Rising Gas Prices Make Telecommuting More Appealing May 30th, 2008

This week, Connected Nation sent out a news release highlighting how broadband can help American commuters save big money. With gas prices nationally approaching $4 per gallon (and in my DC neighborhood already over $4.15), broadband connections at home can have a major impact on the increasingly stretched family budget.

According to Connected Nation, “the average American consumer driving a sedan at 20 miles per gallon would use 1.36 gallons per day, 6.8 gallons per week. At $4.00 per gallon, Americans would see a savings of more than $110 a month on average.”

That’s more than $1300 a year.

Connected Nation also points to the tremendous environmental benefits from taking cars off the road. A recent report from Connected Nation estimates “the benefits of reduced driving could account for more than $17.5 million in carbon offsets per year for the nation.”

Sounds like a win-win situation to me so don’t bother calling me in the office tomorrow. Send me an email instead because I’ll be working from home…

Take a Vacation…With Broadband Now! May 27th, 2008

Did you know that 61% of travelers receive text updates on their mobile devices for flight arrival or departure status? And more than 60% of Americans will use the Internet to book travel in 2008? So what does broadband have to do with your summer vacation plans? Find out in the latest installment of our broadband news update, Broadband Now.

USTelecom Vidcast: Tom Soroka on USTelecom’s Webinars May 23rd, 2008

As you may have noticed, we recently began promoting USTelecom’s webinars here on our blog. To give you a better idea of what those are all about, I sat down this morning with Tom Soroka, USTelecom’s vice president for engineering and technology, to talk about what webinars are, what kinds of topics USTelecom webinars cover, and what we’re planning for the near future.

Be sure to check our events page regularly to see a listing of our upcoming webinars and to visit the archives of our previous webinars, available to you on demand.

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez Calls for an Internet “Unfettered by Regulation” May 23rd, 2008

Earlier this week, US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez gave a speech before a conference in New Orleans on communications policy. In the speech, Gutierrez echoed a number of the themes that USTelecom and NextGenWeb.org have been sounding in recent months about substantial potential of broadband to change our lives in a range of areas, including health care, education, consumer applications, and entertainment.

Specifically, Gutierrez identified the need to encourage investment in next-generation networks, noting the substantial investment broadband companies have made in infrastructure–$70 billion in North America last year alone. He put that substantial investment into perspective by citing the fact that “the cost of building the interstate highway system in today’s dollars would be about $20 billion annually over 25 years,” a fact often noted by USTelecom’s Walter McCormick in reference to the staggering investment network operators have put into our communications infrastructure. As network traffic increases with new applications, Gutierrez continued, “to keep pace, providers must develop new capacity and maintain the flexibility to manage their networks effectively and transparently.” In closing, the secretary added, “imposing regulations, throwing up barriers and creating more hurdles for industry and consumers is not the right approach… I believe it is critically important that we preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that exists for the Internet, unfettered by regulation.”

Click here to read Secretary Gutierrez’s remarks in their entirety.

House Passes Tax Extenders Bill May 23rd, 2008

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved the Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008 (H.R. 6049)—a package of tax extenders and incentives—by a vote of 263 to 160. According to the bill’s summary, it includes extenders for a number of expiring temporary tax provisions, including the research and development tax credit. The R&D credit, which expired at the end of last year, is extended for one year.

The White House issued a Statement of Administration Policy, noting that although the president supports elements of the bill—including the R&D credit, active financing provisions, and relief for individuals—he would veto it if it were sent to him as-is. The administration objects to the revenue-generating offsets included in the bill and to the lack of a patch for the alternative minimum tax. The Senate is scheduled to markup its tax extenders bill sometime in June.

USTelecom Vidcast: Bill Deere on the Farm Bill May 19th, 2008

Following last Wednesday’s passage in the House by a margin of 318-106, the full Senate voted on Thursday to approve the Farm Bill. The bill will reauthorize the Rural Utilities Service’s broadband loan program, and it contains language recommended by USTelecom to strengthen the program by better targeting unserved areas and opening up the program to more borrowers. USTelecom President and CEO Walter B. McCormick Jr. hailed the bill’s passage, noting that “broadband creates countless new opportunities in rural America through e-health programs, distance learning, and energy conservation and this bill will help ensure that all consumers enjoy the same benefits from high-speed Internet services, regardless of where they live. We strongly urge the Senate to pass the bill quickly to get it to the President’s desk.”

President Bush has pledged to veto the bill due to its $300 billion price tag over five years and the inclusion of multiple earmarks and agricultural subsidies–objections that are unrelated to the RUS and the broadband loan program. However, given the overwhelming margins by which the bill passed in both chambers, a Congressional override of the president’s veto seems imminent.

Just after the Senate vote, we talked with Bill Deere, USTelecom’s vice president for government affairs, about the legislation.

Walter McCormick’s Media Institute Address Now Online May 16th, 2008

In case you missed our live stream of Walter McCormick’s speech at Wednesday’s Media Institute luncheon, be sure to check it out here on our site:

Walter McCormick to Address Media Institute Luncheon Today May 14th, 2008

At 1:15pm today, USTelecom President and CEO Walter B. McCormick Jr. will speak before an audience of journalists and communications executives as part of the Media Institute’s luncheon series. The Media Institute is a DC-area research foundation that specializes in communications policy. Although the luncheon is by invite only, we’ll be streaming video of the event on our website here.

Walter’s speech will touch on a range of broadband issues, including the innovative new uses for broadband for everything from enhancing our democratic process to economic stimulation to new choices in entertainment. He’ll also cover the pivotal role of private investment in keeping our communications networks strong, competitive, and efficient; the biggest threat to that investment, of course, is regulation of the Internet, another subject we expect Walter to touch on during the speech.

Be sure to tune in here at USTelecom.org to see the whole thing.

Webinar This Thursday: IPTV Integration—the Lessons Learned May 13th, 2008

Join USTelecom at 1pm this Thursday for a free webinar about the ins and outs of IPTV, “IPTV Integration Trials and Tribulations-the Lessons Learned.” Whether you’re launching a new IPTV service or upgrading an existing service, the integration of new IPTV technologies and features can be risky and difficult. But Mariner Partners President and CEO Curtis Howe will walk you through the process, describing the challenges his team has faced over a decade of IPTV deployments; you’ll learn techniques and practices from a true IPTV insider about how to successfully develop and deploy innovative IPTV services. To register, click here.

USTelecom Vidcast: Phantom Traffic May 9th, 2008

With a recent Senate hearing and a new bill released by Sen. Ted Stevens (R - Alaska), the FCC may have a new incentive to act on the issue of phantom traffic. To talk about the issue and what the recent Congressional action might mean at the FCC, we sat down recently with USTelecom’s Glenn Reynolds, VP for policy, and Bill Deere, VP for Government Affairs.