To develop as much agreement as possible on the components of a national
broadband strategy, the US Broadband Coalition formed six working groups. These groups reported on their progress at
events in Washington, DC, on September 24 and November 13 2009.
To review a working group's mission statement, co-chairs, members, and other pertinent information, please click on its link below.
If your organization would
like to participate in one or more groups, please contact Jim Baller at Jim@Baller.com. Working Group on Need for a National Broadband Strategy
The broadband-enabled Internet is rapidly changing
the world. It has become a catalyst for innovation, economic growth, job creation, educational opportunity
and global competitiveness. It enhances public safety, homeland security, health care, energy efficiency,
environmental sustainability and the worldwide distribution of millions of products, processes and services. It
aids in revitalizing depressed urban and rural economies and addressing the special needs of senior citizens, individuals
with disabilities, and young people. It creates a vehicle for enhancing the level of civic participation
and discourse so important to a functioning democracy. The
mission of this working group was to demonstrate why the United States urgently needs a comprehensive national broadband strategy
in order to take maximum advantage of the vast potential benefits of the broadband-enabled Internet.
Co-Chairs: Jeff Campbell (Cisco) and
Jonathan Rintels (Center for Creative Voices in the Media)
Working Group on Goals
All members of the US Broadband Coalition endorse the goals in the Call to Action, but not necessarily on how to
achieve them. For example, some members believe that the United States should strive to be a “100 Megabit Nation”
by 2015, while others believe that such a goal is either too ambitious or not ambitious enough. Some members
focus on particular technologies, while others argue for technology-neutral performance standards. Some
call for universal standards, while others call for different standards for different situations. Some
emphasize preserving an open Internet, while others emphasize flexibility in network management. The mission
of the Working Group on Goals was to explore these issues in greater depth and develop as much agreement on them as possible.
Co-Chairs: Rick Cimerman (National Cable & Telecommunications Association)
and John Windhausen (EDUCAUSE and American Library Association)
Working Group on Metrics
Timely, accurate, and trustworthy data on current and future deployment, adoption, and use of broadband connections
to the Internet are essential at every step in the process of developing and implementing a National Broadband Strategy.
Good data are necessary to establish meaningful goals, to evaluate how well we are doing in meeting these goals, to
make appropriate policy adjustments if we are not, to ensure accountability, and to compare our performance with that of other
leading nations in an increasingly competitive global economy. Service providers and investors need good
data to make sound investments. Users of broadband connections need good data to make wise choices among available options.
The mission of the Working Group on Metrics was to develop as much agreement as possible on the nature, quality, and
timeliness of the data needed for all of these purposes, and on how such data should be collected and disseminated.
Co-Chairs: Robert Atkinson (Information Technology and Innovation
Foundation) and Drew Clark (Broadband Census)
Working Group on Availability
All members of the US Broadband Coalition agree on the need for policies that would increase availability of
robust broadband connections to the Internet. The mission of the Working Group on Availability is to identify
and build consensus on short-term and long-term policies to stimulate sustainable investments in broadband infrastructure
and to mitigate financial, legal, and regulatory barriers to such investments. To some
extent, the mission of the Working Group on Availability overlapped with that of the Working Group on Adoption and Use, as
the supply-side considerations affecting the availability of broadband connections to the Internet are significantly affected
by a variety of demand-side considerations, including price and quality of such connections, citizen education, access to
computers, etc. The Working Group on Availability focused primarily on the supply-side considerations.
Co-Chairs: Brent Olson (AT&T) and Ben Scott (Free Press)
Working Group on Adoption and Use
The mission
of the Working Group on Adoption and Use is to investigate why residential, commercial, and institutional users do or do not
use the Internet; to examine how broadband connections to the Internet can facilitate, expand, and improve such use; and to
develop consensus on promising approaches to increasing adoption and use of broadband connections to the Internet.
The Group will not merely address unserved or underserved areas but will also explore ways to stimulate use of broadband as a driver of economic development, educational opportunity,
public safety and homeland security, affordable modern health care, environmental sustainability,
energy efficiency, improved government service, etc. To
some extent, the mission of the Working Group on Adoption and Use overlapped with that of the Working Group on Availability,
as physical availability of networks, price and quality of services, consumer education, access to computers, accessibility
for people with disabilities, and many other considerations, interact with each other. The Working Group
on Adoption and Use focused on these issues primarily from the perspective of potential broadband users.
Co-Chairs: Charles Benton (Benton Foundation), Link Hoewing (Verizon), and Karen Perry (Knight Center of Digital
Excellence)
Working Group on Implementation
A nation as complex as the United States will necessarily require a multi-faceted National Broadband Strategy.
Such a strategy, in turn, will pose significant implementation issues at all levels of government. The
mission of the Working Group on Implementation was to identify these issues and develop as much agreement as possible on how
they should be resolved.
Co-Chairs:
Diane Duffy (Telcordia) and Geoff Daily (App-Rising)
