On February 24, members of the NVCA Board of Directors met with Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski and members of his staff on a number of topics relevant to the VC industry.  One of the issues was advancing broadband access throughout the United States.  This initiative is one that NVCA supports, as virtually every portfolio company in which our industry invests relies in some way on Internet connectivity.  We are encouraged by FCC plans to move forward proactively on this initiative so that our companies can remain competitive with those overseas where foreign countries are becoming more aggressive in building a universal broadband infrastructure. 

In support of the FCC efforts, we sent a letter to Chairman Genachowski this week.  You can read the full letter here. The following are excerpts:

The Members of the Board of Directors of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) would like to thank you for your tireless work on behalf of advancing significant broadband access throughout all of the United States… 

…Many venture capital firms predominately invest in high technology, high growth companies that are an integral part of the growing Internet ecosystem…

…This is why we keenly understand …that our nation is falling increasingly behind in shaping a national broadband policy that keeps our country competitive … Your work… sends the right signal to US-based investors that significant progress can be made in building an infrastructure that our portfolio companies can build upon…

… the federal government must play an integral role in fostering an economic and technological environment which rewards risk, promotes global competition, and reduces barriers to private sector innovation… 

…Thank you again for your commitment in this arena.  We look forward to working with you in advancing the goals of the National Broadband.

We are awaiting the comprehensive FCC proposal on broadband policy within the next two weeks.

One other outcome from our FCC meeting deals with a more controversial topic – net neutrality. So that our members are able to understand the issues surrounding net neutrality, the NVCA will be hosting a call with FCC officials on March 26 at 12:00 p.m. eastern; 9:00 a.m. pacific. Call in details have been sent directly to NVCA members and we encourage them to dial in.

Questions or comments?  Please email Mark at mheesen (at) NVCA (dot) org.