roundtable: Telecommunications Policy

roundtable: Telecommunications Policy

Telecommunications Policy

Gene Harlow (harlow_g@WIZARD.COLORADO.EDU)
Tue, 15 Feb 1994 14:07:06 -0700 

Date: Tue, 15 Feb 1994 14:07:06 -0700
From: harlow_g@WIZARD.COLORADO.EDU (Gene Harlow)
Subject: Telecommunications Policy
To: Roundtable@CNI.ORG
Message-Id: <01H8WYT7D0B496W37A@WIZARD.COLORADO.EDU>

The Interdiscipline Telecommunications Program of the Univ. of Colo.-
Boulder has written a Strategic Planning document for the State of Colorado
that may be of interest to those who want to know what the views of some
people in Colorado are as they relate to the Information Highway.  The
document can be obtained by contacting the ITP Depatment at CU.

This document addresses such areas as Infrastructure, Telemedicine,
Distance Learning, Telecommuting, Intelligent Vehicles and Highways, Rural
Development and legislation to support implementation of the processes and
recommendations.

One overriding issue is competition!  My opinion is:  Deregulate all types
of telecommunications and let the lions eat each other!!!  After 25 years
in private industry and now 4 years in public work environment, the issues
are the same.  Power and money dictate the course of events when regulation
is placed on markets.  Deregulation allows a host of innovative ways to
compete by large and small enterprises.

This would also accelerate the concept of open platforms so that the
consumer can control the apparatus used in the home.  Today, we are all
faced with being hamstrung by cable companies that control the content and
access of cable to our homes.  Has everyone forgotten why many people
purchased cable in the first place?  Remember when we could watch a movie
without interruption for 10 minutes of commercials and five minutes of
movie?  Now we are faced with having to purchase Pay-Per-View to obtain
decent movie fare.  The conditioning process has already.

Competition is the name of the game and when you restrict any constituant,
all constituants eventually are affected.  And the results are usually poor
programming, high cost, limited access, slow technology introduction and an
attitude of the consumer beware.  Progress has never been a result of
restrictions so when we are trying to obtain acceptance of the Information
Superhighway, why are we in the mode of restricting information and access
and personal privacy?

THX, Gene Harlow

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