GAO Report on Nat’l Broadband Plan US agencies with responsibilities for broadband deployment – FCC – Office of Science and Technology Policy in the White House – NTIA in the Department of Commerce – RUS in the Department of Agriculture

International comparisons Average broadband speeds—1.352 Mbps in Mexico to Mbps in So. Korea – US ranked 14 th with Mbps average speed Population a factor—7 of the OECD countries with highest adoption rate had smallest population Price – US price per megabit is lower than OECD average except for very high speed, where it is much higher Computer ownership – US ranks 5 th in the OECD countries Income – US ranks 8 th in OECD countries in gross national income per capita

7 countries studied Japan, Canada, France, the Netherlands, So. Korea, Sweden, and the UK Lessons/patterns – All instituted broadband plans and their leaders have emphasized broadband initiatives – All have funded private/public partnerships – All have taken steps to encourage competition Loop unbundling, regulation of interconnection rates – All have expanded online services to increase usefulness of broadband – Several have provided digital training or provided subsidies