June 29, 2007
Brookings Research: Broadband Penetration Promotes Job Growth
By Prabhala Ranga Sai, TMCnet Contributor
Universal broadband access has positively affected the U.S. economy, including the creation of new job opportunities, according to a Brooking Institution research titled, “The Effects of Broadband Deployment on Output and Employment: A Cross-sectional Analysis of U.S. Data.”
High-speed Internet access has been growing at a rapid pace, and has now reached 64.6 million lines, including mobile wireless connections. In 2000, this figure was just 4.1 million, of which 3.2 million were residential connections. Each percentage point of broadband penetration has led to creation of 293,000 private sector jobs annually, the study noted.
Citing the study, Internet Innovation Alliance (News - Alert) (IIA), a coalition of non-profit organizations, said it is very important to increase the investments in broadband technologies.
“The Brookings Institution findings demonstrate that broadband is critical to the growth of the economy,” said Larry Irving, co-chair of the IIA. “Innovative Internet applications are not only redefining business, but they’re changing the way we live and learn through applications like Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP
), video file sharing, and distance learning.”
), video file sharing, and distance learning.”As more and more new applications are coming to enhance users’ experiences, they are also consuming more space on the Internet. The current usage of bandwidth by YouTube (News - Alert) alone is more than the capacity of entire Internet in 2000.
Keeping in view these increasing infrastructure requirements, the government should plan encouraging tax policies, suggested Bruce Mehlman, co-chair of the IIA. As faster broadband deployment benefits all Americans, policy makers should take proactive steps, he added.
In addition, the IIA also has made the following recommendations for ensuring the continued growth of the broadband industry, as well as the job growth it fosters:
- Promote investments in infrastructure upgrades and innovation;
- Protect consumers through market competition;
- Encourage competition among service providers;
- Extend the Internet Tax moratorium.
PR Sai is a contributor to TMCnet. To see more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.
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