Transcripts For CSPAN2 The Communicators USTelecom President

Host our guest reporter is cat zakrzewski of the Washington Post. Mr. Spalter, if you could begin by reminding us what u. S. Telecom is and who you represent. Guest thank you very much, peter. It is great to be here paid ira present the future of connectivity. The members of the u. S. Telecom are the innovators and Technology Company that deliver the networks of the future to all americans. We have Large National providers like at t and verizon and a wonderful regional providers like consolidated frontier and windstream and Alaska Communications but we also represent a number of our smallest providers serving a Rural Communities across the country and around us as well its one of the most innovative Global Technology and prizes like cisco and ericsson and they are also a part of our effort to raise the bar when it comes to this Important Technology which is broadband. Host give us a snapshot, if you would, mr. Spalter of the last couple of months for your Member Companies. Guest i think it is been for Member Companies millions of folks in our workforce as for every Single Person around the globe at time of seriousness in a time of anxiety but also a time to get to work. At the very beginning of this crisis, this National Health emergency, our workforce well into the danger and part of the frontline First Responders that continues to work hard to deliver service to so many of our fellow citizens that as time when it was needed most. Im so glad to see the broadband standing tall and working well. Host what advances have been made literally almost overnight . Guest its an amazing moment where literally our entire economy was told to go home and on monday we turn on our internet at our home while the Global Economy shut down and we found out the american internet was vibrant and open and doing its work serving americans. We sought literally in days huge spikes in traffic and by mid april the traffic was above 30 of our normal baseline but still our internet has continued to sustain, thrive and do its work and that is not an accident, peter. It is for the years of serious investment investment that is gone into our networks. They work hard to make sure our network is unparalleled globally and coupled with a smart wise bipartisan policies that encourage both our investment and innovation. Its a great cocktail for success and we proven our worth in ways that have been profound. Host to help us explore some of those issues that you remember comedies are facing, cat zakrzewski of the Washington Post smack thank you for having me on the show, peter. The student dive right in i wanted to ask you about some of the inequalities that this moment also exposed, as schools, as work laces shift online it took more of the spotlight for the Digital Divide in our country and so to address those accessibility gaps in some inner cities and in rural areas what steps do you think washington lawmakers need to take . Guest its an important question, vital question and such a timely question, kat. The fact is even as we have viewed success in delivering the promise of broadband to every part of our nation there still all americans left behind, americans living in Rural Communities, americans whose income cannot support access to broadband. We are taking that challenge very seriously. We are as an association all Member Companies to close that Digital Divide and what we need to do, recognize that it is really hard to get broadband in some places given the vast distances of our rural areas and you have to string broadband underground or across ranges and vast expanse of distance where there simply is no Business Case to deliver despite the billions of dollars that we are investing every year. We need congress to work with us and of strengthening the Public Private partnership and equipment to universal service to provide adequate resources and the funds that will be necessary to put the broadband Infrastructure Investment into the debate behind us and close the Digital Divide once and for all. I think we can do it. Im optimistic we will but after all, if covid19 has shown us anything the Digital Transformation that weve been able to experience just in the last couple of months is that we cant imagine a future where there will be any american that will not be connected to the internet so if we are going to close the Digital Divide we need to do it now, if not now then when . I thought it was interesting you can decide we cant imagine a future where every american cant be connected to the internet. Do you think the pandemic has underscored that the internet is an essential utility . Guest i think it has underscored the sinfulness of this technology and the wonder of this technology and the need for all americans to have it but i dont agree with the idea that this technology should be considered a utility. After all, there is tremendous competition across the country for Broadband Services and consumers everywhere have a vast array of choices, not only in terms of provider but in terms of the technology that deliver the internet. We also know that we should be extremely proud of just in a generation of the amazing amount of innovation and investment that has gone into create this Remarkable Technology and this unparalleled technology. To wrap it in the redtape of the regulatory structures and overhang of the bureaucracy that would be required if we made it a utility would take us backwards, not forwards. It was a generation ago, 1996 when a bipartisan consensus, almost unanimously decided through the 1996 telecom act, that we should move beyond treating our technologies like a monopoly and stoke the engines of competition and that bipartisan light touch framework that created that consensus gave us the internet that has taken us to unimaginable heights of innovation and has served us so