Last Friday, the New York Times published an editorial containing an explicit endorsement of local Internet choice. To make its case, the NYT editorial focused on a CLIC submission to the Federal Communications Commission in a proceeding in which the City of Wilson, NC, and the Electric Power Board of Chattanooga, TN, successfully challenged the barriers that their states imposed on local Internet choice.
It is a big day in the life of any cause when the most influential newspaper in the world endorses that cause. In the words of the NYT Editorial Board, “it is important that Congress and the Federal Communications Commission push for more choices in the broadband market. Among other things, they should override laws some states have passed that make it difficult or impossible for municipalities to invest in broadband networks… ”
The link in that endorsement is to CLIC’s filing with the FCC that summarizes the many substantive arguments supporting the ability of local governments to acquire, partner for, or, if necessary, develop their own advanced communications networks that will enable them to survive and thrive in the years and decades ahead in the increasingly competitive information-based global economy.
Great nations are built on great communities. The United States will be best served when its communities are freed to achieve their full potential without constraint by protectionist incumbent-driven state laws.