Measuring Performance when Broadband is the New PSTN

Abstract

The transition of telecommunications services from the old Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) to the broadband Internet does not alleviate the needs of consumers for basic services. The Internet universe, however, is mostly unregulated. As broadband becomes the new PSTN, how do we ensure that services are delivered appropriately, and how can this be measured? Doctors Lehr, Bauer, and Clark propose an updated set of measurements and address the policy considerations they raise, in order to ensure that broadband services indeed serve the public interest.