[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 97 (Monday, July 12, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1514]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     BROADBAND LEGISLATION WILL SPUR COMPETITION, BENEFIT CONSUMERS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN. D. DINGELL

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 12, 1999

  Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, we began to write the law that would become 
the Telecommunications Act of 1996 in 1993. At that time, the vast 
majority of the American people were scarcely aware of the Internet's 
existence and potential. In fact, it's amusing to recall that some of 
the people we today revere as visionaries--including those in, say, 
Redmond, Washington--initially failed to understand the importance of 
the World Wide Web.
  Much has changed since then. The Internet is on the front page of 
every major daily newspaper, and every major daily newspaper is on the 
Internet. E-mail addresses are exchanged as freely as telephone 
numbers. And the effect on the nation's commerce has been staggering. 
But the most amazing thing about this technological revolution is that 
this is only the beginning.
  That is why Representative Billy Tauzin (R-LA) and I introduced H.R. 
2420, the ``Internet Freedom and Broadband Deployment Act'' on July 1, 
1999. We want the exponential growth of the Internet to continue 
unabated. We want to remove outdated remnants of regulation written 
when we needed to safeguard and promote a different world of 
telecommunications. Today, those rules do little more than slow down 
progress. Out legislation is designed to take the speed limits off the 
Information Superhighway once and for all.
  First, the bill makes sure that Internet service will not become a de 
facto monopoly for any one provider. As technological convergence 
allows the cable and telephone wires in every home to deliver virtually 
the same services to the American people, it makes no sense to treat 
these wires differently under the law. It grossly distorts the 
operation of the market by giving one wire an artificial advantage over 
the other. Our bill protects consumers from a new monopoly in the 
business of Internet access and guarantees all Americans the freedom to 
choose the very best service at the lowest possible price.
  Second, our bill protects consumers against the increasing 
concentration of market power in the Internet backbone business. The 
backbone of the Internet is virtually invisible to the average user, 
but it's arguably the most important communications link in the chain. 
It also has the potential of becoming the bottleneck of the 21st 
century. Virtually every bit and byte that travels over the Internet 
must cross one or more of these backbone networks to reach its 
destination. It is imperative that these networks remain competitive, 
and our bill will make sure that is so.
  We are embarking on a technological journey that has already 
transformed our lives. The public is clamoring for new, high tech 
services, but they will be slow in coming and more expensive under 
current rules. Chairman Tauzin and I have put together a blueprint for 
change that we believe will bring tremendous benefits to American 
consumers and the nation's economy. We propose to leave behind any 
personal biases and battle scars from past telecom wars, and we look 
forward to an exciting and stimulating debate characterized first and 
foremost, by open minds, fresh ideas, and a singular focus on what's 
best for the American people.

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