The world of fiber optic connections reaching neighborhoods, homes, and businesses will represent as great a change from what came before as the advent of electricity. The virtually unlimited amounts of data we'll be able to send and receive through fiber optic connections will enable a degree of virtual presence that will radically transform health care, education, urban administration and services, agriculture, retail sales, and offices. Yet all of those transformations will pale in comparison to the innovations and new industries that we can't even imagine today. In a fascinating account combining policy expertise with compelling on the ground reporting, Susan Crawford reveals how the giant corporations that control cable and internet access in the United States use their tremendous lobbying power to tilt the playing field against competition, holding back the infrastructure improvements necessary for the country to move forward. And she shows how a few cities and towns are fighting monopoly power to bring the next technological revolution to their communities.
Author(s): Susan Crawford
Publisher: Yale University Press
Year: 2018
Language: English
Pages: 261
Tags: Fiber Optics, Tech Revolution
Cover......Page 1
Half Title......Page 2
Title......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Dedication......Page 6
Contents......Page 8
Acknowledgments......Page 10
1. The Fiber Future......Page 14
2. Transmitting Light......Page 31
3. Why U.S. Internet Access Is Awful......Page 50
4. Community Stories......Page 80
5. Sustaining Economic Growth......Page 94
6. Education and Fiber......Page 110
7. Health and Fiber......Page 130
8. Inequality and Fiber......Page 148
9. Lessons from American Communities......Page 171
10. What Stands in the Way?......Page 184
11. The Need for Federal Policy......Page 211
Notes......Page 228
D......Page 258
L......Page 259
S......Page 260
Y......Page 261
