As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama promised universal broadband but didn’t deliver. Why not? Money was wasted on programs that delivered little if any broadband, government provision of broadband (which he promoted) was largely unsuccessful, and customers did not want broadband in the ways Obama assumed. If Biden is to make good on his promise, [...]
All I can say is, "Wow! I never expected that!" I thought the days of telecommunications being considered a public utility were far behind us. Then came the pandemic! Suddenly broadband seems as important as electricity. And some people believe that hands-on, utility style regulation will do a better job than competition for delivering needed [...]
Ensuring broadband access during and after the pandemic: A conversation with Nneka Chiazor and Frans Vandendries Broadband has proven to be quite important for households and businesses during lockdowns. But making broadband financially viable for operators has proven to be difficult when customers cannot afford broadband. How are countries resolving this challenge? I interviewed Nneka [...]
The coronavirus pandemic is creating unique problems for every sector of the economy, and the telecom industry and governments are working together to meet the challenge. Read the full post "Telcos working with governments to address COVID-19" at AEI.