BROOKLYN BROADBAND HEARING: On Tuesday, May 22nd from Noon to 3 pm,
in the Courtroom hearing room, on the 2nd floor of Brooklyn Borough
Hall, the New York City Broadband Advisory Committee will convene its
second public hearing to hear testimony from Brooklyn residents,
nonprofit organizations and businesses. The Committtee would like to
get feedback on the following questions:
Why is a fast affordable Internet connection important to you?
What do you consider an "affordable" fee to pay for an high-speed
connection to the Internet?
If you have a broadband connection, what do you use it for (e.g.,
help your child do his/her homework)?
If don't have broadband or if you had a faster connection to the
Internet, what would you use it for (e.g., market your business on-
line or look for a job)?
Gale and I would like to thank the Office of the Brooklyn Borough
President Marty Markowitz for their help in securing this beautiful
space. Brooklyn Borough Hall is located at 209 Joralemon Street in
downtown Brooklyn. Here is a link to a Google map of where the
hearing location, including where the closest subway stops are:
http://www.google.com/maps?q=209+Joralemon+St,+Brooklyn,+New+York
+11201,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title
WITNESSES: If you or anyone you know would like to testify at this
hearing (and put on the official witness list), please contact Jeff
Baker ([EMAIL PROTECTED] / 212-788-9193), Counsel to
the Committee on Technology in Government. Brooklyn parents of
schoolchildren, schoolchildren, nonprofit leaders, small business
owners and senior citizens are particularly encouraged to testify.
Anyone who attends the hearing is also free -- and encouraged -- to
testifywith no advance notice required.
RATIONALE FOR THE BROADBAND ADVISORY COMMTITEE: I recently published
a blog post in the Huffington Post regarding our championing of the
New York City Broadband Advisory Committee and the issue of
universal, affordable access to broadband in New York City:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-lai/the-future-of-digital-
new_b_46221.html
COMMITTEE MEMBERS: Here's a list of the members of the Advisory
Committee along with their bios: http://nycbroadband.blogspot.com/
2007/03/list-of-members-of-committee.html.
RECAP OF THE MARCH 30TH BRONX BROADBAND HEARING: On Friday, March
30th, more than 200 people joined us on at Bronx Community College
for the first-ever public hearing on broadband in New York City.
Over 30 members of the public testified, including Bronx residents,
public school students, leaders of nonprofit organizations and small
business owners.
The following are links to articles about the hearing in the
Bronx on March 30th:
NY Daily News: http://www.nydailynews.com/boroughs/bronx/
2007/03/27/20070327_air_your_views_at_wifi_public_hearing.html
Newsday: http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-
nybroa305151459mar30,0,4224312.story
Metro: http://ny.metro.us/metro/local/article/
Bridging_the_digital_divide/7717.html
NY1 http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?
&aid=68237&search_result=1&stid=12
Informationweek: http://www.informationweek.com/news/
showArticle.jhtml?articleID=198100613&subSection=Breaking+News
Norwood News: http://www.bronxmall.com/norwoodnews/news/
N70419page3.html
Chelsea Now: http://www.chelseanow.com/cn_27/chelseahighschool.html
Civil Defense: http://breitbart.wordpress.com/2007/04/03/bac-audio
A really good audio 3 minute recap (or podcast) of the Bronx
hearing is available at: http://odeo.com/audio/11062793/view.
(Thanks Kat Aaron of WBAI!)
The entire video of the enture Bronx hearing is available at:
http://www.bronxnet.org/c_program/whats_new/whats_new.htm. (Thank you
BronxNet!)
BROADBAND BRIEFING PAPER: Here's a briefing paper (by the
Committee on Technology in Government, not the NYC Broadband Advisory
Committee) on the subject of broadband: http://
nycbroadband.blogspot.com/2007/04/broadband-briefing-paper-type-here-
full.html. (Thank you Colleen Pagter, Policy Analyst of the
Committee on Technology in Government!)
QUESTIONS: If you have any questions about the NYC Broadband
Advisory Committee, please contact me, Bruce Lai at
[EMAIL PROTECTED] / 212-788-6975 or Ryan Merola at
[EMAIL PROTECTED] / 212-788-6975.
NYC BROADBAND ADVISORY COMMITTEE WEBSITE: We have set up a
website -- http://nycbroadband.blogspot.com/ -- with the latest
information re: the NYC Broadband Advisory Committee.
*****
Here's a recent article about the NYC Broadband Advisory
Committee (as viewed by Gale and I, not the NYC Broadband Advisory
Committee) and the Bronx hearing in March.
http://www.idgns.com/news.nsf/0/002570DE00740E18002572D4005F4738
WORLDBEAT : Committee tackles NYC's digital divide
By Elizabeth Montalbano
IDG News Service (New York Bureau)
NEW YORK (05/07/2007) - Providing affordable or free broadband access
to a city of more than 8 million is a daunting task. But a movement
spearheaded by New York Councilwoman Gail Brewer aims to do just
that, and taking a different tack from other U.S. cities trying to
build metropolitan Wi-Fi networks.