well through this pandemic to go down these ideological rabbit holes that some so easily want to do by making our internet another utility like our water or electric services will not take us forward but take us backwards and that would not benefit our nation or our competitive position. It certainly would not benefit our families in enterprises, students, parents that need the services so much and even to continue to innovate and to grow as we move to even more exciting generations of networks that we experience now with 5g. Host Jonathan Spalter, you said no to categorizing the internet as a utility but youve also called for Public Private partnership and is that through usf . Is that through an infrastructure bill . How do you see that . Guest there has been an ongoing Publicprivate Partnership to advance the National Policy goals we have established which we call universal service. The universal service fund is components like lifeline and highcost programs, rural Healthcare Programs have worked very well to actually expand the ability of broadband to serve americans where needed most bid right now there is great news, peter, that we are on the cusp of moving forward for a Game Changing new program called the rural Digital Opportunity fund. At the end of october there will be 16 billion auctioned off in what is called the auction that will deliver Broadband Services to underserved communities in Rural America and 6 million homes are potentially going to be served by this and then we will move forward to expand that program to future phases. In the longer term will be made as a National Contact to understand the job is fully getting the remaining 1820 million americans who still do not have broadband because of the distances that they live from broadband service, Rural America. It will require serious attention by congress and serious resources. We need congress to finally invest and put whether its Political Capital but the actual capital on the table that will get the job done finally. Providing the resources to allow the Digital Divide to be in our Rearview Mirror as a nation so we can move forward with the truly connected innovation, understanding and realizing the benefits of the universal service for all. Host can you attach a dollar figure to that amount that you think is needed . Guest there has been some modeling that has been done. We are working hard to try to establish what the resources that will be required and there had been congressional acts that have been advanced through current legislation before congress and america is 100 billion. We know that it will take a lot of effort and will take serious work but in the but on the context of the broader Investment Infrastructure we need to make which we know has been or had to be in the area of a trillion dollars, 100 million to advance the promise of the universal service for all americans to allow everybody to realize the benefits of our Digital Transformation seems to be an adequate to the task of getting this work done and we will work with congress to do that evaluation, the speeds, the capacity in the timeline to get this worked on. Host lets go back to cat zakrzewski. This shifting gears, i want to ask you about the keep americans connect pledge which Many Companies signed on to in order to keep americans online even if they werent able to pay their bills through the end of june during the coronavirus pandemic. Chairman pai has called on companies to extend that through july. How long can Telecom Broadband Companies Continue to offer that forgiveness to customers who might be having some Financial Difficulties right now . Guest let me start the answer bite very early on our companies and members stood up, tall and quickly to not only embrace the commitments, voluntary commitments that chairman pai and the fcc asked of our pledge but to go well above and beyond that pledge to really do whatever is necessary to keep our customers and residential enterprise connected to this Important Technology called the internet. Tens of millions of dollars have been invested by Companies Like at t and verizon and century link to do Everything Possible to ensure that those who are impacted by the National Health emergency can maintain service. Our small providers, rural providers, across country from rockford in western montana provided wifi hotspots to some of the Rural Communities. They have the most rural school districts, countries and their service area. In west texas bbt rerouting broadband resources that have been in local schools that have been closed and making those available to homes where some of the students who had not yet had access to broadband could get online and continue their education. These stories have been across the country and that commitment continues. Its an iron clad value that our companies have had and will continue to have to work with our customers through thick and thin, through good times and difficult times to keep those customers first and foremost but also to work with them individually to support the needs to ensure their needs that they can maintain connectivity. Its not always easy. Our companies are committed to do this work and it has come at a cost with some of our companies themselves are small enterprises. Some are feeling the financial challenges in the financial strain that this pandemic has so broadly caused so many of our neighbors and friends across the country. But still, despite that, they are standing tall and doing whatever they can to continue to commit to their customers, their communities that broadband will maintain and will continue to be a tool to help all of us to stay connected and get through this challenge we are all facing. But how long can a Companies Really commit to continuing that without perhaps additional funding from the federal government given those constraints you just laid out . Guest it