Universal broadband service will require strong build-out requirements so that access to the Internet is not determined by potential profit margins. The phone and cable companies — the same ones seeking to silence their critics or the citizens who don’t agree with the Bush Administration — must be compelled to build out their networks to reach all parts of the country.

In addition to that, though, we need to make sure that we create real competition where we can, as many of you commented. It sounds like a no-brainer — more competitors will mean lower prices, better service and cutting edge innovation. Yet we are not doing enough to make it happen.

I think — and judging by your activism on the issue many of you agree with me — that it’s critical to create broadband competition using the wireless spectrum. That’s why I have championed white spaces legislation and fair rules for the upcoming 700MHz spectrum auction.

Both will help new competitors enter the broadband market. In my view, the more entities providing Internet service, the better. And that’s why, as many of you suggested, it’s right for cities and towns across this country to provide “municipal broadband.”

Opening the Networks

Several posters raised the issue of local loop unbundling, and I’m eager to hear your suggestions about how to make this a reality.

As Free Press’s Ben Scott related at our hearing, Congressman Ed Markey once said, “The 1996 Telecom Act was a great idea. I sure wish somebody would try to implement it.” I think we all share this disappointment that the 1996 Telecom Act has not lived up to its billing in giving competing firms access to existing connections. When we wrote the bill, the expectation was that companies would be compelled to share their network but a series of court decisions and regulatory decisions have undermined the intent of the act. Now we have significant consolidation, less competition and less consumer choice.

The problem now is that it’s extraordinarily difficult to put that genie back into the bottle. A web of regulatory decisions and court cases has now institutionalized the current set-up. Short of passing another landmark telecom bill, do you see ways to move the unbundling issue forward to spark real competition and choice?

A National Policy: Moving Forward To Fix the System

While it may seem daunting to change some of these fundamental policies, your fight for Net Neutrality gives me hope that we can get true competition between Internet service providers. You’ve brought true progressive activism to what used to be arcane and obscure areas of legislation and regulatory red tape, and America will be better for it.

One issue that did not receive a lot of attention in your comments but is still important is the need to gather accurate data. The FCC’s data is rife with mistaken assumptions and faulty collection methods. We heard in our hearing that gathering better data is a threshold issue for working on broadband issues. This week I’m writing to the FCC and the Small Business Administration to ask them to collect more information about the accessibility of broadband internet access for small businesses. The startling lack of statistics about broadband availability is just not acceptable, and we’re going to light a fire under “the deciders” to change that.

It’s time that the Bush administration lives up to its promises and works together with Congress to create a national broadband policy. We need your help in building grassroots support for the kind of legislation that will ensure Internet for everyone, so that together we can move our country forward.

I thank you again for your activism, your thoughtfulness, and your diligence. I’ll be reading your thoughts here, and I’ll be sure to be back to talk about these issues in the future.

Please remain active and keep up the good fight.