FCC asks why broadband isn't measuring up to claims

Say your ISP advertises broadband packages at a speed of 6Mbps. Sounds pretty good, but once you plug in your gear and hop on the web, chances are you will never see that full 6 megabits. In fact, you'll probably be lucky to get a 3Mbps connection, according to a new study undertaken by a Federal Communications Commission task force which is attempting to craft a national broadband plan that would expand internet access to everyone in the country.

Among the many insights in the study [Word link] is the gem that ISPs aren't actually providing the bandwidth they claim to be selling. The study notes that "actual broadband speeds lag advertised speeds by at least 50 percent and possibly more during the busy hours."

Also of note: About 1 percent of users drive 20 percent of traffic, and 20 percent of users drive 80 percent of it -- right in line with the well-known 80/20 rule that tends to rule all things in the universe.

The FCC probably won't ever do much about what amounts to a little false advertising on the side of ISPs, but it does want broadband to be faster and more widespread in the States. As the report on the matter states, "Preliminary analysis indicates that approximately three to six million people are unserved by basic broadband (speeds of 768Kbps or less). The number of unserved increases as the definition of minimum broadband speed increases. The incremental cost to universal availability varies significantly depending on the speed of service, with preliminary estimates showing that the total investment required ranging from $20 billion for 768Kbps - 3Mbps service to $350 billion for 100Mbps or faster."

I don't see the federal government spending $350 billion on wires for its citizens any time soon, but I'd happily settle for 20Mbps or so. Can we find, oh, $50 billion for that?

About two-thirds of the country now has broadband installed at home, and only four percent of the country say they don't have access due to their location. That's pretty good but still leaves millions of Americans out in the cold, cold world of having to use dialup networking to download World Party MP3s.

The FCC hopes to finalize its plan for the future of broadband by February 2010.