Robert E. Kahn, president of the Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI), noted that the NII is an essential paradox: it is at the frontier of technology, yet it must provide service to the masses. Although market forces will probably deliver technology to the masses, pushing frontiers may not be economically viable. A relatively small amount of government money could seed research and development. Tax policy should also encourage NII research and development.
Kahn raised several policy issues. First, he is unconvinced that competition is feasible in the last mile of wiring to the home. He believes that the need to move large amounts of data--not video--will be the driving force behind broadband services to the home. Water, power, and transportation (the street) connect to the home in monopolies, all either run by municipalities or heavily regulated by government. Is the NII so different? Second, should we guarantee everyone some minimal capability to use the NII, lest we create a class of essentially disenfranchised technological have-nots? Third, how will copyright law apply to materials on the NII? When a program contains copyrighted material, for example, will the output be deemed a "derivative work" under the statute? Finally, with regard to standards development, the bottoms-up approach that led to the successful development of the Internet standard, TCP/IP is the antithesis of the formal standards process. The two must be rationalized.
Carol C. Henderson, deputy director of the Washington office of the American Library Association, outlined the NII's promise for libraries, and noted generally that access to technology was equal to access to numerous communications. Libraries have already formed the second widest distributed network in the country, sharing information about their collections; NII will enable them to share the actual collections, both with other libraries and with off-site users. Libraries are both users and providers of information.
The library will remain important, she said. Its physical space will continue to serve the community--for example, by providing a quiet place for children to do homework. Librarians will manage information, guiding patrons to the most up-to-date, reliable materials. Librarians will also maintain older materials that for-profit information providers will most likely purge from their databases when demand diminishes. Finally, the library will act as a safety net, guaranteeing universal access to information and expertise.
Mary Gardiner Jones, president of the Consumer Interest Research Institute, said that it is essential to American democracy that the NII bring full, two-way video capabilities to every home. The Administration's goal of bringing information to the community is not enough. A less expensive approach, where images are sent to the home but where nearly 85 percent of the country--those without computer modems cannot send voice, data, and images from the home, will not suffice. She stated that we live in a visual society, as evidenced by the fact that people who communicate on computer networks often exchange photos. Though it will be costly and time consuming, two-way video should be our goal, just as universal voice service has been our goal for the telephone system. She also noted that while there may not appear to be a demand for these types of fully interactive services to the home at present, we cannot want what we do not know. Once available, the demand will become apparent.
Jones summarized several important NII applications that require two-way video in the home. Doctors will examine patients from afar--a service that will be especially valuable to the elderly and working parents. Worker retraining, literacy classes, and other adult education will take place in the home and offer the possibility of changing the way people learn. Telecommuting will go beyond data input to include electronic meetings. The NII can also benefit schools, enabling education to be tailored to each student's interests and learning style.
Current Internet use does not reflect the technology's potential, Jones said. For one thing, the Internet is geared toward researchers, not consumers. In addition, services have not yet been advertised, marketed, and explained.
Universal voice service did not happen overnight. According to Jones, the NII can attain its full potential only with two-way, interactive, broadband capability in the home.
Michael M. Roberts, vice president of EDUCOM, a consortium of universities and colleges interested in educational networking, including NII issues, concluded the users' panel. The Internet is now essentially accessible from all campuses, he said. Priorities for developing it further include building and linking campus networks, expanding information resources, extending and strengthening the technical and operational base, adjusting to changing network economics, and preparing for the transition from narrowband to broadband technology.
Though much remains to be done, he said, the Internet has already profoundly changed scholarship. In the past, scientists and mathematicians shared information by mail. Now the Internet lets them communicate instantaneously. Higher education's role in the NII is to conduct research, educate students in NII-related fields, perform commercial product development, and be early adapters of NII PATs services.
Roberts said an ambitious but realistic goal would be to have half of the nation's population using NII in five to seven years. He agreed with Jones that the NII can attain its full potential only with two-way, interactive, broadband capability in the home.