News and Events

NTIA's Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) is funding innovative programs across the nation that are working to close the digital divide. And a number of those projects are targeting a group of Americans too often left behind by today's fast-moving technology: seniors.

Remarks by Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information
13th Annual International Symposium on Advanced Radio Technologies (ISART)
Boulder, Colorado
July 25, 2012

- As prepared for delivery -

Remarks by Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information
Internet Governance Forum-USA
Washington, DC
July 26, 2012
-As prepared for delivery-

On July 12, 2012 we took another step toward implementing the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights, the centerpiece of the Obama Administration’s blueprint to improve consumer privacy safeguards and promote the growth of the digital economy.

Today we again updated the National Broadband Map, the unprecedented interactive map that shows what high-speed Internet service is available in the United States. The map is powered by a new set of data from 1,865 broadband providers nationwide – more than 20 million records – and displays where broadband is available, the name of the provider, the technology used to provide the service, and the maximum advertised speeds of the service.

Remarks by Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information
at the Release of the Report
“Realizing the Full Potential of Government-Held Spectrum to Spur Economic Growth”
by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology
The White House

July 20, 2012

—As prepared for delivery—

Testimony of
The Honorable Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
United States Department of Commerce

Before the
Committee on Small Business
United States House of Representatives

Hearing entitled
“Digital Divide: Expanding Broadband Access to Small Businesses”

July 18, 2012

I recently had the opportunity to speak to the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) about NTIA’s Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) and the work it is doing to promote broadband adoption in the Latino community.

A high-speed Internet connection can provide access to everything from online job postings to educational opportunities to valuable healthcare information. But too many Latino households remain cut off from these important benefits.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced today that it has awarded the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions contract to the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).  The IANA functions are key technical services critical to the continued operations of the Internet's underlying address book, the Domain Name System (DNS).

NTIA is honored to report that the National Public Safety Telecommunications Council (NPSTC) has established the Atkinson Technical Award to commemorate David (DJ) Atkinson, a senior engineer with NTIA’s Institute for Telecommunication Sciences (ITS) who was recently killed in a tragic motorcycle accident. His death has been a great loss to NTIA and to ITS, NTIA’s research and engineering laboratory, which is located in Boulder, CO.

—As prepared for delivery—

I am pleased to be invited to address today’s meeting of the Telecommunications and E-Commerce Committee at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.  Today is a particularly timely opportunity to address the multistakeholder process of policymaking for the Internet as it has been a busy spring for developments in this area.

Earlier this year, the Obama Administration released a comprehensive blueprint to improve consumers’ privacy protections in the information age and promote the continued growth of the digital economy. The White House requested that NTIA convene interested stakeholders -- including companies, privacy advocates, consumer groups, and technology experts -- to develop enforceable codes of conduct that specify how the principles in the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights apply in specific business contexts.

The deadline for analog low-power television stations and translator stations to apply for a federal grant to cover digital upgrade costs is fast approaching. The last day that NTIA can accept grant applications under the Digital Upgrade Program is July 2.

While all full-power television stations in the United States had to upgrade to digital broadcasting in 2009, thousands of analog low-power television stations and translator stations have until 2015 to make the transition. 

Testimony of
The Honorable Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
United States Department of Commerce

Before the
Committee on Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
United States House of Representatives

Keynote Remarks of Lawrence E. Strickling
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information
APCO Public Safety Broadband Summit
Washington, DC

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a Community Broadband Summit held by the District of Columbia to explore the many ways that broadband drives economic growth, spurs community development and opens up new possibilities in jobs, education, healthcare and other areas.

Remarks by Lawrence E. Strickling

Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information

at the

Broadband Communities Summit

Dallas, Texas

April 25, 2012

—As prepared for delivery—

I want to thank Harold Furchtgott-Roth and the Hudson Institute for inviting me to talk about the Obama Administration’s blueprint to protect consumer data privacy.  About six weeks ago, the Administration introduced a blueprint to improve consumer privacy protections and ensure that the Internet remains an engine for innovation and economic growth.  My agency, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, played a key role in developing this policy, and we are leading the Administration’s work to put it into practice.  

I recently had the opportunity to participate in a symposium at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab that highlighted the benefits that a new high-speed broadband network will bring to schools, libraries, healthcare institutions, public safety facilities and other community “anchors” across the state of Maryland.

Testimony of Lawrence E. Strickling

Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
U.S. Department of Commerce

Hearing on “Privacy and Innovation: Does the President’s Proposal Tip the Scale?”
Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade
Committee on Energy and Commerce

United States House of Representatives

March 29, 2012

I. Introduction

Testimony of Fiona M. Alexander
Associate Administrator, Office of International Affairs
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
United States Department of Commerce

Before the

Committee on Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
United States House of Representatives

In today’s wireless world, the demand for spectrum from consumers, businesses, and federal users continues to grow at a rapid rate.  In response to this growing demand, in June 2010, President Obama directed the Department of Commerce, working through NTIA, to collaborate with the FCC to make available an additional 500 megahertz of spectrum over the next decade for commercial wireless broadband use.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Commerce, through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), today announced its finding that 95 megahertz (MHz) of prime spectrum could be repurposed for wireless broadband use. Reallocation of this spectrum would represent significant progress towards achieving President Obama’s goal to nearly double the amount of commercial spectrum available this decade.

A dozen years ago, a group of technology officials in the neighboring Wisconsin cities of Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls began meeting to share ideas on how to prepare their computer systems for Y2K. The group included officials from the city and county governments, local school districts, community libraries and medical institutions. And while Y2K came and went without incident, it soon became clear that the collaboration had the potential to turn into something much bigger.