As it continues to develop its National Broadband Plan (NBP) due to Congress in February, the FCC wants public input on a study conducted by Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society about worldwide broadband usage. Under the auspices of the Obama administration's American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the FCC began constructing the NBP, an initiative set on ensuring that every American can get access to high speed broadband Internet services.
In July, the FCC asked Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet and Society to examine studies about worldwide broadband usage. One of the 'most surprising and significant findings' was the emphasis on building open access broadband networks that various service providers can use, a policy that's largely non-existent in the U.S. The Berkman study found that when incumbent service providers in studied countries opened their networks to competitors it helped develop their country's market as well as create a blueprint for next-gen Internet access.
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