really is an individual question depending on the scale and size of the resources of the many hundreds of companies that have committed to this pledge. Each of them will have to evaluate that based on their specific circumstances. I know that all our companies are going to do whatever they can work individually with customers and that may have challenges to continue services. I know as well that many of our companies and our association have been working across the aisle with members of congress and administration and also various state authorities to see what can be done to provide additional resources, tools to support our customers and communities that are in need those are real needs. The good news is congress has already taken steps through the cares act to provide really innovative programs that have quickly been stood up, 200 million to support telemedicine that went out the door and surveyed Rural Communities and communities across the country in record time. Millions of dollars being allocated to the national or through the department of education to support our nations schools to allow them to get the technology they need for their students. There are shortterm needs but there are also longterm needs we have to address to advance, not only making sure americans can stay connected but that all americans, regardless of where they live or what their income will be, will be connected in the future. As there has been some concern about a second wave and what the next year looks like in the united states, based on what you have seen over the last few months what steps do you think your Member Companies need to take to make sure that they are prepared for the next school year or perhaps telemedicine during flu season and it will be long winter months. Guest first of all, to your question, i hope it will not be borne out in fact that you will be able to put the covid National Health emergency behind us and quickly. I think broadband resources and Broadband Networks are part of that solution. Here is the good news. Our networks are literally designed for demand. The investments we made over this last generation have amounted to over seven chilean dollars and have gotten us to a point where our networks are showing that we can withstand the added needs of our citizens and our customers and communities. We have the capacity and the network to ensure that Distance Learning needs can be met and telemedicine needs can be met and so we can be home and can mitigate with our families and streaming netflix and watch hulu shows and do games online. Its extraordinary. Its extraordinary to see how this Innovative Community of broadband providers have stood up technologies and have come through this National Time and continue to come through. I think the history is written and we will look back and say this was a moment of Technology Greatness and we will look back with pride and with a sense of real accomplishment of what has been done and we should. Host Jonathan Spalter, just to extrapolate from cats question to you, has Online Education been successful . There has been some critiques about accountability and whether or not it truly is something that works . Guest i have for distance learners in my home. I know that there are challenges adapting from the talk and talk School Environment to the virtualized rule of the new classroom for all of us as parents and caregivers and who have members at home have had to stand up and become teachers themselves. What has not failed . Students, schools, communities and the underlying broadband resources and infrastructure that is allowing our students to go online. There has been a recent study showing that of the Ten Largest Companies in the world, peter, measured in terms of speed degradation during and through this crisis the u. S. Showed the least speed degradation of any of those ten countries and that is a testament to policies but also policies that have been showed the investment in innovation that allows to continue to zoom in and continue to learn by distance. Im confident that continues. Host when you see a Democratic Administration elected this year as a threat to an open and free innovative network, i. E. , Net Neutrality would come back into play . Guest no, the dna of Washington Post<\/a>. Mr. Spalter, if you could begin by reminding us what u. S. Telecom is and who you represent. Guest thank you very much, peter. It is great to be here paid ira present the future of connectivity. The members of the u. S. Telecom are the innovators and Technology Company<\/a> that deliver the networks of the future to all americans. We have Large National<\/a> providers like at t and verizon and a wonderful regional providers like consolidated frontier and windstream and Alaska Communications<\/a> but we also represent a number of our smallest providers serving a Rural Communities<\/a> across the country and around us as well its one of the most innovative Global Technology<\/a> and prizes like cisco and ericsson and they are also a part of our effort to raise the bar when it comes to this Important Technology<\/a> which is broadband. Host give us a snapshot, if you would, mr. Spalter of the last couple of months for your Member Companies<\/a>. Guest i think it is been for Member Companies<\/a> millions of folks in our workforce as for every Single Person<\/a> around the globe at time of seriousness in a time of anxiety but also a time to get to work. At the very beginning of this crisis, this National Health<\/a> emergency, our workforce well into the danger and part of the frontline First Responders<\/a> that continues to work hard to deliver service to so many of our fellow citizens that as time when it was needed most. Im so glad to see the broadband standing tall and working well. Host what advances have been made literally almost overnight . Guest its an amazing moment where literally our