UC2B Proposal Released for Public Comment

WASHINGTON (AFP) -

The United States ranks 28th in the world in average Internet connection speed and is not making significant progress in building a faster network, according to a report released on Tuesday.

The report by the Communications Workers of America (CWA) said the average download speed in South Korea is 20.4 megabits per second (mbps) -- four times faster than the US average of 5.1 mbps.

Japan trails South Korea with an average of 15.8 mbps followed by Sweden at 12.8 mbps and the Netherlands at 11.0 mbps, the report said.

It said tests conducted by speedmatters.org found the average US download speed had improved by only nine-tenths of a megabit per second between 2008 and 2009 -- from 4.2 mbps to 5.1 mbps.

"The US has not made significant improvement in the speeds at which residents connect to the Internet," the report said. "Our nation continues to fall far behind other countries."

"People in Japan can upload a high-definition video in 12 minutes, compared to a grueling 2.5 hours at the US average upload speed," the report said.

It said 18 percent of those who took a US speed test recorded download speeds that were slower than 768 kilobits per second, which does not even qualify as basic broadband, according to the Federal Communications Commission.

Sixty-four percent connected at up to 10 mbps, 19 percent connected at speeds greater than 10 mbps and two percent exceeded 25 mbps.

The United States was ranked 20th in broadband penetration in a survey of 58 countries released earlier this year by Boston-based Strategy Analytics.

South Korea, Singapore, the Netherlands, Denmark and Taiwan were the top five countries listed in terms of access to high-speed Internet.

US President Barack Obama has pledged to put broadband in every home and the FCC has embarked on an ambitious project to bring high-speed Internet access to every corner of the United States.

According to the CWA report, the fastest download speeds in the United States are in the northeastern parts of the country while the slowest are in states such as Alaska, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

Copyright 2009 AFP

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 27, 2009
4:48 PM

CONTACT: Free Press
Moira Vahey, Free Press, (202) 265-1490 x31

WASHINGTON - August 27 - Today, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service (RUS) announced that they received almost 2,200 applications requesting nearly $28 billion in funding for proposed broadband projects. This is the first of three bidding rounds for the $7.2 billion in funds the NTIA will distribute.

Ben Scott, policy director at Free Press, issued the following statement:

"We are excited to see such strong interest in the NTIA's broadband grant program. This response to just the first round of grants demonstrates the substantial interest in bringing broadband to all Americans and increasing broadband adoption.

"As expected, the large incumbent telephone and cable companies do not appear to have applied. But the volume of applicants has discredited complaints that interest in this grant program would be hurt by the nature of a public service /private enterprise partnership.

"The NTIA can now settle into the task of dispensing infrastructure grants to the best applicants with the goal of maximizing the utility of our public service broadband networks. We congratulate NTIA on this program and their efforts to improve broadband access."

Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications. Learn more at www.freepress.net

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Having been to Korea it is no surprise that they have faster internet speeds. We saw a great amount of new technology there before we saw it here in the States. They are continuing to compete well with the rest of the world. casino