sample content

On Wednesday, March 10 at 8:30am, National Journal Group will host a panel discussion titled, “Inside the Issue: Financial Services.” The event will feature remarks by Senators Bob Corker (R-TN) and Mark Warner (D-VA). Click below to watch the event LIVE!

The FCC is preparing to release the much anticipated National Broadband Plan to Congress on March 17, 2010. NextGenWeb has been actively participating in the dialogue surrounding the plan, attending events, interviewing leading voices, and engaging key constituencies to learn about their issues. Below you will find a frequently updated archive of all of NextGenWeb’s content surrounding the plan. And please, take the time to let us know your thoughts!

On Saturday, March 6 NextGenWeb live streamed the NaCo Technology Summit. Click below to watch archived footage of the summit.

Broadband can be a key player in driving the United States towards a new “Green Economy.” That was the message delivered by four organizations on Capitol Hill this week. The Progressive States Network, in collaboration with the Blue Green Alliance, the Sierra Club and Communications Workers of America, unveiled a new report titled, “Networking the Green Economy: How Broadband and Related Technologies Can Build a Green Economic Future.”

Nathan Newman, Executive Director of the Progressive States Network, said that broadband can reduce energy in various ways, including smart meters in homes and businesses, telehealth, teleconference and telecommuting, and e-commerce. Newman also stressed the immense cost savings that broadband would bring in these same sectors. See NGW’s interview with Newman below.

Annie Hill, Executive Vice President for the Communications Workers of America, carried a jobs message and said that increased broadband deployment brings with it immense opportunity for gainful employment. “Investment in the green economy is the job creator of the 21st century, and broadband is part of that investment,” Hill said.

Allison Chin, President of the Sierra Club, discussed broadband and smart meters. Chin stressed the importance of ubiquitous broadband so that all consumers can track their energy usage, and in turn be more energy efficient. Check out NGW’s interview with the Sierra Club President below.

As the event drew to a close, Congressman Ed Markey, Chairman of the US House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, congratulated the organizations for their work on the report. He stressed the importance of the transition to a new green economy, and the fundamental role broadband will play in that transition.

Be sure to check out our interview with Link Hoewing, Assistant Vice President for Internet and Technology Issues at Verizon. Link participated in a recent ITIF panel that focused on areas of collaboration in the Net neutrality debate. In his interview with NextGenWeb, Mr. Hoewing talks about why and how the broadband market is working for consumers, what we can take away from the substantive comments submitted during the FCC’s open Internet proceeding and finally talks about Verizon’s joint filing with Google, including the idea of Technical Advisory Group – or TAG. Be sure to check that out and much more in the dialogue below.

PROGRAM NOTE: Verizon’s Kathy Brown will be a panelist at tomorrow’s joint event hosted by Silicon Flatirons, Public Knowledge and ITIF (live streamed on NextGenWeb) and will also be discussing some of these issues.

On March 3, the Federalist Society hosted an event titled, “The FCC’s Authority to Promulgate Internet Traffic Rules.” Click below to watch full archived footage of the event.

While minority adoption was the big issue yesterday as it relates to our broadband priorities, Net neutrality took center stage today at an event sponsored by the Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law titled “Implementing the National Broadband Plan: Perspective from Government, Industry and Consumers.”

The lunch session featured a discussion between Adam Thierer, President of the Progress and Freedom Foundation, and Ben Scott, Policy Director at Free Press, both leading (and effective) voices in the debate over whether or not the government should regulate the Internet. Neither one took long to get into the crux of their arguments. Thierer effectively broke down what he described as the “Five Cases Against Net Neutrality,” that included legal, economic, engineering, practical, and philosophical arguments.

To see Thierer describe these five cases in more detail, click on his interview with NextGenWeb following the debate.

At an event in the U.S. Capitol today hosted by the Internet Innovation Alliance (IIA), Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, and the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, Inc., a group of leaders in the technology community, led by IIA co-chairs Bruce Mehlman and David Sutphen, discussed findings in a survey performed by former Obama Campaign pollster Cornell Belcher. The survey, conducted among 900 respondents in the African American and Hispanic communities, focused on broadband access, adoption and affordability.

Consistent with findings often referenced in the Pew Internet & American Life Project , Belcher’s study shows that cost and access are not the primary barriers – if barriers at all – to consumers in the African American and Hispanic communities choosing whether or not they adopt high-speed Internet service. Instead, once again we see the term “relevance” enter the equation, meaning there are people who are not making the connection between the Internet and an enhanced quality of life. Access to health care, education resources, the ability to stay connected with family, and entertainment are just a few of the things brought to us over broadband. In short, some in the African American and Hispanic communities – and beyond – still don’t see the Internet as a “game-changer.”

Navarrow Wright, President of Maximum Leverage Solutions, has become a leading voice on these and other broadband and technology issues. Wright attributes his professional success to not only embracing the Internet, but his ability and desire to understand and use it as a platform where he could showcase his talents. Wright, who recently called into question the need for a debate on Net neutrality, said that the government’s broadband policy needs to focus primarily on helping people understand the real value that the Internet has to their lives. Be sure to check out our interview with Navarro below.

These were themes echoed by other panelists, including Sylvia Aguilera, Executive Director of the Hispanic Technology and Telecommunications Partnership. Ms. Aguilera said specifically that broadband policy needs to focus on closing the digital divide, bringing employment opportunities to minority communities and tying broadband deployment to aggressive adoption programs.

The conversation then turned to the noise around the current Net neutrality debate, which has been amplified via the FCC’s open Internet proceeding. The panelists seemed frustrated at the attention Net neutrality is getting – as well as the resources and time being dedicated to that debate which they feel would be better-suited on more pressing issues, like educating consumers on the importance and relevance of high-speed Internet.

Wright said there are no concrete reasons the Net neutrality supporters can point too that justify placing new regulations on the Internet. Further, he asked how the government could create rules for everyone on the Internet when we still have so much work to do to get more people online. Ms. Aguilera picked up on that point saying that Net neutrality will not help close the digital divide. She said the time being spent on discussing the Net neutrality issue is taking away from collaborating on more pressing broadband issues facing the Hispanic community.

In a very healthy, candid discussion on challenges minority communities face when it comes to adopting broadband, one thing was clear – Net neutrality isn’t the answer. And worse, it detracts from a more pressing dialogue that needs to focus on the education of those who are not embracing the many promises that come with having a high-speed Internet connection.