Reason Foundation

Recent Research and Commentary

Muni Broadband: The Idea that Won't Die

January 30, 2012, 5:17pm

Steven Titch

Yep, the Broadband Stimulus Funded Overbuilds

May 4, 2011, 4:16pm

Steven Titch

Funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), commonly known as the $787-billion stimulus enacted in 2009, financed public broadband buildouts in areas already served by commercial service providers.

How Long Before Someone Dies Because of an Unsecured Wireless Router?

April 26, 2011, 11:48am

Steven Titch

According to an AP story out of Buffalo, N.Y., federal agents armed with assault weapons stormed a residence in the early morning hours last month looking for child porn on a home PC. The homeowner, whom the article did not identify, was roughed up and forced to the floor at gunpoint while agents accused him of being a creep and pervert.

The Year 2010 in IT Outsourcing, Network Neutrality, and Federal Broadband

Telecommunications Chapter of Annual Privatization Report 2010

February 25, 2011

Steven Titch, Leonard Gilroy

This section of Reason Foundation's Annual Privatization Report 2010 provides an overview of hot topics in technology outsourcing and telecommunications policy. Topics include:

• IT outsourcing in state governments,
• Cloud computing and the future of IT outsourcing,
• the national Network Neutrality debate, and
• an analysis of the FCC's new National Broadband Plan.

Report: Poorest States Rank Highest in Broadband Competition

April 27, 2010, 12:00pm

Steven Titch

Low-income states have a much higher degree of facilities-based competition than wealthier ones, according to a new report from ID Insight, a consulting firm that provides authentication, verification and fraud prevention solutions to financial services companies, credit issuers, retailers, online merchants and broadband providers.

Rethinking Universal-Service Policy in a Broadband Internet Era

Bringing inexpensive broadband connectivity to as many people as possible
Policy Study 376

September 2, 2009

Steven Titch

Historically, government initiative was behind the great water and power infrastructure projects undertaken during the Progressive Era. Many see parallels between the need for electricity and running water in the past and the need for broadband today, and are calling for even more federal and state government involvement in the construction and deployment of broadband. The general belief is that broadband, like water, power and one-time narrowband phone service, is a utility.

Broadband, in truth, has little in common with classic utilities. The only real similarity is that the underlying infrastructure is expensive to build. Utilities require high investment up front, which can be amortized over several decades. Broadband requires not only high investment up front but continued high investment thereafter. Technology cycles are short. Entire network platforms change every five to ten years. Broadband is also competitive across multiple facilities platforms—telephone, cable and wireless—each with relative advantages and disadvantages. Competition in broadband is a critical dimension and is why government funding and subsidy programs carry a much greater risk of failure, or mere ineffectiveness, wasting public capital and resources.

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