Federal Communications Commission DA 11-732 Before The
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Federal Communications Commission DA 11-732 Before the Federal Communications Commission Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of ) ) International Comparison Requirements Pursuant ) to the Broadband Data Improvement Act ) IB Docket No. 10-171 ) International Broadband Data Report ) ) ) ) SECOND REPORT Adopted: May 20, 2011 Released: May 20, 2011 By the Chief, International Bureau: I. INTRODUCTION 1. This second International Broadband Data Report (IBDR or Report) presents comparative data on the extent of international broadband service capability, based on the best data sources available to the Commission at this time.1 Our analysis of this data suggests a positive correlation between broadband adoption and income, population size, and population density. These factors help explain the United States’ rates of broadband adoption compared to other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries. Based on OECD data, the United States ranks ninth for mobile broadband adoption on a per capita basis,2 and 12th for fixed (e.g., DSL or cable) broadband on a per household basis.3 U.S. fixed broadband adoption lags behind such countries as South Korea, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany, but exceeds adoption rates in Japan and the EU average.4 This Report also compares data on average actual download speeds reported by a sample of consumers in a number of U.S. and foreign cities and finds that some large European and Asian cities exhibit a significant edge over comparable U.S. cities in reported download speeds, though reported speeds for some other international cities are roughly comparable to speeds in many U.S. cities. We note that 1 See 47 U.S.C. § 1303(b). In this report we use the term “broadband” synonymously with “advanced telecommunications capability.” See generally Inquiry Concerning the Deployment of Advanced Telecommunications Capability to All Americans in a Reasonable and Timely Fashion, and Possible Steps to Accelerate Such Deployment Pursuant to Section 706 of the Telecommunications of 1996, as Amended by the Broadband Data Improvement Act; A National Broadband Plan for Our Future, GN Docket Nos. 09-137 and 09-51, Seventh Broadband Deployment Report, FCC 11-78 (2011) (Seventh 706 Report). 2 OECD Broadband Portal, Table 1d (2) (June 2010) (accessed Feb. 11, 2011), available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/21/35/39574709.xls. 3 OECD Broadband Portal, Figure 2a. Households with broadband access, 2009 or latest available year (accessed Feb. 11, 2011), available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/20/59/39574039.xls. A fixed broadband connection is likely to be shared within a household whereas multiple people within a single household may each have their own mobile broadband connection, thus accounting for differing standards of measurement (per capita for mobile broadband versus household for fixed broadband access). 4 OECD Broadband Portal, Table 2a (July 2010) (accessed Feb. 11, 2011), available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/20/59/39574039.xls. Federal Communications Commission DA 11-732 available data sources on international broadband are incomplete and generally challenging to compare because of significant gaps and variations in data collection methodologies across countries. As a result, we are limited in the conclusions we can draw from the data. In this Report we outline steps the Commission is taking to obtain better, more globally standardized broadband data in order to help the Commission better meet its statutory responsibilities. II. BACKGROUND A. Requirements of the BDIA 2. The Broadband Data Improvement Act (BDIA) requires the Commission to include in its annual broadband progress report “information comparing the extent of broadband service capability (including data transmission speeds and price for broadband service capability) in a total of 75 communities in at least 25 countries abroad for each of the data rate benchmarks for broadband service utilized by the Commission to reflect different speed tiers.”5 The BDIA directs the Commission to assess broadband capability in international communities comparable to U.S. communities with respect to population size, population density, topography, and demographic profile.6 The Commission is also directed to include “a geographically diverse selection of countries” and “communities including the capital cities of such countries.”7 The Commission must “identify relevant similarities and differences in each community, including their market structures, the number of competitors, the number of facilities- based providers, the types of technologies deployed by such providers, the applications and services those technologies enable, the regulatory model under which broadband service capability is provided, the types of applications and services used, business and residential use of such services, and other media available to consumers.”8 B. Data Presented in the 2010 IBDR 3. The Commission published its first report under the BDIA last year. In that report we presented broadband data gathered from public sources,9 and reviewed the record developed for the Commission’s 2010 broadband progress report10 and the National Broadband Plan, including the report prepared by the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University.11 Recognizing that no single existing public data source would satisfy all of the requirements of the BDIA, Commission staff compiled advertised broadband prices from the websites of broadband providers in 34 countries; OECD 5 47 U.S.C. § 1303(b)(1). 6 Id. at § 1303(b)(2). 7 Id. 8 47 U.S.C. § 1303(b)(3). 9 International Comparison Requirements Pursuant to the Broadband Data Improvement Act International Broadband Data Report, GN Docket No. 09-47, First Report, 25 FCC Rcd 11963, Appendices B-E (2010) (2010 IBDR). 10 See Inquiry Concerning the Deployment of Advanced Telecommunications Capability to All Americans in a Reasonable and Timely Fashion, and Possible Steps to Accelerate Such Deployment Pursuant to Section 706 of the Telecommunications of 1996, as Amended by the Broadband Data Improvement Act; A National Broadband Plan for Our Future, GN Docket Nos. 09-137 and 09-51, Sixth Broadband Deployment Report, 25 FCC Rcd 9556 (2010) (Sixth Broadband Deployment Report). 11 The Commission conducted two National Broadband Plan public workshops focused specifically on international issues. See http://broadband.gov/ws_int_lessons.html and http://broadband.gov/ws_global_bb.html; see also Berkman Center for Internet and Society, Harvard University, Next Generation Connectivity: A Review of Broadband Internet Transitions and Policy from Around the World (2010), available at http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/publications/2010/Next_Generation_Connectivity. (Berkman Report). 2 Federal Communications Commission DA 11-732 community-level demographic data for 36 countries; broadband adoption data from the European Commission’s regional database; and other data from national statistical agencies and communications regulators.12 Staff also compiled information about broadband policies and the extent of competition in the broadband market in 37 countries. C. Efforts To Improve Data Collection 4. We learned in preparation of the 2010 IBDR that many nations do not collect the data required to achieve fully the international comparisons required by the BDIA. Even when data is available, often it is not available in standardized formats that can be easily compared, making it challenging to present the data in a way that is manageable or useful. Therefore, soon after the release of the first IBDR, the International Bureau sought comment on how to improve its data collection and analysis in order to illuminate similarities and differences between U.S. broadband technologies, markets, and policies and those in comparable foreign communities.13 We received comments from broadband providers, consumer advocacy groups, and other interested members of the public.14 Many commenters identified shortcomings in the data collected for the 2010 IBDR, and many offered high-level proposals for improving the data collection.15 5. Since the first IBDR we have obtained better data, including more detailed and recent national-level price data, actual speed data, mobile and fixed broadband adoption data, and community- level demographic data. To improve and harmonize broadband data collection globally, the Commission, together with the State Department and the Department of Commerce, has also initiated through the OECD an effort to collect more reliable and granular international data on broadband deployment and adoption. We discuss this effort in more detail in Section III.D below. D. Data and Analysis for the 2011 IBDR 6. In order to obtain global broadband price data, Commission staff again gathered advertised prices from the websites of broadband providers in dozens of countries.16 Staff also gathered community- level broadband adoption, demographic, income, and education data from OECD collections, the European Commission’s regional database,17 and from national government agencies.18 Finally, staff gathered information about the extent of competition in broadband markets, government policies, and mobile broadband adoption in various countries around the world.19 We discuss the data that we collected in more detail below. 12 2010 IBDR, 25 FCC Rcd 11963, at Appendices C and D. 13 Comment Sought on Improving International Comparisons Required by the Broadband Data Improvement Act, IB Docket No. 10-171, Public Notice, 25 FCC Rcd 12426 (2010)