Broadband

Overview
The term broadband refers to advanced communications systems capable of providing high-speed transmission of services such as data, voice, and video over the Internet and other networks. Transmission is provided by a wide range of technologies, including digital subscriber line and fiber optic cable, coaxial cable, wireless technology, and satellite. Broadband platforms make possible the convergence of voice, video, and data services onto a single network.

There are multiple transmission media or technologies that can be used to provide broadband access. These include


 * cable technology (via cable modem)
 * digital subscriber line (DSL) technology
 * satellite technology
 * fiber optic technology
 * terrestrial (or fixed) technology
 * wireless technology, and others.

Cable and DSL are currently the most widely used technologies for providing broadband access. Both require the modification of existing physical infrastructure already connected to the home (i.e., cable television and telephone lines). Each technology has its respective advantages and disadvantages, and competes with each other based on performance, price, quality of service, geography, user friendliness, and other factors.

By using a broadband, high-speed Internet connection, users can view video, make telephone calls, or download software and other data-rich files in a matter of seconds. In addition to offering speed, broadband access provides a continuous “always on” connection (no need to “dial-up”) and a “two-way” capability &mdash; that is, the ability to both receive (download) and transmit (upload) data at high speeds.

U.S. Government Activities
Congress recognized the importance of broadband in Section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which directs the FCC to “encourage the deployment on a reasonable and timely basis of advanced telecommunications capability to all Americans.”

Some policymakers, believing that disparities in broadband access across American society could have adverse economic and social consequences on those left behind, assert that the federal government should play a more active role to avoid a “digital divide” in broadband access. One approach is for the federal government to provide financial assistance to support broadband deployment in underserved areas. Others, however, question the reality of the “digital divide,” and argue that federal intervention in the broadband marketplace would be premature and, in some cases, counterproductive.

Evolution of Broadband in the United States
Prior to the late 1990s, American homes accessed the Internet at maximum speeds of 56 kilobits per second by dialing up an Internet Service Provider (such as AOL) over the same copper telephone line used for traditional voice service. A relatively small number of businesses and institutions used broadband or high speed connections through the installation of special “dedicated lines” typically provided by their local telephone company.

Starting in the late 1990s, cable television companies began offering cable modem broadband service to homes and businesses. This was accompanied by telephone companies beginning to offer DSL (digital subscriber line) service (broadband over existing copper telephone wireline). Growth of high-speed lines has been steep, rising from 2.8 million high speed lines as of December 1999, to 121.2 million lines as of December 31, 2007. Of the 121.2 million high speed lines reported by the FCC, 74.0 million serve residential users. Since the initial deployment of residential broadband in the United States, the primary residential broadband technologies deployed continue to be cable modem and DSL.

Current U.S. Broadband Usage
A December 2008 survey from the Pew Internet and American Life Project found that 57% of Americans have broadband at home. By April 2009, home broadband adoption increased to 63% of adult Americans.

It is estimated that less than 10% of U.S. households have no access to any broadband provider whatsoever (not including satellite). While the broadband adoption or penetration rate stands at close to 60% of U.S. households, broadband availability is much higher, at more than 90% of households. Thus, approximately 30% of households have access to some type of terrestrial (non-satellite) broadband service, but do not choose to subscribe. According to the FCC, possible reasons for the gap between broadband availability and subscribership include the lack of computers in some homes, price of broadband service, lack of content, and the availability of broadband at work.

According to Pew, non-broadband users tend to be older, have lower incomes, have trouble using technology, and may not see the relevance of using the Internet to their lives. Between 2007 and 2008, low income Americans (under $20,000 annual income) and African Americans showed no significant growth in home broadband adoption after strong growth in previous years. Pew also found that about one-third of adults without broadband cite price and availability as the reasons why they don’t have broadband in their homes, while two-thirds cite reasons such as usability and relevance.

Broadband speeds (and prices) are important factors that can determine which technologies are deployed, which applications will be enabled, and how widespread deployment will be. The FCC’s fifth and latest “706 report,” which is prepared pursuant to section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to periodically determine whether broadband is being deployed in a reasonable and timely fashion, found that, “In the future, we anticipate ever-greater demand for services and applications requiring greater bandwidth over an ever-expanding area.”

As part of any discussion over national broadband policy, a distinction is often made by industry and policymakers between “current generation” and “next generation” broadband (commonly referred to as next generation networks or NGN). “Current generation” typically refers to currently deployed cable, DSL, and many wireless systems, while “next generation” refers to dramatically faster download and upload speeds offered by fiber technologies and also potentially by future generations of cable, DSL, and wireless technologies.

Access to the Internet is virtually ubiquitous in public schools and libraries. In a study released by the National Center for Education Statistics in 2006, nearly 100% of public schools in the United States had Internet access, and 97% of these schools used broadband connections to access the Internet. Public libraries also have high Internet access adoption rates. A 2006 study sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the American Library Association found that 99% of public library branches connect to the Internet and 98 percent of connected public library branches offer public Internet access. Further, 33% of libraries now provide wireless Internet access.

In general, more sophisticated (and potentially valuable) applications are available with faster download and upload connection speeds. The most recent FCC broadband status report to Congress characterized future advances in broadband networks as follows:


 * At the same time that broadband demand increases, network technology continues to evolve and improve. Previously distinct networks are now converging and overlapping to form competing broadband networks that perform all of the network applications once only possible by purchasing services from multiple service providers. Competition between broadband platform providers attempting to keep up with their competitors will drive higher speed technologies and service offerings to the marketplace. Coverage too will continue to become more ubiquitous as a diversity of technologies mature.

Subsequently, as increasingly sophisticated and innovative applications become enabled, the impacts on consumers, the economy, and society become potentially more profound and far-reaching.