• by August 8, 2005

In a bid to spur broadband growth, the Federal Communications Commission last week relaxed the rules regulating high-speed Internet services marketed by telecom providers. The FCC said telecom companies no longer have to give rival providers of Internet service access to their lines at lower rates.

This rule change is expected to help spur competition by providing a level playing field for telecom companies that are competing directly with cable and other Internet service providers. The FCC hopes that lifting the restriction will drive broadband penetration more quickly and encourage telecom firms to upgrade their networks.

The rule change requires telecoms to continue contributing to universal service funds, which pay for phone and Internet services in underserved areas. It will be a year before the new rules take effect.

Meanwhile, Forrester Research estimates that nearly 71 million Americans will have broadband access by 2010. That means 62 percent of U.S. residents will have access in five years. Only 29 percent of Americans had broadband access in 2004.

Still, did you know that the United States lags far behind countries such as South Korea, where 75 percent of households currently have broadband access? A Forrester survey, "The State of Consumer Technology," surveyed more than 68,000 households in the United States to find that broadband access grew from 19 percent in 2003, to 29 percent in 2004. The jump is attributed to the availability of DSL service (Digital Subscriber Line) offered by most telephone companies for between $20 and $30 per month.

Forrester says that the adoption of wireless technologies like Wi-MAX and broadband over power lines will help boost broadband penetration rates, but not necessarily in the near-term. The United States lags behind nearly a dozen countries in broadband deployment. For example, it's ranked No. 12 behind South Korea, Japan, Canada, and a few Western European countries.

We better pick up the pace. So much depends on broadband.