Karen Archer Perry Ensuring Socio-Economic Inclusion

Things Go Better with Broadband

One of my favorite ad campaigns was the Campbell's soup campaign that suggested that Soup and Sandwich was the perfect pairing, like salt and pepper, peanut butter and jelly and other all-time perfect pairings. Since Wireless Philadelphia set bridging the digital divide as one of the key objectives of its municipal wireless project, Digital Inclusion and Municipal Wireless have been inextricably linked. For mayors and city councils it did seem to be a perfect pairing. By inviting service providers to leverage vertical assets and rights-of-way, cities and towns created the opportunity for an "ask." These rights-of-way created a funding source to build programs to expand broadband access in their communities. Perhaps the most comprehensive "ask" was shaped by the Digital Inclusion Task Force and Community Benefits Agreement for Wireless Minneapolis, and then expanded in Chicago with the Chicago Digital Access Alliance, which took the "ask" to a demand, before that deal crumbled under a cacophony of confused expectations and ill-considered business models.

But are Digital Inclusion and Municipal Wireless really the perfect pairing? Well, I'd say yes... and no...

The opportunity for municipalities to develop policy around broadband and inclusion was spurred by municipal wireless and the ability of cities to leverage "vertical assets" and telecom spending to develop community benefits agreements and programs. These initiatives have emboldened cities to look at the cost of exclusion and to envision the benefit of a connected citizenry.

But what has bridging the digital divide ever had to do with Wi-Fi technology? Digital Inclusion programs require access, hardware, training, content and a social infrastructure of support and engagement. Broadband access must be fast enough to support the applications we all use in life — surfing the Web, downloading files, e-mail, photo sharing, and uploading our blogs and homework — but inclusion does not require that access be wireless. DSL, cable, fiber, and Wi-Fi access all work just fine when rolled into a sustainable program that includes the necessary social infrastructure to help people connect to information they need.

Let me invoke another old ad campaign from Coca Cola — "Everything goes better with Coke" — and suggest that everything goes better with Digital Inclusion. Digital Inclusion programs go with education by leveling the playing field for lower income students and by opening communication channels between home and school. Inclusion programs support civic engagement and enhance community. Technology empowerment programs pair well with workforce development and economic development. Inclusion programs complement healthcare and streamline access to social services. As access to online resources becomes a mainstream expectation in nearly all areas of life, the civic cost of leaving 30-40% of the community off-line becomes an issue of social justice and good government. So the true pairing is that of Digital Inclusion and public policy. Developing and sustaining programs that aggressively close the digital divide must become more central to public policy at all levels of government and those programs should leverage the full ecosystem of technologies, providers, vendors, and institutions to achieve success. Consider Elevate Miami, a multifaceted Digital Inclusion program that includes a discounted DSL offer from AT&T with future plans for municipal wireless.

As communities take a careful look at the societal benefit of a connected citizenry and at the opportunities posed by municipal wireless, I hope government officials will take a good look at both programs together and on their own merit. Municipal wireless networks can be great assets to communities that want to leverage the flexibility and mobility of wireless broadband and/or create another alternative in the broadband duopoly. And Digital Inclusion is excellent government policy since we need to bride the digital divide to have a fully competitive society and support citizen's contributions to the 21st century world. Everything goes better with solutions that increase broadband access.

Karen Archer Perry is founder and principal of Karacomm, based in New Jersey. She chaired the Wireless in Education Roundtable at the W2i Digital Cities Convention in Chicago , May 22–23, 2007

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