Networked Nation

Broadband technology is changing our lives, our economy, and our culture. By making it possible to access, use, and share information, news, and entertainment with ever increasing speed, broadband knits geographically-distant individuals and businesses more closely together, increases our productivity, and enriches our quality of life. In so doing, it fuels economic growth and job creation that, in turn, provide unparalleled new opportunities for our nation's citizens.The procompetition telecommunications policies underpinning the administration's broadband strategy is examined in this book. Among other things, it stabilized the market for planning and investment, provided needed spectrum resources to expand existing services and support new innovations, and spurred the development and deployment of technologies and infrastructure necessary to deliver them. The same technology that enables governments, banks, corporations and other institutions to manage affairs of state and international finance and trade now makes critical contributions to health care, education, public safety, and the productivity of individuals and small businesses, as well as a host of other activities. The swift growth in broadband technologies and services that has occurred over the last several years are also discussed in this book.