【正文】 TOP, and the FCC‘s Connect America Fund program have all invested in creating the middlemile infrastructure that provides highspeed access to ―anchor institutions‖ such as schools and libraries in many rural munities. With middlemile and munity infrastructure in place, the remaining challenge is to provide lastmile connections so millions of Americans have access to highspeed broadband. As we describe below, the availability of middlemile connections creates a significant opportunity for municipalities to increase such access. Affordability In total, almost 30 percent of American households did not have a home broadband connection as of 20xx. One of the main challenges facing increased broadband adoption is price. In a 20xx survey conducted by the FCC, 36 percent of households without a home broadband connection pointed to expense as the major Not surprisingly, the cost of broadband represents a greater obstacle for lowerine Americans than middle and highine Americans. The NTIA reports that in 20xx, 32 percent of families not online with ines below $25,000 indicated that the high cost of Inter service prevents them from using broadband at home, pared to less than 22 percent of households not online with annual ines above $50, Overall Inter use is strongly correlated with household ine, as illustrated in in the figure below, which plots median ine against Inter adoption for a sample of 368 Metropolitan Statistical Areas. 10 Percent of Households with Inter Access by Metro Area vs. Median Household Ine by Metro Area, 20xx Percent 95 90 85 80 75 70 65 60 55 50 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 Source: Census Median Household Ine in 20xx (dollars) . broadband is also relatively expensive when pared internationally. The next chart uses data from a recent report on broadband prices in 24 . and international While the 24 cities in this study may not be representative of all urban locations in the . or abroad, it is notable that the median monthly price at each speed level is higher in the ., often by 50 percent or more. And while it appears that the . has less price variability at speeds above 75 Mbps, this observation actually reflects the fact that fewer . cities even offer a consumer plan at that level. Monthy Price of a Yearly Inter Plan by Speed: US vs. World US Dollars (PPPadjusted) 250 US 200 150 100 US Rest of Rest of World US Rest of World US Rest of World Rest of World US World 50 70 0 Less than 5 Mbps 515 Mbps 1630 Mbps 3175 Mbps More than 75 Mbps Source: New America Foundation, CEA Calculations Note: Lines cover price range, point=median Broadband Competition 11 One proven mechanism for increasing Inter access, quality and affordability is to promote petitive markets. Over the past 30 years, telemunications policy has consistently attempted to encourage market petition in local, longdistance and Inter access markets. For example, the threat of satellite services pushed cable panies to expand their work capacity, positioning them to challenge phone panies in the market for home Inter access. And the ongoing petition between phone and cable panies has created a positive cycle of investment, as providers in many munities continuously upgrade their works and improve their However, the overall national investment picture obscures regional variation. Many local and regional markets today do not have the kind of petition required to continue to ensure affordable access to the higherspeed broadband connections that Americans increasingly require. For example, the following table illustrates the number of choices available to American consumers in fixed and mobile broadband markets. When it es to wired Inter, which can reliably deliver the highest speeds, the majority of Americans have three choices or less. The situation is somewhat better in wireless markets, although focusing on the number of choices obscures the large share of the market served by a handful of the largest providers. And while petition appears reasonably robust if one focuses on bined choices, it is important to recognize that fixed and wireless Inter are not necessarily substitutes, particularly at speeds of 25 Mbps or higher where there is typically no wireless service available. Broadband Choice for American Consumers Number of Choices Share of . Population (%) Fixed Mobile Combined 1 9 0 0 2 33 3 1 3 37 5 2 4 13 22 4 5 3 26 10 6 1 22 18 7 0 11 19 8+ 0 12 46 Source: NTIA, CEA Calculations To illustrate the declining level of petition at higher speeds, the following chart shows the number of wired broadband service providers serving American consumers at different speeds. At speeds of 4 Mbps or less, 75 percent of consumers have a choice between two or more fixed providers, and 15 percent can select among three or more ISPs. However, in the market for Inter service that can deliver 25 Mbps downstream – the speed increasingly recognized as a baseline to get the full benefits of Inter access – three out of four Americans do not have a choice between providers. 12 Number of Choices of Wired Residential Service Provider by Percent of Homes 100 Download Speed 80 60 40 20 0 4 Mbps 10 Mbps 25 Mbps 50 Mbps No Providers 1 Provider 2 Providers ≥3 Providers Source: FCC, NTIA While increased petition will not necessarily solve all broadband access challenges, basic economics suggests that increased petition leads to a better deal for consumers. For example, a 20xx OECD survey of eleven OECD member countries found that new entrants in wireless markets have a substant