Short and sweet...the adoption rate of broadband technologies (cable and DSL) in the U.S. is low compared to other nations. Increased adoption of broadband could fuel new economic growth. Some argue that small government subsidies ($10 per month) would help people overcome the cost issue that appears to be a major obstacle in switching to broadband.
Non-profit membership associations serve millions of people in this country with education, research and other benefits. Couldn't associations make a strategic investment to move their members from dial-up access to broadband, and in the process create new business opportunities for themselves, for their members and for the country as a whole?
Associations are struggling with their relevance in the 21st Century. I think that instead of whining about it, they should seize the initiative and use some of their resources to change the rules of the game.
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If AARP or DNC wants its members to be more active, they could either subsidize boradband or better yet negotiate a group discount.
Barry:
The implications of this opportunity are far greater than merely the political. Most people don't know that associations as a group are the single largest providers of education to adults. If a higher percentage of those adults could access high-impact multimedia learning opportunities with broadband access, it would create all kinds of new business possibilities for a variety of providers not to mention a new context for meaningful collaboration among geographically dispered individuals and communities.
Jeff
How would the association do this, though? Broadband is primarily provided by telcos who are entrenched monopolists and own most of the networks that are so fast. Each endpoint (home or office) would need to be upgraded, and associations have no control over those endpoints. Besides offering them an incentive to do so (what would it be and who would pay for it?), a member of an association is unlikely to find anybody who can really help out.
However, there are private WiFi networks, often connected to broadband connections, in which people freely or otherwise group together to make networks available. This is closer to being what you suggest, perhaps, since associations could find those members who have high speed access, provide them with WiFi hotspots and membership access to them, and then provide the locations where such hotspots exist. Again, if the association is geographically distributed, this may not be too helpful, though, as the hotspots are not likely to be close enough for many people to use them. Also, this may be illegal in many places (considered theft) since the terms of use for most every home-based broadband connection precludes you sharing it outside of the household or for reselling any of the bandwidth.
Yozons:
I think you're missing my point. Associations would use their financial resources (and perhaps their negotiating clout) to provide incentives or support to members to encourage them to get broadband on their own. These resources would be used to lower the monthly cost to a level that would be more acceptable.
The goal isn't for associations to handle the technology end, but instead for them to provide the necessary incentives to make the technology more accessible.
Jeff
Subsidies ? Ugh... Why not Gov make the monopolistic telcos foot the bill ?
Not sure that I follow all this, but I like the idea of widening access to those who would not normally be able to afford it more than I like the thought that this would fuel economic growth which I do not see as being a good thing per se as Jeff seems to imply.