Channeling Bob Dylan, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler suggested Wednesday that the country needed to start swimming together toward robust broadband or it will sink like a low-speed stone.
He was speaking to the annual conference of the National Association of Telecommunications Officer and Advisors Wednesday (Oct. 1) in St. Paul Minn.
He reiterated that speed is of the essence. "Table stakes for the 21st century is 25 Mbps," he said, "and winning the game means that all consumers can get at least 100 Mbps – and more."
One way to do that, he said, was by combatting the forces he suggested were undercutting that effort. He did not say incumbent commercial ISPs, but he certainly appeared to be referencing, in part, the pushback on municipal WiFi by state legislatures and the incumbents he has said are working to limit competition.
