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FCC Launches Broadband Speed Test and 'Dead Zone' Reporter

Julius Genachowski, chairman, FCC

March 12, 2010 By News Report

With the National Broadband Plan set to be released in a matter of days, the FCC has released online tools that citizens can use to measure the speed of their broadband connection and report "dead zones" of broadband coverage.

The first tool, the beta Consumer Broadband Test, available on Broadband.gov, utilizes two speed tests: the Ookla Inc. Speed Test and the Network Diagnostic Tool running on the Measurement Lab platform, the FCC announced Thursday, March 11. More speed tests will be integrated in the tool in the future, the FCC said.

The other tool, the Broadband Dead Zone Report, lets users submit their street address where broadband can't be purchased.

"The FCC's new digital tools will arm users with real-time information about their broadband connection and the agency with useful data about service across the country. By informing consumers about their broadband service quality, these tools help eliminate confusion and make the market work more effectively," FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said in a statement.

Broadband speed and broadband coverage are two issues that the FCC is tackling. According to numerous studies, the nation's average broadband speed lags well behind several other industrialized nations. Through the federal stimulus, millions of dollars in grants have been awarded to states for mapping broadband coverage.

Genachowski previewed the National Broadband Plan's content last month, revealing that the FCC would set a goal of putting 100 Mbps broadband service in 100 million U.S. homes by the end of this decade. The plan, to be released on March 17, will recommend that the nation form a working group that would come up with broadband-speed standards.

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FCC's National Broadband Plan: 'The Second Wave of Electricity'

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