Use the Market to Allocate Spectrum
TPI President Tom Lenard has a post on The Hill’s Congress Blog…
Broadband
High-speed data connections, or broadband, are critical to the economy. Our work on broadband covers a wide range of topics, including the digital divide, wireline and wireless provision, spectrum, net neutrality, competition, and more.
Use the Market to Allocate Spectrum
Congress is now considering legislation to grant the FCC new authority to hold voluntary incentive auctions for spectrum. This legislation would alleviate shortages of spectrum that are threatening to hold back the development of a wireless broadband platform capable of competing with wireline platforms. It would boost the economy and advance our progress toward a more efficient, market-oriented spectrum regime.
How to Create a More Efficient Broadband Universal Service Program by Incorporating Demand and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis
The existing high-cost fund suffers from two inherent flaws: it does not incorporate how much consumers value the services being subsidized, and does not measure the incremental, rather than average, effects of the program. This paper proposes a way to incorporate those factors into the Connect America Fund�the proposed high-cost broadband support program�to enable it to operate more efficiently than the existing high-cost program ever could.
Spectrum Allocation in Japan
I’m working on a case study of broadband in Japan. In the…
Research Roundup: Cyber Security, Network Neutrality and More
This edition of Research Roundup highlights a paper by Amalia R. Miller…
Where Does the Cable Industry think It’s Going? Empirical Observations from the 2010 and 2011 Cable Shows: More Programming and Consumer Interface Applications
Many aspects of the 2011 Cable Show were the same as the…
Event – Spectrum Incentive Auctions: the Nuts, Bolts and Economics
The FCC and the Administration want to make 120 MHz of spectrum currently used for broadcast available for other, presumably higher-value, wireless uses. Policymakers are proposing using voluntary auctions to encourage broadcasters to sell their licenses, but questions remain on how these incentive auctions would work in practice. Discussion at “Spectrum Incentive Auctions: the Nuts, Bolts and Economics,” hosted by the Technology Policy Institute, will focus on the economics of auctions and how spectrum incentive auctions should be structured to provide the most efficient outcomes for stakeholders. Discussants will also answer questions submitted by attendees. Questions can be submitted anonymously on the TPI website.
USF Reform Should Include Low-Income Subsides, Competitive Auctions
Transitioning the use of universal service funds to subsidize broadband creates a unique opportunity to reform the program. Reforms should include a focus on low-income subsides and competitive bidding in high-cost service areas, explain Scott Wallsten and Gregory Rosston in “The Path to Universal Broadband: Why We Should Grant Low-Income Subsides, and Use Auctions and Experiments to Determine the Specifics” recently published by The Economists’ Voice.
The Path to Universal Broadband: Why We Should Grant Low-Income Subsidies and Use Experiments and Auctions to Determine the Specifics
Gregory Rosston of Stanford University and Scott Wallsten of the Technology Policy Institute argue that the switch from voice to broadband services provides a rare opportunity to reform universal service programs. Rossten and Wallsten offer an alternative design to deliver services in an efficient and politically-palatable manner.
Where is the USF Really Going?
Our own Scott Wallsten participated in a Heartland InfoTech and Telecom News…