Northwest Florida Telecommunications - Internet - Network Accessp Point - Scott Jackson

Will Our Region Become An Internet Hub?
by
Scott T. Jackson,
Published in Climate Magazine May-June 2000
Vol 11, Issue 3
(Index of Other Articles)

If you were a paving contractor in the 50’s when the interstate highway system was being built near your community you would have attacked the opportunity to bid on the work. Likewise, to economic development officials, the boon would have helped shape their growth objectives.

As the interstate superhighway system has rigidly established itself as a metaphor for the information age (and probably a good one at that), it is clearly appropriate to comprehend the magnitude of the growth of the Internet and what may be referred to as major interchanges in the system. Network Access Points (NAP) are the major interchanges of the Internet system. And for Florida, the potential to establish yet another NAP in the system is now in the state’s legislative agenda.

A NAP is one of several major Internet interconnection points that serve to tie all the Internet access providers together so that, for example, an AT&T user in Portland, Oregon can reach the Web site of a Bell South customer in Miami, Florida. Originally, four NAPs - in New York, Washington, D.C., Chicago, and San Francisco - were created and supported by the National Science Foundation as part of the transition from the original U.S. government-financed Internet to a commercially operated Internet. Since that time, several new NAPs have arrived, including WorldCom's "MAE West" site in San Jose, California and ICS Network Systems' "Big East." The NAPs provide major switching facilities that serve the public in general. Using companies apply to use the NAP facilities and make their own intercompany peering arrangements. Much Internet traffic is handled without involving NAPs, using peering arrangements and interconnections within geographic regions.

For the most part we are not concerned with the technical aspects of the Internet if we cannot personally tap into it. It is a technical necessity that has no direct part in our business. For most of us the concept of connectivity and bandwidth touches us only at our personal computers…where we attempt to get the fastest connection we possibly can.

The key issue for Floridians regarding the creation of an additional NAP in Florida is that: 1) it is inextricably tied to our establishing a tremendous foothold in the e-commerce revolution. And like so many other strong business connections with Latin America, Florida is the predominant player in its “e-comercio” potential as well. 2) Growth in key elements of the information technology industry in Florida requires the robust efficiencies that a NAP would provide.

The recognition of these ties has led to a groundswell of support from the south Florida triumvirate of Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade county for building a NAP. Senator Ron Klein of Delray Beach emerged as the area’s salient for building the legislative framework to do so. This framework is manifested on the legislative agenda as the ITflorida.com Act of 2000 (S1334) which he sponsored.

Essentially, in its wording at press time the State Technology Office in coordination with the Information Services Technology Development Task Force shall prepare a report on the feasibility and need for a Public NAP. If it is deemed feasible and necessary, a detailed action plan citing infrastructure, the public/private sector roles and location recommendations will be stipulated. The report is due to the Legislature by July 1, 2000, and must be a cumulative effort of public-sector and private-sector stakeholders.

S1334 is the first bill spawned from the recent activities of Governor Bush’s Information Services Technology Development Task Force, also known as ITFlorida. While most of the interim recommendations of ITFlorida suggest more studies, the NAP initiative is on a very fast track. The impetus is that if we don’t’ get moving, another state will beat us to the door of the lucrative Latin American market.

It is important to note here that simply building a NAP does not alone portend e-commerce development. Building a NAP (and of course luring backbone providers to tap into them) is building a bridge to the “potential” demand that the NAP will bring. According to the minutes of the Feb 16, 2000 meeting of the Senate Commerce Committee meeting (available on ITFlorida.com web site) Brazil spends $121 million in e-commerce which is expected to increase 40-fold by 2005. The most robust and efficient means by which to conduct this trade is what is fueling the urgency to be the hub of choice for Latin America.

While the merits of building a NAP might seem rooted in common sense, the issue of where it is built is already being debated. A NAP brings jobs and bandwidth. The debate is mired in technical and economic development posturing between entities in north and south Florida. In south Florida end there is the proximity to Latin American e-commerce infrastructure along with facilities. In the north there are arguments supported by University collaboration and other aspects. The issue of location will be a spirited debate in the ensuing months.

Living or working in close proximity to a NAP has its advantages. And if we can temporarily suspend the information superhighway metaphor and think of an airline hub it might help.

You can travel more efficiently if you live near and use an airline hub such as Atlanta. In outlying areas you must use commuters. A trip from Pensacola to Tampa would be so much more efficient were it not for the requirement to connect in Atlanta. You actually fly a longer distance than the geographic distance between the two points. As a general rule, the closer ones proximity to a NAP, the more efficient and robust the communications.

To illustrate the power of a NAP in helping to redefine the concept of community building take a look at what has occurred in Houston, a major NAP location. My son, computer science major, just moved into an “Internet Community” called Walden Internet Village. The community of townhomes was built with connectivity via a fiber optic link, which allows each and every tenant Internet connections at up to 100 MBS per second. This community has served as a magnet for ambitious computer-savvy types and spawned a “techno-village” model.

As the topic of bandwidth and NAP becomes part of the legislative dialogue it is important to remember that it is a part of our growth and economic posture. Florida needs a NAP to stay competitive in the e-commerce future.