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06.04.10 FCC Pushing For Better Broadband Speed Awareness  By John Vinson'How fast is your broadband connection speed', that's the question the FCC asked numerous people in their latest survey. Surprisingly, or perhaps not, most people had no idea how much faster their connection speed is, but most are pleased with their service. The survey is but a small portion of the FCC's overall initiative to increase awareness in US consumers regarding their internet service. Julius Genachowski, FCC Chairman put it simply, "Speed matters" which he elaborated on a bit further, "The more broadband subscribers know about what speeds they need and what speeds they get, the more they can make the market work and push faster speeds over broadband networks." The broadband speed initiative is being helmed by the Commission's Consumer Task Force (CCTF). Their current goal is to measure speeds consumers are receiving, and comparing them with the speeds advertised by the providers. The initiative will take place in two ways. First, the FCC is asking for 10,000 volunteers to participate in an 'in-home' study. Special hardware will be installed in various homes, which will measure performance for various connections across the country. All of these studies, and projects will eventually be part of a "State of Broadband" report which the FCC will be releasing later in the year. The hope is all of this work will help to educate consumers, and make them more aware of the product they're receiving for connecting to the internet. Along with the physical measurement of broadband speeds, anyone can help with the test by visiting: www.testmyisp.com. If you sign up for the service you'll be able to track your speeds, while at the same time help the FCC to gather valuable data for their studies. All of these tests and studies are part of an even broader initiative called the 'Broadband Action Agenda' which has numerous goals. One of those is to generate better competition in the marketplace. As competition leads to better innovation. These studies will be interesting to track as the data comes into fruition. With people having little awareness of their broadband speeds and most being content with the speeds they're receiving, it might be difficult to generate much interest from the general public. However, educating users about products they rightfully pay for and making sure they're receiving the speeds advertised is a noble endeavor. About the Author: John is a staff writer for WebProNews. |
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