Friday, March 26, 2004 Posted: 5:29 PM EST (2229 GMT)

(中文大意)

　　美国总统布什3月26日敦促在2007年之前为所有美国人提供可以享受得起的宽带服务。他说：“我们应该在2007年之前为所有公众提供物美价廉的宽带服务。”

　　诸如Verizon通信和Comcast集团等电话和有线电视公司一直在进行激烈的竞争，以争夺宽带用户，因为宽带服务被视作一个有利可图的市场。目前，美国政府已经制定有相关政策，为郊区的用户提供上网和电话服务补贴，但有关相关的补贴政策是否可以适用于宽带服务的讨论还在进行当中。

　　据美国联邦通信委员会的最新数据显示，截至2003年6月，全美大约有2060万个家庭和小型企业可以接入高速互联网。越来越多的用户已经与有线公司签约享受宽带服务，现在使用电话公司DSL服务的线路有770万条，而使用有线公司光缆服务的线路则有1370万条。

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (Reuters) -- President Bush on Friday urged that affordable high-speed Internet access known as broadband be available to all Americans by 2007.

"We ought to have universal, affordable access to broadband technology by the year 2007," Bush said in a speech focusing mostly on homeownership. "And then we ought to make sure that as soon as possible thereafter consumers have plenty of choices..."

Telephone and cable television companies like Verizon Communications and Comcast Corp. have been competing fiercely to sign up customers to high-speed Internet service, which is seen as a lucrative market.

There is already a fund that subsidizes telephone service in rural areas and for those who cannot afford it. Policymakers have debated whether the Universal Service Fund should also subsidize Internet access to American homes.

They have also been debating what regulations should apply to broadband services. Telephone companies that dominate a market have to share their networks with rivals for telephone service and there have been extensive debates about whether those rules should apply to broadband.

Cable companies do not presently have to share their networks with rivals but some allow subscribers to have an alternative Internet service provider.

There were about 20.6 million homes and small businesses that subscribe to high-speed Internet as of June 2003, the latest data available from the Federal Communications Commission.

More consumers have signed up for the broadband from cable companies, with about 13.7 million lines compared to 7.7 million using telephone companies' digital subscriber line services.