FCC: Surprise! The Internet is Healthy

Thu, 2011-08-04 09:53 | Regulation | Sam Batkins
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You wouldn’t know it by the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) pending net neutrality rule but the Internet is actually thriving.

In a report released this week, FCC found that broadband speeds met advertised standards and consumers were generally satisfied with their Internet experience.

Among the highlights for the state of technology:

  • Cable internet delivered 93 percent of advertised speeds during peak usage (7:00 pm to 11:00 pm);
  • DSL-based services yielded 95 percent of advertised upload speeds, with cable-based services delivering 108 percent of advertised speeds;
  • All current technologies “can deliver good service to customers depending on their needs.”

This data hardly comes as a surprise to hundreds of millions of Americans who use the Internet for business, pleasure, and of course, Facebook.  Though regulators and some doubters point to other countries as models for broadband growth, by most metrics, even FCC’s, the U.S. leads the way.

Measuring by gigabytes per-month-per-user, the U.S. outpaces international “competition.”  The U.S. consumes 26.25 gigabytes per Internet user, more than twice the global average and 10 gigabytes more a month than the average western European.

American consumers have plenty of available broadband, with as-advertised speeds, and a broad array of platforms from which to choose.  Internet guru Bret Swanson notes, “[T]he U.S. Internet ecosystem is in fact healthy, vibrant and growing.  Far from lagging, it leads the world in most of the important innovation indicators.”

Of course, just as broadband continues to thrive, there are other areas, namely wireless spectrum, where current physical limitations demand immediate deregulatory measures from the federal government. 

And the good news for taxpayers and deficit hawks?  The surplus from expanding wireless could be $40 to $50 billion annually.  Actually, good news abounds: broadband remains healthy and there are incredible opportunities to create jobs and wealth through spectrum growth.