entire economy was told to go home and on monday we turn on our internet at our home while the Global Economy<\/a> shut down and we found out the american internet was vibrant and open and doing its work serving americans. We sought literally in days huge spikes in traffic and by mid april the traffic was above 30 of our normal baseline but still our internet has continued to sustain, thrive and do its work and that is not an accident, peter. It is for the years of serious investment investment that is gone into our networks. They work hard to make sure our network is unparalleled globally and coupled with a smart wise bipartisan policies that encourage both our investment and innovation. Its a great cocktail for success and we proven our worth in ways that have been profound. Host to help us explore some of those issues that you remember comedies are facing, cat zakrzewski of the Washington Post<\/a> smack thank you for having me on the show, peter. The student dive right in i wanted to ask you about some of the inequalities that this moment also exposed, as schools, as work laces shift online it took more of the spotlight for the Digital Divide<\/a> in our country and so to address those accessibility gaps in some inner cities and in rural areas what steps do you think washington lawmakers need to take . Guest its an important question, vital question and such a timely question, kat. The fact is even as we have viewed success in delivering the promise of broadband to every part of our nation there still all americans left behind, americans living in Rural Communities<\/a>, americans whose income cannot support access to broadband. We are taking that challenge very seriously. We are as an association all Member Companies<\/a> to close that Digital Divide<\/a> and what we need to do, recognize that it is really hard to get broadband in some places given the vast distances of our rural areas and you have to string broadband underground or across ranges and vast expanse of distance where there simply is no Business Case<\/a> to deliver despite the billions of dollars that we are investing every year. We need congress to work with us and of strengthening the Public Private<\/a> partnership and equipment to universal service to provide adequate resources and the funds that will be necessary to put the broadband Infrastructure Investment<\/a> into the debate behind us and close the Digital Divide<\/a> once and for all. I think we can do it. Im optimistic we will but after all, if covid19 has shown us anything the Digital Transformation<\/a> that weve been able to experience just in the last couple of months is that we cant imagine a future where there will be any american that will not be connected to the internet so if we are going to close the Digital Divide<\/a> we need to do it now, if not now then when . I thought it was interesting you can decide we cant imagine a future where every american cant be connected to the internet. Do you think the pandemic has underscored that the internet is an essential utility . Guest i think it has underscored the sinfulness of this technology and the wonder of this technology and the need for all americans to have it but i dont agree with the idea that this technology should be considered a utility. After all, there is tremendous competition across the country for Broadband Services<\/a> and consumers everywhere have a vast array of choices, not only in terms of provider but in terms of the technology that deliver the internet. We also know that we should be extremely proud of just in a generation of the amazing amount of innovation and investment that has gone into create this Remarkable Technology<\/a> and this unparalleled technology. To wrap it in the redtape of the regulatory structures and overhang of the bureaucracy that would be required if we made it a utility would take us backwards, not forwards. It was a generation ago, 1996 when a bipartisan consensus, almost unanimously decided through the 1996 telecom act, that we should move beyond treating our technologies like a monopoly and stoke the engines of competition and that bipartisan light touch framework that created that consensus gave us the internet that has taken us to unimaginable heights of innovation and has served us so well through this pandemic to go down these ideological rabbit holes that some so easily want to do by making our internet another utility like our water or electric services will not take us forward but take us backwards and that would not benefit our nation or our competitive position. It certainly would not benefit our families in enterprises, students, parents that need the services so much and even to continue to innovate and to grow as we move to even more exciting generations of networks that we experience now with 5g. Host Jonathan Spalter<\/a>, you said no to categorizing the internet as a utility but youve also called for Public Private<\/a> partnership and is that through usf . Is that through an infrastructure bill . How do you see that . Guest there has been an ongoing Publicprivate Partnership<\/a> to advance the National Policy<\/a> goals we have established which we call universal service. The universal service fund is components like lifeline and highcost programs, rural Healthcare Programs<\/a> have worked very well to actually expand the ability of broadband to serve americans where needed most bid right now there is great news, peter, that we are on the cusp of moving forward for a Game Changing<\/a> new program called the rural Digital Opportunity<\/a> fund. At the end of october there will be 16 billion auctioned off in what is called the auction that will deliver Broadband Services<\/a> to underserved communities in Rural America<\/a> and 6 million homes are potentially going to be served by this and then we will move forward to expand that program to future phases. In the