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I am pleased to be here to speak in support of the draft communiqué on Internet policymaking principles.  While previous speakers have discussed certain of the substantive provisions, I will focus my remarks on a key process for Internet policymaking—the multistakeholder model.

The United States enthusiastically and vigorously supports the use of the multistakeholder process as the preferred means of responding to Internet policy challenges.

Testimony of J. Beckwith Burr
Associate Administrator of the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)
for International Affairs, U.S. Department of Commerce
before the House Committee on Commerce
Subcommittee on Telecommunications, Trade and Consumer Protection
on the Future of the Domain Name System

June 10, 1998

Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, for this opportunity to report on progress towards transitioning management of the Internet domain name system ("DNS") to the private sector.

Thank you to NCTA for inviting me to speak here today.

I’ve had the pleasure of attending many Cable Shows over the years and I am especially pleased to attend the inaugural show for your new President and CEO, Michael Powell. I had the great fortune to get to know Michael when he served as a Federal Communications Commissioner back when I worked for Chairman Kennard and he is a first-rate guy. He is smart and knowledgeable and extremely curious but most importantly, just a really good guy.

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Introduction

Introduction

Introduction

Chairman McIntyre, Ranking Member Conaway, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to testify this morning on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at this hearing to review the Federal government’s rural broadband programs.  An agency of the U.S.

I. Introduction

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Introduction

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Thanks for that introduction. I have asked Karl Nebbia to join me on stage, partly to help me answer questions after my remarks but also to give him some recognition. Karl is the epitome of a dedicated public servant who has spent his career trying to act in the country’s best interests. Please join me in recognizing his efforts.

I. Introduction.

Chairman Rockefeller, Ranking Member Hutchison, and Members of the Committee, thank you for your invitation to testify on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on the implementation of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) and the development of the national broadband map as set forth in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act).

I. Introduction.

Chairwoman Velázquez, Ranking Member Graves, and Members of the Committee, thank you for your invitation to testify on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on the broadband initiatives set forth in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act).

I. Introduction.

Chairman McIntyre, Ranking Member Conaway, and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for your invitation to testify on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on the broadband initiatives funded in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act).

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A little more than a year ago, an intrepid band of brothers and sisters gathered in a set of cubicles at the Obama transition offices to chart a new course for technology and communications policy for the United States.  The group started with a ten-page technology and innovation plan that many of us had worked to develop during the Presidential campaign and they transformed it into the ambitious—I might even say audacious—set of plans that have been rolling out over the course of this year.

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I. Introduction.

Chairman Boucher, Ranking Member Stearns, and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for your invitation to testify on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on the implementation and successes of the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program. Last year, Congress allocated $4.7 billion to NTIA to implement two Recovery Act initiatives to expand the availability and adoption of broadband Internet access– the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) and the State Broadband Data and Development Program (Broadband Mapping Program).

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Chairwoman Landrieu, Ranking Member Snowe, and Members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today on behalf of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) on “Connecting Main Street to the World: Federal Efforts to Expand Small Business Internet Access.”

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I. Introduction

Last November, President Obama held an unprecedented town hall meeting with students in Shanghai, China. He was asked a question about the openness of the Internet and in response the President called himself a “big believer” in technology and the free flow of information. He referred to the lack of censorship by our government as a “tradition,” and added that “the fact that we have a free Internet or unrestricted Internet access is a source of strength, and…should be encouraged.”

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I would like to thank the Coordination Center for the country code, .RU, and the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Media of the Russian Federation for the invitation to join you here today.  Last year I had the great honor of addressing the first U.S. Internet Governance Forum and it is with great pleasure that I have the opportunity to do the same thing here in Moscow.

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