia. 

They have been working in Kentucky for 3 years now and have fallen just shy of their target of having 100% availability by EoY 07.  However, in those 3 years access has jumped from 60% coverage to 95% coverage.  And the take rate on that has jumped from 22% to 44%-- a 100% increase.  Before, Kentucky was ranked near the bottom for broadband adoption, but in short order it has caught up to the national trend line.  This is very exciting and while the results in increased penetration are impressive in their own right, what I found most impressive was all the hard work that goes into the demand side initiatives.   Key to the demand side is their work in individual counties with folks from 9 or so disciplines including healthcare, k-12, higher education, libraries, public safety, business and others to ensure that the applications that impact the local community and their needs are being developed and implemented.  Then the public is being educated about how they can use these applications to improve their individual lives and the life of the community.
 

I certainly hope that this good work can be replicated not only in TN, OH & WVA, but across the nation.  The best path to that happening is Congress acting on the broadband mapping legislation that is now before them, including a version of the Connect the Nation Act that has been included in the Farm Bill which is nearing completion by a bi-partisan group of negotiators from the Senate and the House.

Earlier today I attended the Internet Caucus Advisory Committee's, "State of the Net" conference.  One of the themes carried through many of the sessions was the need for and concensus around mapping legislation.  And on the topic there was a good deal of frustration expressed about the lack of movement on any of the bills currently proposed.  There was also concensus around the right model for this legislation. ConnectKentucky and the Connected Nation model were pointed to by numerous speakers as a model for success.  Let's hope that Congress was listening. 

Earlier today I attended a briefing by Dr. Rob Atkinson on the release of his report, "Framing a National  Broadband Policy."   He began by providing a brief overview of the report and then allowing Blair Levin, former Chief of Staff to FCC Chairman Reed Hundt & one of our Chairmen, Larry Irving to add their comments to the dialogue.

Atkinson did a great job of breaking down the issues and solutions to broadband deployment and adoption with 3 straight forward points.

1. Identifying the gaps-- he mentioned a number of existing programs that hold great promise including ConnectKentucky, and a dynamic online mapping program developed at VA Tech.

2. Funding Deployment-- He addresses the need for focusing the RUS loan and grant programs to those markets where broadband has not yet been deployed.  He also suggested tax incentives to promote rural build out.

3. Closing the Digital Literacy Gap-- He pointed to some of the applications that have been developed by Microsoft, One Economy and E- North Carolina that have been successful in educating folks on how to use broadband technology and many of its applications.

While his presentation could result in one thinking that there exists a silver bullet for developing and implementing policies to ensure that every American could have affordable access to broadband, all three commentors made it clear that the political compexities of the issues make it a much more daunting task. 

Blair Levin offered some interesting insights as he couched them as the way things are versus the way they should be (the difference in perspective from being a policy maker and a market analyst).  He made mention of a number of successful state and local programs for mapping and deployment including Governor Spitzer's plans for addressing broadband penetration in upstate New York to a CA report that looks at multiple tactical approaches as opposed to one single approach for all areas.  Levin agreed with Atkinson that the issues of Universal Broadband access are seperate and distinct from the current Net Neutrality debate.  And both commented that if the amount of energy that has been expended on Net Neutrality could be focused on Universal Access, that we would be much closer to resolving that issue.

Larry Irving also provided a good deal of insight about state and other programs that are working to address the issue.  He agreed with Atkinson that the first step must be to address the mapping issue and that by leveraging the success of programs like ConnectKentucky into a National policy could go a long way to seperating myth from reality about broadband deployment.  He suggested that there is work to be done internationally to develop a common language and metrics for measuring broadband deployment.  He also raised the importance of encouraging investment in higher speeds that would spur innovation.

All in all it was a very intersting and engaging discussion.  And whether you agree or disagree with the specific details of Dr. Atkinson's proposal, he has developed the most thoughtful and thorough report on  addressing broadband deployment and adoption. 

The Senate passed a bill on Friday-- technically an "amendment in the nature of a substitute" which means they put their bill in place of the House bill so the two versions will have to be agreed to in conference by both the House and Senate.  Both call for a National Center for Rural Telecom Assessment to prepare studies and issue reports on the state of access.  In addition, they both include a $25M loan program for broadband expansion to rural areas.

US Telecom President, Walter McCormick praised the work of Senator's Harkin, Chamblis, Salazar & Roberts for there committement to rural broadband and passage of this bill.