Obama Promises to Improve US Broadband Penetration
Today I saw an article on the new VON website. (Yes, after years of decline and a major hiccup this Spring with the mysterious disappearance of VON Europe, they seem to be back with solid web presence, plans for a print magazine, and a Fall show in Miami. It will be interesting to see if they can rebuild their momentum.) The article cited President-elect Barack Obama’s comments on his Economic Recovery Plan during his weekly address on the official Change web site. It is interesting to note how different our economy is now than during the Great Depression and the New Deal. Therefore, it is important to include the Internet as part of our critical economic infrastructure. Here is a brief excerpt from his address:
As we renew our schools and highways, we’ll also renew our information superhighway. It
is unacceptable that the United States ranks 15th in the world in broadband adoption. Here,
in the country that invented the internet, every child should have the chance to get online,
and they’ll get that chance when I’m President – because that’s how we’ll strengthen America’s
competitiveness in the world.
Obama’s Address on His Economic Recovery Plan
As purveyors of voice and video over IP, investment into the infrastructure necessary for the successful utilization of our technology is obviously an encourging development. However, it is truly a far reaching opportunity for the US, and by extension the entire global economy, to facilitate productive growth and productivity gains through investment into bandwidth and access to the Internet. Contrary to the comments [pdf] of Rick Wagoner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of General Motors, to the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee on November 18, products developed with technology are part of today’s real economy and need similar government infrastucture investments as any other industry.
Tags: broadband, economy, Infrastructure, Internet, Obama, VON
