Broadband Game
To the Editor:
The broadband-to-the-home game may be over for Barron's ("Game Over," August 20), but for most Americans, it's just beginning. Cable modems indeed have a jump on DSL. But the culprits are technology and regulation. Early DSL technology had bugs that slowed deployment and sometimes frustrated consumers -- a fault common to a lot of new computer technologies. That problem is largely behind us. Indeed, at Verizon we replaced virtually all the DSL hardware and software in our networks during 2000. Today this system works far better than it did a year ago, and it will continue to improve.
The second problem is more troublesome. DSL is regulated under harsh restrictions designed for the voice telephone network monopoly of the 1960s and 1970s. By contrast, cable companies were essentially deregulated in the early 1990s. They aren't required to separate their broadband service from their traditional business, as telecom companies are required to do. In fact, cable companies can subsidize their cable modem pricing with rate increases on their TV service, as well as package those services with telephony. They have closed systems, enabling them to mandate a single Internet Service Provider while telecom companies must be open to all ISPs and content providers.
The broadband revolution is just getting under way. Fewer than 10% of U.S. homes have broadband connections today. Yet the companies most able to provide this service -- America's telecom companies like Verizon -- are being told to go slow, and under these regulations have no incentive to do otherwise. A regulatory policy that encourages us to deploy broadband full-speed ahead will not only provide a clear alternative to the cable TV monopolies, but also spur content providers, equipment manufactures and software developers to do their best work -- kick-starting a sluggish high-tech economy in the bargain.
Thomas J. Tauke Sr.
Vice President, Public Policy
Verizon Communications
New York City |
