National Broadband Plan's flawed premise
BY THE Federal Communications Commission's own account, broadband use in the United States has exploded over the past decade * * * * So it is curious that the FCC's newly released National Broadband Plan faults the market for failing to "bring the power and promise of broadband to us all" -- in reality, some 7 million households unable to get broadband because it is not offered in their areas. Such an assessment -- and the call for government intervention to subsidize service for rural or poor communities -- is premature, at best. * * * * it is hard to see in this field the signs of gross market failure.The FCC did not vote on the plan, according to David Hatch at CongressDaily, to avoid the possibility of a split vote. That could have meant an eye-opening 3-2 vote, if the plan has no Republican support. Which would have been no surprise, since the basic premise that there is a problem in this sphere which government is uniquely suited to fix through "smart" regulation and public subsidies, is wrong.
