INDUSTRY

EDUCAUSE and Internet2 today announced they have joined the U.S. Broadband Coalition. The coalition issued a "call to action" on Capitol Hill last week urging President-elect Barack Obama and Congress to make broadband a national priority in 2009. Representing a diverse and often contentious array of America's communications providers, high-tech companies, manufacturers, consumers, labor unions, public interest groups, educators, state and local governments, utilities, content creators, foundations, and many other stakeholders in America's broadband future, the coalition unveiled an agreed-upon framework for what a national broadband strategy should look like. They will continue to work together to deliver a more detailed plan in the spring of 2009. Of this latest effort, EDUCAUSE President Diana Oblinger said, "America's colleges and universities have taken advantage of high-speed networks to dramatically improve education, revolutionize research, and spur innovation and economic development. Our nation must now extend these and the other benefits of broadband networking to all members of society as a critical matter of national policy." "The Internet2 community is today living in the future of the Internet. In order for all Americans to participate in this same environment and to reclaim our leadership role in the Internet economy, federal legislation must promote the widespread availability of next-generation broadband networks," said Gary Bachula, Internet2 vice president of external relations. "We urge President-elect Obama and Congress to take immediate action to make broadband policy a priority to ensure our economic viability in the rapidly advancing Information Age." View details of the proposal and the coalition its web site. Earlier this year EDUCAUSE released a report titled "A Blueprint for Big Broadband," which calls for the creation of a new federal Universal Broadband Fund (UBF) that, together with matching funds from the states and the private and/or public sector, should be used to build open, big broadband networks of at least 100 Mbps (scalable upwards to 1 Gbps) to every home and business by 2012. View the full report: www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/EPO0801.pdf