United States Senator



	Veterans' Day Ceremony - Greer Band

Telecommunications

Resources
Sub Issues:
	Digital Age Communications Act

Technology: the Engine Driving the Economy of the 21st Century

The world is in the midst of a major communications revolution. Technologies not even fully understood ten years ago – wireless and broadband – are now reshaping our everyday lives both at home and at work. Unfortunately, because of serious flaws in the way we currently regulate communications, continued American growth in this technology paradigm is being stifled. If we are going to remain competitive in a global economy, we must change our approach.

The bulk of the laws and regulations governing telecommunications in the United States were written in 1934 when rural access was extremely limited and monopolistic companies were the order of the day. In typically swift fashion, it took Congress 62 years to finally revisit the issue in a meaningful way, in the Telecom Act of 1996 that attempted to usher in a new era of competition.

But with no idea at the time about the coming impact of wireless and broadband innovations, Congress simply continued to apply 1934-style treatment to a 20th century climate. Instead of opening the floodgates of innovation, the 1996 effort has given America ten years (and counting) of litigation, a rapidly expanding tax burden, and untold lost economic opportunities and consumer benefits.

That is not to say that we have not seen previously unimaginable advances in wireless technologies in the decade since the 1996 Act. Commuters listen to music or watch movies they’ve downloaded to portable gadgets; and wireless e-mail devices, often dubbed “crack-berries,” are gaining new addicts every day. Likewise, satellite radio and television services now reach millions of consumers.

The common theme of all these developing technologies: they were the product of a free and dynamic marketplace. Innovative entrepreneurs stepped up to offer choices to consumers who were frustrated with the quality, choice, and cost involved with old-style, overly-regulated telephone, radio, TV, and cable service. The clear benefit of these unregulated pockets in the communications industry has been increased innovation and choice and the clear beneficiary has been the consumers looking for the best value for their hard-earned dollars.

The moral of the story: we live in a constantly changing world. Bureaucratic regulators in the federal government will never be able to predict where technology is headed and will only continue to stifle pioneering innovation. That is why I have offered S.2113, the Digital Age Communications Act (DACA), as a comprehensive approach to overhaul the way we are currently forcing telecom companies and consumers to do business.

Congress must break down the barriers separating consumers from the products and services they seek by refusing to simply tinker with the existing structure and instead overhauling the existing regulatory paradigm. This is the only way America can compete and win in a technology-driven 21st century.