longer term will be made as a National Contact<\/a> to understand the job is fully getting the remaining 1820 million americans who still do not have broadband because of the distances that they live from broadband service, Rural America<\/a>. It will require serious attention by congress and serious resources. We need congress to finally invest and put whether its Political Capital<\/a> but the actual capital on the table that will get the job done finally. Providing the resources to allow the Digital Divide<\/a> to be in our Rearview Mirror<\/a> as a nation so we can move forward with the truly connected innovation, understanding and realizing the benefits of the universal service for all. Host can you attach a dollar figure to that amount that you think is needed . Guest there has been some modeling that has been done. We are working hard to try to establish what the resources that will be required and there had been congressional acts that have been advanced through current legislation before congress and america is 100 billion. We know that it will take a lot of effort and will take serious work but in the but on the context of the broader Investment Infrastructure<\/a> we need to make which we know has been or had to be in the area of a trillion dollars, 100 million to advance the promise of the universal service for all americans to allow everybody to realize the benefits of our Digital Transformation<\/a> seems to be an adequate to the task of getting this work done and we will work with congress to do that evaluation, the speeds, the capacity in the timeline to get this worked on. Host lets go back to cat zakrzewski. This shifting gears, i want to ask you about the keep americans connect pledge which Many Companies<\/a> signed on to in order to keep americans online even if they werent able to pay their bills through the end of june during the coronavirus pandemic. Chairman pai has called on companies to extend that through july. How long can Telecom Broadband<\/a> Companies Continue<\/a> to offer that forgiveness to customers who might be having some Financial Difficulties<\/a> right now . Guest let me start the answer bite very early on our companies and members stood up, tall and quickly to not only embrace the commitments, voluntary commitments that chairman pai and the fcc asked of our pledge but to go well above and beyond that pledge to really do whatever is necessary to keep our customers and residential enterprise connected to this Important Technology<\/a> called the internet. Tens of millions of dollars have been invested by Companies Like<\/a> at t and verizon and century link to do Everything Possible<\/a> to ensure that those who are impacted by the National Health<\/a> emergency can maintain service. Our small providers, rural providers, across country from rockford in western montana provided wifi hotspots to some of the Rural Communities<\/a>. They have the most rural school districts, countries and their service area. In west texas bbt rerouting broadband resources that have been in local schools that have been closed and making those available to homes where some of the students who had not yet had access to broadband could get online and continue their education. These stories have been across the country and that commitment continues. Its an iron clad value that our companies have had and will continue to have to work with our customers through thick and thin, through good times and difficult times to keep those customers first and foremost but also to work with them individually to support the needs to ensure their needs that they can maintain connectivity. Its not always easy. Our companies are committed to do this work and it has come at a cost with some of our companies themselves are small enterprises. Some are feeling the financial challenges in the financial strain that this pandemic has so broadly caused so many of our neighbors and friends across the country. But still, despite that, they are standing tall and doing whatever they can to continue to commit to their customers, their communities that broadband will maintain and will continue to be a tool to help all of us to stay connected and get through this challenge we are all facing. But how long can a Companies Really<\/a> commit to continuing that without perhaps additional funding from the federal government given those constraints you just laid out . Guest it really is an individual question depending on the scale and size of the resources of the many hundreds of companies that have committed to this pledge. Each of them will have to evaluate that based on their specific circumstances. I know that all our companies are going to do whatever they can work individually with customers and that may have challenges to continue services. I know as well that many of our companies and our association have been working across the aisle with members of congress and administration and also various state authorities to see what can be done to provide additional resources, tools to support our customers and communities that are in need those are real needs. The good news is congress has already taken steps through the cares act to provide really innovative programs that have quickly been stood up, 200 million to support telemedicine that went out the door and surveyed Rural Communities<\/a> and communities across the country in record time. Millions of dollars being allocated to the national or through the department of education to support our nations schools to allow them to get the technology they need for their students. There are shortterm needs but there are also longterm needs we have to address to advance, not only making sure americans can stay connected but that all americans, regardless of where they live or what their income will be, will be connected in the future. As there has been some concern about a second wave and what