In an opinion piece on AOL News, Bruce Mehlman, the co-chairman of the Internet Innovation Alliance explained that “High-speed Internet connections are helping to change the meaning of a snow day — serving as a vital tool to keep Americans working, even when the roads, public transportation and airports are not.”
But not everyone could get online during February’s heavy snows, because not everyone has access to broadband connections. In fact, about a third of the population doesn’t have a broadband connection, and one in five don’t have any Internet connection at all.
“In a broadband era, our government and our economy should be able to function come rain, sleet or snow.”
The Federal Communications Commission is trying to close this gap with a $350 billion privately financed endeavor, according to a September 2009 FCC report. Not to mention the government’s ongoing investment in nationwide broadband.
Keeping workers connected despite forces beyond their control will not only enable productivity but also help boost our economy and job market. For many Americans, including a large percentage of government workers, jobs can be performed anywhere, anytime, as long as they can get online.
Investment in broadband will also create jobs in the Internet sector. In fact, the broadband/information technology sectors created nearly half of all new American jobs in 2008, according to Jeffrey Eisenach of Empiris.
Communities with new access to broadband experienced 6.4 percent higher employment growth, on average, than they did before getting broadband, according to a recently Democratic Leadership Council study that used data from 1999 to 2006. The February report notes, “There is enormous potential for job creation if we expand broadband deployment and upgrade existing infrastructure.”
The moral of the story: we can keep the world running smoothly, with internet speed!