This volume not only examines traditional questions about broadband, such as availability and access, but also explores and evaluates new metrics that are more applicable to the evolving technologies of information access. It brings together a group of media policy scholars from a wide range of disciplines including economics, law, policy studies, computer science, information science, and communications studies. It asks questions such as: After broadband access, what next? What role do metrics play in understanding information societies and, more important, in shaping their policies? Beyond c ... More

This volume not only examines traditional questions about broadband, such as availability and access, but also explores and evaluates new metrics that are more applicable to the evolving technologies of information access. It brings together a group of media policy scholars from a wide range of disciplines including economics, law, policy studies, computer science, information science, and communications studies. It asks questions such as: After broadband access, what next? What role do metrics play in understanding information societies and, more important, in shaping their policies? Beyond counting people with broadband access, how can economic and social metrics inform broadband policies, help evaluate their outcomes, and create useful models for achieving national goals? Importantly, the book provides a well-rounded, international perspective on theoretical approaches to communications policymaking in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. Showcasing a diversity of approaches, this collection aims to help meet the myriad challenges involved in improving the development of communications policy around the world.