IP Democracy: Group Pushes "Big Broadband Bill of Rights"

Courtesy of Joho the Blog, a group that calls itself First Mile.US issued yesterday something called the “Big Broadband Bill of Rights.” The document lays out an extensive list of rights covering broadband pipes, applications and devices, and details expectations for public officials involved in setting broadband rules and policies.

While the Bill of Rights reads well, and lists theoretically laudable goals, First Mile lost me right off the bat.

The first right listed:

You have the right to a big broadband pipe — no matter where you live, work or play. The pipe must be fast enough to support what you want to accomplish and must provide symmetric service.

First Mile doesn’t define “big” but the company states elsewhere on its website

Most experts agree that we need at least 100 megabits of broadband bandwidth to support the kind of applications we expect in the next five years. Some have even suggested that one gigabit of bandwidth is essential by 2010.

Really? Is FirstMile saying that it is a right for all citizens to have 100 Mbps, and conceivably 1 gigabit of bandwidth? What would the citizens do with all of that today? And who is delivering it, aside from a few scattered pilot projects?

FirstMile doesn’t say where it gets its funding, but we suspect that some kind of vested interest is behind this initiative. The company’s website says that it accepts “corporate and individual” donations, but the board is led by Jim Baller, a DC-based attorney who usually represents municipalities in their negotiations with cable operators.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on July 26, 2005 6:18 PM to IP Democracy