Paul Kapustka's Blog
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May 08, 2006
How much for the 'third pipe' for broadband?
Reading this post last week from Susan Crawford made me wonder: How much will it really cost to build the so-called "third pipe" of broadband? And might it just be cheaper to pay the telcos off, and buy their local network elements?
I'm not the first or the smartest to float this idea; and in a time when we are spending $10 billion a month to fight a war with dubious return, is it fair to ask why don't we spend some of that cash on rebuilding or retooling our country's communicaions infrastructure?
Reed Hundt says it would cost $20 billion to bring fiber to all homes in America; and Bob Kahn (see earlier link) thinks it's a good idea to create open local loops, so that multiple types of broadband providers can flourish. Assume the money can be found, Kahn says, to pay off the telcos. The idea from Kahn, Hundt and Crawford is simple -- we need to do something to get competition rolling again. There's too much at stake to pin all our hopes on AT&T, Verizon and the cablecos, whose track record of delivering on high-speed services is not too stellar.
So -- why not pay them off? What's the price? And how come these ideas, or other technologicial solutions, aren't a part of the debate in the Senate and House?
Just askin'.
Posted by paul at May 8, 2006 08:44 AM