While cities such as Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles have
decided that Wi-Fi is the way to provide broadband Internet access to
residents, New York's plans have moved at a glacial pace. Providing
access to such a large metropolitan area, across five boroughs, is a
tricky business without a one-size-fits-all solution, government
officials have said.
Brewer, a councilwoman for the Upper West Side neighborhood of
Manhattan, has for several years promoted a strategy to close what
she views as a "digital divide" between residents who can afford
hefty fees for broadband access in the city, and those who can't.
Small businesses and nonprofits also can't compete effectively
because of the high cost of broadband, she said.
Local Law 126, sponsored by Brewer and approved in December 2005,
formed the New York City Broadband Advisory Committee. As other
cities are in final stages of either building (Philadelphia) or
planning (San Francisco) their Wi-Fi networks, New York's committee
means to deliver proof to the mayor that there is, in fact, a major
disparity between who in New York has Internet access, broadband or
otherwise, and who does not.
The committee plans to deliver findings to the mayor later this year,
and then officials will figure out how best to offer broadband.
"What we hope to get out of it ... is a combined approach [to
broadband]," Brewer said. "We want to discover innovative ways in
which technology can be used, and want to expand it so that everyone
in [New York] has inexpensive, fast Internet access. It's not about
technology for technology's sake, but how can nonprofits improve
their businesses, how can small businesses get more profits, etcetera."
Bruce Lai, Brewer's chief of staff and co-author of Local Law 126,
thinks it's fairly obvious that there is a digital divide in New
York. "Just because there is no official study does not mean there is
no digital divide." However, he reasoned that New York's measured
approach to figuring out how to provide broadband access is the best
way for the city to deliver it successfully.
"The key issue is not just the network itself," he said. "A lot of
cities think it's great just building networks. But it's more about
how they conceive the network and how to improve quality of life for
residents."
The committee held its first meeting recently in the Bronx.
Representatives from local schools, including high-school and middle-
school students, and businesses told the committee about their access
to the Internet and gave examples of how affordable broadband access
can be made available on a more widespread basis.
Miguel, who attends middle school in the Bronx, testified that kids
who have access to the Internet have an edge over students who don't
because they can do research to help them finish homework and
projects faster. Of the 50 children in his class, he said only about
10 own computers. Those who don't must go to local libraries to use
the Internet, often standing in long lines to have only a little time
to use the Web, he said.
Stuart Reid, co-chairman of Urban Communications Transport Corp.,
sharply criticized the scenario Miguel described.
"Children shouldn't have to stand on line to go online," Reid said.
He described how Urban Communications Transport, a private broadband
franchise, teamed with the South Bronx Overall Economic Development
Corporation to provide 1,200 families in the Bronx with free Internet
access.
The project provided families living in the Diego Beekman Houses, a
housing project in the South Bronx, with Pentium 3 computers and Wi-
Fi access. It also provided computer training, which Reid said is
more important than simply handing out computers and Wi-Fi access.
Jose, another Bronx middle schooler, said that his generation is used
to getting information quickly and easily from the Internet. Because
there is not fast, reliable access to it in his school or in his home
or those of his friends, they can easily lose interest in school and
learning, he said.
Jose also bluntly noted a difference between adults who grew up
without the Internet, such as some of his teachers, and the current
generation of students who are Web-savvy.
"Some of the older generation [will tell us], go get a book and start
reading," he said. "But that is something that bores these kids."
The hope is that public meetings will prove to skeptical city
officials that New York needs to solve its digital divide, Lai said.
After that, it's key that policy makers and other leaders in New York
"get as many people online as possible" in short order, he added.
*****
NET NEUTRALITY HEARING
On Monday, April 30 at 1 PM in the Council Chambers of City Hall,
Committee on Technology in Government held an oversight hearing on
the topic of "Establishing Strong Network Neutrality Principles in
Order to Protect the Internet.” The hearing focused on Resolution
No. 712 (http://webdocs.nyccouncil.info/textfiles/Res%
200712-2007.htm), which was introduced in the City Council in
February 2007. Sponsored by Council Member Gale Brewer, Res. 712
calls upon the United States Congress "to codify strong network
neutrality principles in order to insure that the Internet will
continue to foster innovation, increase competition, and spur
economic growth as well as making the Internet faster and more
affordable for all." Gale and I would like to thank Tim Wu and
Henning Schulrzinne of Columbia University, Tim Karr of the Free
Press and Craig Newmark of Craigslist (via written testimony) for
testifying.
*****
PERSONAL DEMOCRACY FORUM (via Andrew Rasiej)
Personal Democracy Forum - Sponsored by Google
Pace University, May 18, 2007
Technology and the Internet are changing democracy in America.
Every year, the nation's leading technologists, campaign organizers,
politicos, bloggers, activists and journalists come together in New
York City for a high-level conversation about the new tools, sites
and practices that are transforming elections and government.
How is voter-generated content changing election campaigns?
Why should advocacy groups adapt to the connected age?
What new technology tools and practices are on the horizon?
How are new technologies democratizing the political process?
Which political leaders "get it"?
