Paper Info
Title
The many paradoxes of broadband
Abstract
Thereismuchdismayandevendespairovertheslowpaceatwhichbroadbandisadvanc- ing in the United States. This slow pace is often claimed to be fatally retarding the recovery of the entire IT industry. As a result there are increasing calls for government action, through regulation oreven throughoutrightsubsidies. A careful examination shows that broadband is full of puzzles and paradoxes, which suggests cautionbeforetakinganydrasticaction.Asonesimpleexample,thebasicmeaningofbroadbandis almostuniversally misunderstood, sincebytheo-cial deflnition, weall havebroadbandcourtesyof thepostalsystem.Also,broadbandpenetration,whilegenerallyregardedasdisappointinglyslow,is actually extremely fast by most standards, faster than cell phone difiusion at a comparable stage. Furthermore, many of the policies proposed for advancing broadband are likely to have perverse efiects. There are many opportunities for narrowbandservices that are not being exploited, some of whichmight speed upbroadbandadoption. There are interesting dynamics to the flnancial and technological scenes that suggest broadband access may arrive sooner than generally expected. It may also arrive through unexpected channels. On the other hand, flber-to-the-home, widely regarded as the Holy Grail of residential broadband, might never become widespread. In any case, there is likely to be considerable turmoil in the tele- com industry over the next few years. Robust growth in demand is likely to be combined with a restructuringofthe industry.
Year
DOI
Venue
2003
10.5210/fm.v8i9.1072
First Monday
Keywords
Field
DocType
telecommunications industry,information technology,fiber to the home,broadband,ftth,it
Holy Grail,Subsidy,Pace,Economics,Telecommunications,Broadband,Phone,Government,Restructuring,Next-generation access
Journal
Volume
Issue
Citations 
8
9
4
PageRank 
References 
Authors
1.96
7
1
Name
Order
Citations
PageRank
Andrew M. Odlyzko11286413.71