FCC Broadband Plan News and information on the FCC's plan to upgrade the nation's broadband.

We applaud Chairman Genachowski and the FCC for the extraordinary effort and work that went into the development of the National Broadband Plan. We share the FCC's goal of universal broadband deployment and adoption and we look forward to participating in a robust dialogue around all aspects of the plan, which will help shape the future of broadband in this country. We know as well as anyone the positive impact that broadband access can have on individuals and communities and we want to work with the FCC and others to ensure that this valuable resource is used to its most effective potential.

Verizon strongly supports the emphasis in the National Broadband Plan on the deployment of broadband facilities and adoption by all Americans. To that end, we are encouraged by the call to reform the policies that subsidize some companies' telecommunications services so the policies are focused on the technologies of the 21st century. The plan also properly focuses on identifying the barriers to swift deployment and adoption and proposing recommendations to remove or overcome those barriers. The plan correctly notes that government is a major purchaser of services and can be a catalyst for using broadband to reform the health care delivery system, improve energy conservation, preserve the environment, and promote the use of broadband technology to advance education. Chairman Genachowski; Blair Levin, the executive director of the National Broadband Taskforce; and the commission staff should be commended for comprehensively addressing the array of broadband issues and developing a coherent plan.

We commend the FCC for the immense effort involved in researching and writing the National Broadband Plan. The Plan appears to reflect the emerging consensus on a number of paramount broadband goals, most notably the need to achieve universal adoption and digital literacy; the need to fix and redirect outdated subsidy schemes to more efficiently deliver broadband to unserved areas and to close the affordability gap for low-income families; and the need to break down policy barriers that keep broadband from serving critical national purposes such as health care, education, and employment. With the demand for bandwidth doubling every two years, most recognize the critical need for continued private investment in faster competitive broadband networks, and the importance of maintaining a regulatory environment to promote that investment. We hope that implementation of the many recommendations contained in the Plan will help to achieve that critical balance and we look forward to playing our part in helping to make America the most connected nation on earth.

Yes, the Internet was invented in the United States. Yes, we once led the world in broadband development. But now, networks in many countries, from Western Europe to East Asia, are faster and more advanced than our own. Long after we recover from this recession, this broadband gap will be a dead weight on American businesses and workers, unless we act now.

As with the space race in the 1960s, America needs a national effort by our scientists, engineers, companies, educational institutions and government agencies. Just like that great national adventure, we need near-term and long-term goals.

Broadband is an essential input to expanding business, education, and healthcare opportunities everywhere. As soon as possible, we need to bring Internet access to every community, from rural America to the inner cities.

I support a national broadband strategy because ubiquitous broadband connectivity can catapult America into the next level of economic competitiveness, worker productivity, and educational opportunity. But as in the past, we will make this breakthrough by choice, not chance.