Hear:
Peter Daou, Hillary Clinton '08
Becki Donatelli, John McCain '08
Esther Dyson, EDventure.org
Mindy Finn, Mitt Romney '08
Thomas Friedman, New York Times
Seth Godin, Author
Chris Kelly, Facebook
Arianna Huffington, The Huffington Post
Lawrence Lessig, Author
Kim Malone, Google AdSense
Josh Marshall, Talking Points Memo
Craig Newmark, Craigslist
Eric Schmidt, CEO, Google
Joe Trippi, John Edwards '08
For more information, go to http://pdf2007.confabb.com/
conferences/PDF2007/details.
*****
Building the Broadband Economy 2007
May 17-18, 2007 - New York City
Now in its fourth year, Building the Broadband Economy is an
international meeting place and idea exchange for local government
officials and their private sector partners in telecom, IT, finance,
real estate and consulting. It's a unique opportunity to learn from
the world's most innovative communities how they have made the
broadband economy work for them, sometimes against great odds. It
offers a global perspective on the best ways to create broadband
infrastructure, attract knowledge workers, foster innovation and
implement e-government programs that contribute to economic growth
and bridge the digital divide.
Speakers include:
Council Member Gale A. Brewer, Chair of the New York City Council's
Committee on Technology in Government
Todd Ramsey, General Manager of IBM Global Government
Jerry Hultin, President of Polytechnic University and former US Navy
Undersecretary
Daniele Auffray, Deputy Mayor, New Technologies and Research, The
City of Paris
Lev Gonick, CIO, Case Western Reserve University
John Campbell, President & CEO, Toronto Waterfront Revitalization
Corporation
Roger Feierbach, Managing Director, VSAT Networks, EMEA and Latin
America, ViaSat
To learn more and register, visit www.intelligentcommunity.org.
From the home page, click on the logo of the conference.
*****
Columbia Institute for Tele-Information (CITI) & New York
Telecommunications Reliability Advisory Council (NYTRAC) Present:
Telecommunications Reliability in the Information Capital of the World
May 17, 2007
Columbia University, New York
New York City depends on its telecommunications infrastructure.
High quality, high speed and highly reliable telecommunications
services are the lifeblood of the financial services, media,
advertising and software industries. The City's government has become
information-centric, using telecommunications to deliver critical
municipal services to citizens. Thousands of New Yorkers work for web-
based businesses, delivering services to clients around the world,
and thousands more telecommute regularly.
Is New York's telecommunications infrastructure up to the
challenge - is it reliable enough to support an information-dependent
economy and society? Could it be more reliable? Are users willing to
pay for an ultra-reliable infrastructure? Could network operators
provide such a network, and what would it cost? What can (and should)
government do to help? These questions are not just relevant to New
York. As the United States becomes increasingly dependent on reliable
telecommunications, the experience and lessons learned in New York
will be applicable across the country.
CITI and NYTRAC are organizing a full-day conference at Columbia
University to examine these and other questions. Expert
representatives of major users, suppliers of telecom services and all
levels of government will ask and answer the critical questions
surrounding telecommunications reliability in New York.
Additional details will be posted on the CITI and NYTRAC
websites, or for more information, please contact John Heywood ,
CITI's Assistant Director, by email or at 212-854-4222.
*****
About the New York City Council's Committee on Technology in Government
The primary goals of the Committee on Technology in Government
are: (1) to expand digital equality by increasing access to
broadband in underserved communities of New York City (2) to increase
the strategic use of technology in government, thereby, increasing
efficiency in government and enhancing the quality of public
services, and (3) to promote the openness and transparency of
government by making sure that public information is accessible to
every New York City resident. Through its ability to hold oversight
hearings over City agencies and introduce and hear legislation, the
Committee on Technology in Government works to achieve its goals in
partnership with the private, public and nonprofit sectors. More
information about the Committee and the Chair of the Committee,
Council Member Gale A. Brewer, can be found at the following link:
http://nyccouncil.info/issues/committee.cfm?
committee_id=106<sbdkey=5121
All Committee briefing papers from the current session
(beginning in January 2004) are also available through this link. If
you know of people who would be interested in the Committee on
Technology in Government's activities, please feel free to forward
this e-mail to them. If you know of anyone who would like to receive
these e-mails, just have them e-mail me. I will put them on the
list. Finally, feel free to post this information on any list serve
you may belong to or on any website you are affiliated with. If you
do not want to receive these e-mails anymore, please e-mail me, and I
will take you off the list immediately.
Thank you, and I look forward to seeing you at one of our hearings!
Regards,
Bruce
-- Bruce Lai Chief of Staff Office of Council Member Gale A. Brewer
New York City Council 250 Broadway, 17th Floor New York, NY 10007 E-
mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- PLEASE NOTE THE NEW PHONE
NUMBERS -- City Hall: 212.788.6975 Cell: 347.563.1295 Blackberry:
[EMAIL PROTECTED] -- District Office: 212.873.0282 Fax:
212.513.7717
--
Dana Spiegel
sociableDESIGN :: www.sociableDESIGN.com
123 Bank Street, Suite 510, New York, NY 10014
m +1 917 402 0422 :: f +1 502 470 2089 :: e [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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