Connecting our entire nation via high-speed broadband will bring remarkable economic, social, cultural, personal, and other benefits. Robust economic development, job creation, improved health care at lower costs, enhanced educational opportunities, increased homeland security and public safety, reduced energy consumption and pollution, a reinvigorated democracy and more open government – these are just a few of the benefits that will flow from our nation linking its entire population to the Internet at broadband speed. Recognizing these benefits, many of America’s global competitors have already embarked on aggressive national broadband strategies to deploy fast, high-quality broadband. But the quality of U.S. broadband access is lagging. According to the most recent statistics (December 2008) available from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the United States ranks just 15th among developed nations in broadband penetration.
