As the federal government prepares to pour billions of stimulus dollars into increased broadband Internet access, universities are trying to claim much of the money and shape the emerging national networking policy.
Their focus is $4.7-billion that will be doled out under a new grant program administered by a small Commerce Department agency called the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. In Congressional testimony this month, a senior official with the agency, which is known as the NTIA, described the project as “the first step in realizing President Obama’s vision of bringing the benefits of broadband technology to all Americans.”