Expanding Access to Broadband is a National Priority

By Senator John Sununu

In the span of just a decade, the Internet has developed from a niche in the high-tech marketplace into an economic mainstay. It is an essential and growing component of marketing, data management, and product development systems within industries ranging from entertainment to financial services. As we look to the future, the Internet’s expanding role in our economy makes the deployment of high-speed broadband connections evermore critical to economic growth and competitiveness.

Broadband has already revolutionized the way we live. Among other benefits, it has delivered unprecedented access to vast amounts of information; drastically expanded the markets for New England’s small businesses; and has taken voice and data services in a modern direction.

Two trends, in particular, highlight the Internet’s enormous recent growth: During the past year alone, online retail transactions have increased by 18.4%, reflecting consistent expansion in this area since the turn of the millennium; and revenue from Internet advertising has increased by 35% between 2005 and 2006 to nearly $17 billion. The dot-com “bubble” may have burst six years ago, but the Internet economy is alive and well.

Given the demands of the marketplace, it is clear that expanding access to broadband should be a national priority. As a member of the Senate Commerce Committee, I am committed to four key policies that will encourage investment, improve access, and maintain quality for all Americans.

1.) Protect the Internet from Taxation: The current temporary ban on Internet access taxes, double taxation, and taxes that penalize Internet purchases is set to expire on November 1, 2007.

The power to tax is the power to destroy. The effect of new taxes on the Internet would be felt by individuals and businesses alike: higher costs and reduced access for lower-income Americans, decreases in online commerce, diminished investment in new technology, and disincentives for the deployment of new broadband infrastructure.

The future of the Internet is on the line. To permanently extend the moratorium, earlier this year I joined Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and John McCain (R-AZ) in introducing the bi-partisan “Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act.” I will continue to work with colleagues on both sides of the aisle to advance this bill, which eliminates the specter of Internet taxation once and for all.

2.) Unlock Unused Spectrum: Unlocking unassigned portions of the broadcast spectrum – known as “white spaces” – will create a new path for wireless broadband to compete with existing providers. New competition, in turn, will drive innovation in customer service, product development, and network construction.

White spaces, which are part of the publicly regulated broadcast spectrum, exist in virtually every area of the country. There is no reason why innovators should not be able to responsibly harness this spectrum to bring high-speed Internet technology to under-served communities.

At the beginning of this year I introduced the “White Spaces Act of 2007,” which removes barriers that prohibit access to white spaces. I look forward to making the use of white spaces a communications reality.

3.) Make it Easier to Build Networks: Obtaining permission to construct new broadband networks can be undermined by the need to get approvals from thousands of different franchising authorities nationwide. Moreover, the current franchising structure often imposes burdens that are hardly suitable for today’s marketplace, and have little to do with customer service, access, or price.

Instead, communications companies need a streamlined and simplified approval process that allows flexibility to roll-out and deploy services as soon as they become available. This streamlined system should be available to all providers, and can be done without limiting local control over rights-of-way or local franchise fees.

4.) Keep Government Regulators Away: With limited exceptions, consumers should have an unfettered ability to use broadband networks as they see fit. Unfortunately, those seeking “net neutrality” – what has been characterized as Internet equal access – seek to empower the FCC with an unprecedented regulatory role over pricing and content from broadband providers. These proposals are based on what some predict might happen in the marketplace, not upon what is happening today. That is the wrong way to develop public policy, and is not in the best interest of consumers.

I believe that agreement within the industry can be reached on a number of concrete practices that should be preserved, including the ability to access any legal Web site and the ability to run all Internet applications and programs. These and other policy objectives stand to create an environment that encourages investment and growth, ultimately resulting in expanded access to high-speed Internet technology. I will continue to seek effective protections for consumers without resorting to regulatory burdens that restrict growth, investment, and consumer choices.

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