Bob Bocher WI State Library Fellow, ALA Office for Information Technology Policy , (dpi.wi.gov/pld/litabb.ppt) LITA President’s Program ALA Annual Conference — June 2011

Topics to Cover 1. The U.S. broadband (BB) landscape 2. The National Broadband Plan (NBP) 3. The library broadband landscape 4. Addressing library broadband issues 2 The issue is no longer Internet access but improving the quality of access as the demands of the medium and patrons grow rapidly. —OITP Broadband Connectivity Report (2007)

3 The U.S. Broadband Landscape  Household BB access 66%, but variesBB access 66%,  Address BB access via marketplace  More BB based on more competition, which is driven by less regulation FCC deregulates BB, raises Net Neutrality issue  U.S. one of few developed nations with no BB plan  Plan mandated in ARRA  Other ARRA broadband programsARRA broadband programs  Infrastructure (BTOP)  Mapping We need to develop a broadband strategy just like every other industrialized nation. —FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, 2005.

NBP: Key Long-term Goals 1: Every American should have affordable access to robust broadband and at least 100 million homes have access to 100Mbps or more. 2: Community anchor institutions (CAI) should have affordable access to at least 1Gbps. Using its regulatory authority, the FCC is initiating over 60 actions to implement the NBP goals and recommendations. 4 (released March 2010, “This isn’t just about faster Internet. It’s about connecting every part of America to the digital age.“ –President Obama, State of the Union Address, Jan. 2011

NBP: Several Key FCC Actions/Recommendations  E-rate reform: Allow fiber by any entity (Sept 2010)  High Cost reform: Transition to new Connect America Fund for broadband (open docket)  $4.6 billion annually now supports voice telephony With BB, voice just another service – VoIP  ALA: Use CAF for libraries too*  Create national coordinating entity, the “U.S. Unified Community Anchor Network” (U.S. UCAN)  Recommendation from Internet2 5 * ALA comments at

Public Library Broadband Landscape*  65% offer the only free Net access in their communities  86% offer wireless access (29% in 2005)  91% offer jobs-related databases  99% offer periodical and reference databases 6  Libraries find the BB landscape confusing  Bandwidth increases are not meeting demand But… * Data from ALA Libraries and the Internet surveys at

2010 Public Library Broadband Stats 7 We have a 3Mbps connection but at 4pm it is so slow it’s like being on dial-up. -Comment from ALA Technology Access Study Rather than spelling the demise of public libraries, the Internet holds new service opportunities. -- Public Libraries and the Internet rpt., 1994.

Addressing Library Broadband: BTOP Grants  61 grants will increase bandwidth to 2,381 libraries  Internet2 awarded $62 million  Augment national backbone; add 11,800 miles of new fiber and upgrade 10,000 miles of existing fiber  Create U.S. Unified Community Anchor Network ( U.S. UCAN ) U.S. UCAN National: Use I2 network infrastructure State/local: Use R&E network infrastructure 8 Give a non-profit institution the mission and capability to focus on the broadband needs of public institutions. --NPB, Chapter 8.

Addressing Library Broadband: U.S. UCAN  Some R&E networks already serve libraries, schools, etc.R&E networks already serve libraries  Leverage expertise of R&E networks  High quality bandwidth  Network engineering and IT support  Procurement and contracts  U.S. UCAN challenges  Connect 150,000 CAI? 66,000 connected now  Economic issues Task Force report out for commentreport out for comment  Last mile issues 9 Expanding the R&E network model to other anchor institutions will offer tremendous benefits. Many CAI lack resources to undertake the many tasks necessary to maximize their utilization of broadband. --NPB, Chapter 8.

Addressing Library Broadband: OITP Activities  Advocacy:  OITP files comments with the FCC, visits FCC staff, NTIA, etc.  OGR tracks Congressional action, makes Hill visits  Collaboration:  Works with many groups, (SHLB Coalition, Gates Foundation, Internet2, etc.)  Education:  Workshops, news releases, conference programs, publications 10 * See OITP website:

In Summary: Addressing Library Broadband  NBP recognizes library and other CAI broadband needs  FCC reform of E-rate and High Cost programs  Encourage cooperative initiatives, like the U.S. UCAN  Need strong advocates, like ALA/OITP 11 Q&A from an OITP focus group on broadband. Q: What is sufficient broadband? A: As much as you can afford. A: More than we have. A: It’s based on the number of irritated patrons. A: When you click, it happens.

Bob Bocher WI State Library Fellow, ALA Office for Information Technology Policy , (dpi.wi.gov/pld/litabb.ppt) LITA President’s Program ALA Annual Conference — June 2011

13 Return We need a national goal for universal,affordable access to broadband by —President Bush, 2004.

State R&E Networks and Libraries* 14 There are 38 state R&E networks and 22 serve at least some libraries. See the Gates Foundation report Connections, Capacity, Community… for more details. Connections, Capacity, Community Return