Next Breakfast Club: How Do We Get More Broadband Competition?

[http://www.eventbrite.com/img/button/register_blue.gif]http://broadbandbreakfast.eventbrite.com/WASHINGTON, March 3, 2009 – The role of broadband competition is central to discussion about a National Broadband Strategy, and to the emerging process for states and companies to tap into the $7.2 billi

Representatives of Amazon.com, AT&T, Public Knowledge, Technology Policy Institute and T-Mobile to Headline March 10 Broadband Breakfast Club

Press Releases

  • NEW! – James Baller, President of Baller Herbst Law Group, will provide a brief summary of the progress of the U.S. Broadband Coalition before the beginning of the discussion about competition.

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2009 – The role of broadband competition is central to discussion about a National Broadband Strategy, and to the emerging process for states and companies to tap into the $7.2 billion in federal funds allocated last month for broadband services.

Five top officials from the companies Amazon.com, AT&T, and T-Mobile, and from non-profit groups Public Knowledge and the Technology Policy Institute, will assemble at the Broadband Breakfast Club on March 10, 2009, to discuss “Broadband Competition: Do We Have It, and How Do We Get More of It?” The event begins at 8 a.m.

Because of the public meeting on the broadband stimulus funds that is taking place at the Commerce Department at 10 a.m. on Tuesday — immediately following the Broadband Breakfast Club — this month’s breakfast will conclude by 9:30 a.m.

The speakers at the breakfast, at the Old Ebbitt Grill in Washington from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. on March 10, 2009, will be:

  • Art Brodsky, Communication Director, Public Knowledge
  • Kathleen Ham, Vice President, Federal Regulatory, T-Mobile USA
  • Brent Olson, Assistant Vice President, Public Policy, AT&T
  • Emmett O’Keefe, Director, Federal Public Policy, Amazon.com
  • Scott Wallsten, Vice President for Research and Senior Fellow, Technology Policy Institute

The event will be moderated by Drew Clark, Editor and Executive Director of BroadbandCensus.com.

Clark is a veteran telecom and technology journalist, and he founded BroadbandCensus.com in January 2008 as a means of providing the public with a free and objective resource of the wired and wireless local broadband carriers, grouped by ZIP code, by speed, by competition and by consumer satisfaction.

Telecommunications policy advocates, attorneys, policy-makers and journalists seeking to obtain insights from top officials in Washington can attend the Broadband Breakfast Club, which includes a full American and Continental breakfast, for as little as $45.00, plus a modest registration fee. The events are on the record and open to the public. Register here for the next breakfast event.

For individuals outside of Washington, or whose schedule doesn’t permit attendance in person, archived webcasts of the Broadband Breakfast Club are now available on the BroadbandCensus.com channel on TV Mainstream. One full year of online access to each premium webcast is available for $40.00.

Individuals who register to attend the Broadband Breakfast Club will also receive a full year of complementary online access to the webcast.

Beginning at 8 a.m., an American plus Continental breakfast is available downstairs in the Cabinet Room. This is followed by a discussion, beginning shortly after 8:30 a.m. and ending before 10 a.m. (The March 10 event will end at 9:30 a.m.)

The registration page for the event is http://broadbandbreakfast.eventbrite.com.

The November meeting, “Should Government Funding Be Part of a National Broadband Plan?” featured a discussion with Stan Fendley of Corning, Kyle McSlarrow of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and telecommunications consultant John Windhausen, Jr.

The December meeting, “How Applications and Broadband Mapping Harness Demand for High-Speed Internet,” included Geoff Daily, a blogger for App-Rising.com; Susan Fox, a vice president at Walt Disney; Neal Neuberger, executive director of the Institute for e-Health Policy; and Alan Shark, executive director of the Public Technology Institute. Click here for access to this webcast.

The January meeting, “What Will Broadband Do to the Universal Service Fund,” included Jay Driscoll of CTIA – The Wireless Association; Gregory Rohde, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce under President Clinton and executive director of the the E-9-1-1 Institute; Jennifer Schneider, Office of Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va., Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Technology and the Internet; and Curt Stamp of the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance. Click here for access to this webcast.

The February meeting, “The Role of Wireless Frequencies in Widespread Broadband Deployment,” featured Donald C. Brittingham, Assistant Vice President, Wireless/Spectrum Policy, Verizon Communications; Tom DeRiggi, Rapid DSL & Wireless (a local wireless internet service provider); John Kneuer, former Assistant Secretary of Commerce, 2006-2007, John Kneuer Associates; John Muleta, CEO, M2Z Networks; and Steve B. Sharkey, Senior Director, Regulatory and Spectrum Policy, Motorola. Click here for access to this webcast.

Because of the limited size of the venue, seated attendance will be reserved the first 45 individuals to register.

Webcasts of the Broadband Breakfast Club Produced in Partnership with:

TV Mainstream

The Broadband Breakfast Club is sponsored by CTIA – The Wireless Association, and the Benton Foundation.

For further information, or to become a sponsor of the Broadband Breakfast Club, please contact: drew at broadbandcensus.com, or call 202-580-8196.

About BroadbandCensus.com

The Broadband Breakfast Club is hosted by BroadbandCensus.com, which provides free information and news about local broadband speeds, prices, availability, reliability and competition. As with BroadbandCensus.com, the Broadband Breakfast Club seeks to light on key issues in broadband technology and internet policy through public disclosure and discussion.

BroadbandCensus.com uses “crowdsourcing” to allow internet users to share information about their internet experiences. Take the Broadband Census today at http://broadbandcensus.com/census/form.