the next year looks like in the united states, based on what you have seen over the last few months what steps do you think your Member Companies<\/a> need to take to make sure that they are prepared for the next school year or perhaps telemedicine during flu season and it will be long winter months. Guest first of all, to your question, i hope it will not be borne out in fact that you will be able to put the covid National Health<\/a> emergency behind us and quickly. I think broadband resources and Broadband Networks<\/a> are part of that solution. Here is the good news. Our networks are literally designed for demand. The investments we made over this last generation have amounted to over seven chilean dollars and have gotten us to a point where our networks are showing that we can withstand the added needs of our citizens and our customers and communities. We have the capacity and the network to ensure that Distance Learning<\/a> needs can be met and telemedicine needs can be met and so we can be home and can mitigate with our families and streaming netflix and watch hulu shows and do games online. Its extraordinary. Its extraordinary to see how this Innovative Community<\/a> of broadband providers have stood up technologies and have come through this National Time<\/a> and continue to come through. I think the history is written and we will look back and say this was a moment of Technology Greatness<\/a> and we will look back with pride and with a sense of real accomplishment of what has been done and we should. Host Jonathan Spalter<\/a>, just to extrapolate from cats question to you, has Online Education<\/a> been successful . There has been some critiques about accountability and whether or not it truly is something that works . Guest i have for distance learners in my home. I know that there are challenges adapting from the talk and talk School Environment<\/a> to the virtualized rule of the new classroom for all of us as parents and caregivers and who have members at home have had to stand up and become teachers themselves. What has not failed . Students, schools, communities and the underlying broadband resources and infrastructure that is allowing our students to go online. There has been a recent study showing that of the Ten Largest Companies<\/a> in the world, peter, measured in terms of speed degradation during and through this crisis the u. S. Showed the least speed degradation of any of those ten countries and that is a testament to policies but also policies that have been showed the investment in innovation that allows to continue to zoom in and continue to learn by distance. Im confident that continues. Host when you see a Democratic Administration<\/a> elected this year as a threat to an open and free innovative network, i. E. , Net Neutrality<\/a> would come back into play . Guest no, the dna of American Innovation<\/a> policy has always been based on a bipartisan vision that if we can take a restrained approach to ensuring that our internet can grow and flourish in that internet providers can compete with each other americans will be served in all of our companies believe in and can walk the talk when it comes to wanting to maintain open internet and transparent internet and whether a republican Led Administration<\/a> returns or Democratic Administration<\/a> returns that framework for policies is a bipartisan approach and must remain the same if we will continue to benefit from the open Free Internet<\/a> that you have. There has been a lot of skeptics and a lot of video logs that have entered this discussion, rather than focusing on important issues like whether we should continue to investigate internet to everybody but to take us down to these debate and discussion on these issues but bottom line is that our internet continues to expand its access and continues to be open and we can continue to invest in it at extraordinary levels and we continue to all benefit from the open internet and im confident that the Wise Administration<\/a> that believes in the future of progress in our internet will understand and will continue. Host mr. Galileo and the science deniers, even though you have a background in democratic politics, usia director, speechwriter for al gore et cetera hows the Tromp Administration<\/a> many proponents of the issues that you care about in telecommunications . Guest they have. They have been the Congress Administration<\/a> has been advocating for extending broadband for all but this is not the province of only this perspective is not the province only of the administration or one side of congress but a bipartisan perspective. Ive been so encouraged and so optimistic to see my democratic colleagues and republican colleagues across the aisle, both houses of congress, statehouses, across the administration at the ftc all joined around some fundamental principles that we need to adhere to in principle number one that we have to take seriously our task of investing in broadband, building Public Private<\/a> partnerships that could end the Digital Divide<\/a> regardless of where you live or what your income is. Im encouraged by the progress that we see and i am hopeful that progress will continue to keep pace but im also mindful that the key to success is maintaining this bipartisan approach that has always been the hallmark of the success of our internet policy and will continue to be. Host cat zakrzewski. On that same line of questioning, looking ahead to the 2020 election are you concerned that a potential Democratic Administration<\/a> could result in greater antitrust scrutiny of the Telecom Industry<\/a> . Guest im not an expert in antitrust law or a competition lawyer. I do know that there are very strong and serious tools that our nation as to advance our antitrust interests which we should take very seriously, not just our body of antitrust law but all our attorney general