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The way broadband "leadership" is measured, the United States is at a distinct disadvantage. We are still a mostly rural country and compared to nearly every other country, we are unfathomably huge.

For example, Japan could fit easily inside of California and their urban areas are concentrated in an area roughly analogous to that from San Diego to San Francisco. So when you compare Japan to the entire continental United States, well, there really is no comparison.

And I don't think anybody from San Diego on up to San Francisco are wanting with respect to broadband.

So when one says Japan is better wired for broadband than the United States, that's sort of like saying Manhattan has better taxicab service than all of Alaska. So what's the point?

The way broadband "leadership" is measured, the United States is at a distinct disadvantage. We are still a mostly rural country and compared to nearly every other country, we are unfathomably huge.

China is larger and even more rural. They passed us in broadband deployment last year -

China will pass US in Broadband Lines by late 2006

Exactly. Thank God America has a lot of wide open spaces and a dispersed population. If we lived jammed together we would have higher broadband penetration like a Japan or a South Korea which is #1 or close to it in broadband usage