The US could end up with slower broadband speeds than the UK
if the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) accepts submissions
on the definition of broadband from US internet service providers
(ISPs).
US ISPs are hoping to persuade the US government to accept a low
threshold for the definition of broadband communications, according
to submissions to the FCC
reported by Reuters.
AT&T, the US's biggest telecommunications firm, said, "The
definition must include those services that Americans need and
want, and can afford, to participate in the internet-driven
economy."
The
FCC is consulting on the technical definition of broadband to
help the government spend $7.2bn in loans and grants for broadband
projects as part of the Obama administration's economic stimulus
package.
AT&T's main broadband competitor Verizon Communications Inc.
and Verizon Wireless, in which Vodafone has an interest, asked the
FCC to stick to the present speeds of at least 768kbps downstream
and 200kbps upstream.
In contrast, the UK's
Digital Britain plan calls for a universal 2mbps service by
2012. The UK government has proposed a £200m fund plus a levy of
50p per line per month to help communications companies achieve the
target, but has run into political and industry opposition.
Free Press, a public interest group, said broadband should be
considered a critical infrastructure. It called for a symmetric
service, with the end-user experiencing a minimum of 5mbps for
uploads and downloads.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) already rates the US as a broadband laggard. In a 2008
research
paper, the US ranked 19th with an average advertised rate of
9.6mbps. The top three countries were Japan with 92.8mbps, Korea
with 80.8mbps and France with 51mbps. The UK was 15th with
10.7mbps.