and our judicial system and we had very strong tools in our quiver to ensure that competition is robust and meaningful and advances whether there is a Republican Administration<\/a> or Democratic Administration<\/a>. What i do know is that all our companies and all our Broadband Enterprises<\/a> are equally faithful in ensuring that we all adhere in the strictest terms to making sure we are competing fairly and we want that there is more competition in our marketplace and we want to see policies that will help us do so, not just that we encourage or competition in our space but adequate tools that government needs to friends off efforts by any of our companies to behave in ways that would be anticompetitive but also policies that will encourage us to make more investments that will serve more americans with more Better Services<\/a> and better speeds. You know, 5g is here. We are experiencing it. The future of our networks built on our Fiber Optic Networks<\/a> that we are investing is is very bright. Businesses that will be successful and will continue to innovate built on our networks and build on 5g and we cant even begin to imagine what is to come with antitrust infrastructure in our government and our ability to continue to invest that i am hopeful that the future will be bright, competitive and americans will continue to be well served by this phenomenal technology called broadband. If some democrats have suggested that antitrust law may need to be updated to take a look at some of the tech platforms, like facebook, google et cetera so do you think it is time for an update to those laws and there should be greater antitrust scrutiny of those companies . Guest it doesnt surprise me that there would be new evaluation of where our internet sector has been going great a lot of those laws were put into place a generation ago and many of these companies that are now literally serving billions of people with trillions of dollars in market capitalizations were dreams of the coders of mines working in their laptop in the garage and there has been massive transformation of our internet market space and there are credible amounts of innovations in Core Networks<\/a> that have been supporting the new services that use our networks and to serve their customers. It does not surmount price me one bit that our congress and courts would want to take a fresh look on all aspects of our Internet Society<\/a> and of our internet economy and where competition is going. We will be watching this discussion and those debates but we also will continue to do our work as the broadband sector in building the future of connectivity, making the investments and hopefully and finally connecting all americans everywhere to the promise and benefits that this technology we know can bring. Host Jonathan Spalter<\/a>, this is a little out of your wheelhouse but do you have an opinion on section 230, whether it needs to be revised and whether or not conservatives are being shut out on social media . Guest great question. That is another one of the framework that was developed in 1996 as part of the telecom indications act at a time it was created it was created to incentivize the growth of Internet Companies<\/a> that at the times were providing services and we know that some of the companies that did not really exist then but an out trillion Dollar Enterprises<\/a> so it is logical that congress would seek to reevaluate what were inducements and incentives are now subsidies and should be reevaluated. We will be watching those debates and they involve very complex legal questions, including the future of our First Amendment<\/a> and freedom of speech. I will be watching attentively as our companies as to how the debates evolve and we will continue to do our work a building, supporting and upgrading our networks to ensure that whatever decisions are made that the traffic that information in the content that those companies provide will continue to get where they need to go. I know that issues regarding with content moderation are complex but its not her job or our business and we will be watching with interest as these discussions take place. Host Jonathan Spalter<\/a> is president and ceo of u. S. Telecom and cat zakrzewski covers tech issues for the Washington Post<\/a>. Thank you both for being on the communicators. Thank you to thank you very much. Cspan has unfiltered coverage of congress, the white house, the Supreme Court<\/a> and Public Policy<\/a> events. You can watch all of cspans Public Affairs<\/a> programming on television, online or listen on every radio app. Be a part of the National Conversation<\/a> through cspans daily Washington Journal Program<\/a> or through our social media feed. Cspan, created by americas Cable Television<\/a> company as a Public Service<\/a> and brought to you today by your television provider. Coming up, special edition of book tv airing weeknights this week. Next, astrophysicist mary out livio looks the scientific discoveries of galileo that challenged conventional thinking during his time. Evolutionary biologist neil shuman looks at evolution using dna from his prehistoric fossils. Later nasa astronaut and scientist kate greene recalls her experiences living in a simulated martian environment and enjoy book tv on cspan2","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"archive.org","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","width":"800","height":"600","url":"\/\/ia803201.us.archive.org\/27\/items\/CSPAN2_20200707_000000_The_Communicators_USTelecom_President_Jonathan_Spalter\/CSPAN2_20200707_000000_The_Communicators_USTelecom_President_Jonathan_Spalter.thumbs\/CSPAN2_20200707_000000_The_Communicators_USTelecom_President_Jonathan_Spalter_000001.jpg"}},"autauthor":{"@type":"Organization"},"author":{"sameAs":"archive.org","name":"archive.org"}}],"coverageEndTime":"20240716T12:35:10+00:00"}