U.S. PIRG Consumer Blog: NCMR2007: The two digital divides

[Updated again] Back in Memphis at NCMR2007. I am watching a presentation Saturday morning by dissident (but not in this crowd, of course) FCC commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein. It's moderated by former commissioner Gloria Tristiani, who says: "I've got two words: Digital Divide."

Here's my quick paraphrase of the answer from Commissioner Copps: "We don't have a plan. We don't have a strategy....There are two digital divides. The first is between the US and the rest of the world. According to the International Telecommunications Union, [in broadband deployment] the US is 15th, under (a different study) we are 21st, right after Estonia and tied with Slovenia...We do have a glaring digital divide within this country...and [the companies say] don't let municipalities or anyone else get involved [in solving it]...We fly into the 21st century with all these new technologies and...all the new opportunities that come with them.. but [our federal policy then says] that none of the obligations [that have applied to regulated telecommunications services historically, should apply to these "new" information services] -- privacy, buildout, universal service-- none of them apply...If that isn't a recipe for disaster, I don't know what the hell is."

Tonight, consumer champion Ed Markey (D-MA), new chairman of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Telecommunications, will deliver his keynote address. [UPDATE: Unfortunately, due to weather, Mr. Markey has missed his breakout panel and may not be here tonight for his keynote. I am confident that he would have addressed these issues. Senator Sanders delivered his keynote but had to cancel from the workshop also.]

Expect Mr. Markey to describe how Congress will address all the comprehensive broadband issues-- digital divide, universal service, privacy and Internet freedom (net neutrality). We're confident that Mr. Markey, with his media reform colleagues including new Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) (who just addressed the conference), Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) (who is speaking later), Rep. Kucinich (D-OH) (who spoke last night) and others including Sens. Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and Ron Wyden (D-OR), will have the support of the public in their efforts to change US policy. (Michael Copps just pointed out that on broadband and universal service, even Internet freedom opponent Ted Stevens (R-AK) is a fierce disciple.) The Hill leadership of Markey and others will make it easier for the two Commissioners to change the direction of the FCC so that it begins again to advance the visionary public interest policies that the country needs. For too long, they've had to spend too much time fighting the narrow corporate ideas that have wrongly become FCC policy. We owe Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps doubly: First, for holding the ground that they have, and second, for the tremendous wins (such as forcing AT&T to accept Internet freedom as a condition of its merger with BellSouth) that they have been able to achieve under such tough circumstances. I am sure they are looking forward to greater backing from the Congress. As Jonathan Adelstein pointed out last night, we've always had broad and bi-partisan Congressional rank-and-file support, but the former House leadership prevented any floor votes from even occurring. There's a change in the air.