Initial Plans for Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group Announced
Jun 09, 2010, 09:01 ET from Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group
Would provide advice and guidance on broadband network management practices and other technical practices that can affect users' Internet experience
WASHINGTON, June 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A group of leading broadband and high-tech companies joined Adjunct Professor Dale Hatfield of the University of Colorado at Boulder today in announcing initial plans for a voluntary Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group (BITAG or.
With Professor Hatfield, a former Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chief Technologist, as facilitator, the group will continue to develop the operational and organization structure of the TAG over the coming weeks. Specifically, the group will assess specific functions for the TAG, including: promoting outreach within the Internet technical community; identifying "best practices" by broadband providers and other entities; interpreting "safe harbor" practices; providing technical guidance to industry and to the public; and/or issuing advisory opinions on the technical issues germane to the TAG's mission that may underlie disputes among discrete parties.
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The. Staff from these agencies would be encouraged to observe and provide suggestions for the TAG's area of focus.
The structure of the TAG will be formalized in the very near future. The group stated its commitment to a diverse membership composed of engineers and other similar technical experts from academia, non-profit and Internet user communities as well as participating companies representing a diverse range of industry views (e.g., broadband providers, applications developers, content developers, and equipment manufacturers).
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Participants in the initial efforts to formulate the TAG have included representatives from AT&T Inc., Cisco Systems, Inc., Comcast Corporation, DISH Network, L.L.C., EchoStar Corporation, Google Inc., Intel Corporation, Level 3 Communications, LLC, Microsoft Corporation, Time Warner Cable and Verizon. The organizations unanimously expressed their appreciation to Professor Hatfield, one of the most respected engineers in the communications policy field, for his willingness to organize and chair the effort.
Hatfield is currently Executive Director, Silicon Flatirons Center; Adjunct Professor in the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program at the University of Colorado at Boulder; as well as an independent consultant. He has nearly four decades of experience in telecommunications policy and regulation. Prior to joining the University of Colorado at Boulder, Hatfield was the Chief of the Office of Engineering and Technology at the FCC and, immediately before that, he was Chief Technologist at the Agency.
For further information about this release or participation in the TAG please contact Hillary Maxwell at (202) 572-6205 or HMaxwell@dcigroup.com.
SOURCE Broadband Internet Technical Advisory Group
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