More US broadband would create 2.4 million jobs and have $134 billion economic impact

An amazing set of stats came out from a study by Connected Nation and was reported in PC World.
It cites that a 7 percent increase in broadband adoption would create 2.4 million jobs across the U.S., would save $662 million in health-care costs and $6.4 billion in vehicle mileage, among other savings, according to the [...]

Think tank: FCC, Bush have failed on broadband reform

Some strong criticism has come from a well respected Washington DC think tank regarding the lack of progress in the US on broadband deployment …
“The result of administration neglect, industry intransigence and the incompetence of the Federal Communications Commission … has left the American people and most policymakers with no clear idea where broad services [...]

Australia is planning tough web rules to protect kids online

The BBC and a couple other news sources have reported on the fact that Stephen Conroy, the Australian Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy has announced that Australia is planning tough new rules to protect children from online pornography and violence. Follow the link to the article: Australia plans tough web rules [...]

Verizon makes about face on position regarding open network

Big headlines today as Verizon announced its intent to open its network by the end of 2008. This is clearly a 180 degree change from Verizon’s previous position whereby it strongly advocated against open networks in filings before the FCC. Currently, customers must use phones and applications and other software that only Verizon Wireless [...]

Muni Wi-Fi spirals downward

In 2006, as we first started educating people about the merits of M2Z’s plan to build a nationwide, free, wireless broadband network, many skeptics suggested that the broad deployment of municipal Wi-Fi systems would reduce the appeal of M2Z.
To the contrary, we suggested that muni Wi-Fi projects would only work in limited circumstances and that [...]

Celebrate Mediocrity?

A colleague sent me a PR Newswire release about a new study funded by the U.S. Department of Education under the auspices of a grant to the Ready to Learn Partnership (RTLP), which painted an upbeat picture on the state of technology adoption by lower income households. The headline read:
“New Study Funded by U.S. Department [...]

Walt Mossberg likens big cellphone carriers to “Soviet ministries”

Walter Mossberg, who co-produces and co-hosts D: All Things Digital, a major high-tech and media conference and who also writes and edits for the Wall Street Journal recently wrote a damning column (October 22) in the WSJ which points out how government and big cellphone carriers stifle innovation at the expense of consumers.
You can read [...]

75-yr-old vigilante hammers Comcast

Interesting article in the Washington Post about 75 year old Mona Shaw who – after being repeatedly mistreated – went to her local Comcast office and started whacking away with a hammer.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/17/AR2007101702359.html
While we wouldn’t advocate violence or vigilantism, most everyone can sympathize with her emotions. To us, it’s further evidence that we need more [...]

The porn-at-work phenomenon

A recent USA Today report indicates that companies are growing increasingly concerned by the fact that wireless access to the Internet appears to be giving the porn-at-work phenomenon a boost.
You can read the story here:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/workplace/2007-10-17-porn-at-work_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip
Further, it appears that 65% of US Companies use software to block worker’s access to inappropriate websites. 16% of men [...]

Stitching up the Net and The Seattle Times

On October 14, Washington State Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-Seattle; chair, Senate Labor, Commerce, Research & Development Committee; member, K-20 Education Network Board; Olympia) wrote a Letter to the Editor in the Seattle Times to comment on the Seattle Times Column written by M2Z’s CEO, John Muleta. The text to Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles’ Letter to the [...]