It might be way too early to say sentiment about municipal broadband, in U.S. state legislatures, has shifted, but the defeat of a bill in the Georgia legislature that would have banned municipal broadband networks could indicate movement.
The bill reportedly would have outlawed municipal broadband networks where a private service supplier already offers service. That would be a relatively rare reversal, as 19 states have some restrictions on municipal broadband, according to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance
There are legitimate issues. Many would say government entities generally should not compete with private entities using tax and other advantages a non-profit entity can take advantage of.
On the other hand, competition in the Internet service provider business is generally seen as promoting end user welfare.
And as a growing number of non-traditional access methods indicate, there actually are new models other than telco, cable, satellite or independent ISP models. The Fon initiative, for example, is showing that "user-contributed" access networks are feasible in some instances.
Perhaps the Georgia legislature is signaling something bigger, namely a willingness to allow more experimentation about broadband services, and who can provide them.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Does Georgia Decison Signal a Turn of Sentiment for Municipal Broadband?
Gary Kim has been a digital infra analyst and journalist for more than 30 years, covering the business impact of technology, pre- and post-internet. He sees a similar evolution coming with AI. General-purpose technologies do not come along very often, but when they do, they change life, economies and industries.
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