Need a jobs plan? Look online

President Clinton and Vice President Gore were strong leaders in the early days of “the information superhighway.” Through the blaring dial tone and ear-piercing screech of our dial-up modems, a new world began to emerge — a modern, technology-fueled economic heyday that stands in stark contrast to the sober fiscal times we live in today.

President Obama is right to make the economy and jobs his central focal point. It’s smart politics. It’s also essential leadership. My advice to our chief executive as he seeks to reignite economic growth and job creation — it’s time to rediscover the Internet.

{mosads}Clinton presided over a period of record economic growth that created nearly 23 million American jobs. That’s the most created under any administration since the Labor Department began keeping records. Much of that growth was fueled by the meteoric rise of the online world and its seemingly instant integration into our lives and our economy.

Profound cycles of growth and innovation advanced under a steady, bipartisan hands-off approach from government that allowed this game-changing invention to flourish. From my vantage point working in international affairs, I got to see not only the tremendous economic potential of the Internet, but also the emergence of a revolutionary tool for freedom around the globe — one we continue to bear witness to today through the Arab Spring. 

As Obama so succinctly put it recently to the U.N. Security Council, “dictators are on notice. Technology is putting power in the hands of the people.” It can do the same here at home, where millions of Americans are desperately
 in need of economic empowerment. 

Like the Clinton era, the Internet today is once again experiencing explosive growth, led by the rapid rise and mass adoption of mobile connectivity. Über-connected smartphones have put the power of the Internet in the palms of our hands, and they are rapidly being embraced by Americans across every demographic. 

Fueled by an array of applications, these devices are less telephone and more digital Swiss army knife — the modern-day ‘don’t leave home without it’ item. Already, more than 2.4 million American jobs are supported by mobile innovation. And, with Obama pressing for more wireless spectrum to support the continued expansion of the wireless web, many more opportunities could be on the way.

According to Rysavy Research, if the president reaches his goal of releasing an additional 500 MHz of spectrum for mobile Internet use, it would create up to 500,000 U.S. jobs and add $400 billion to the nation’s GDP. And, this conservative forecast readily acknowledges that it can’t predict the ‘X factor’ of new companies and business models, the next Facebook or Netflix, that will inevitably arise out of a more spectrum-rich environment.


Mobile connectivity will be central to our global competitiveness in the information age. And we’re in a good, albeit early, spot today. Nearly all Americans have access to 3G or 4G networks. Our country will be the first to reach a key milestone: a majority of its citizens connected via smartphones. The opportunities extend across our population as well — a little-known fact: African-Americans and Hispanics lead in mobile Internet adoption.


The U.S. wireless sector also has the world’s most efficient networks. They serve three times more customers (who use twice as many minutes) with existing spectrum than many of our global counterparts.

However, America also leads on a more ominous front: On a typical day, U.S. wireless networks run at 80 percent of capacity, compared to the global average of 65 percent. In fact, Rysavy Research finds that without timely action, demand for the mobile Internet will outstrip supply in as little as four years’ time.

Obama is right to press for more spectrum now. One of the early iconic images of the Obama administration was the man alone with his Blackberry. It spoke to the promise of a tech-savvy nation on the move. While he may be too late to “invent” the wireless Web, President Obama does have the opportunity to expand it dramatically. 

He has it within his grasp also to ensure America’s communications businesses will continue to invest at historic levels in America’s broadband networks — rather than other countries’ — by sending a strong message to his administration’s regulators and litigators that only pro-growth, pro-investment, progressive oversight will secure our nation’s innovation leadership. Doing so not only represents sound tech policy, but genuine jobs policy as well.

Spalter is a former CIO at the U.S. Information Agency, director at the National Security Council and international affairs spokesman for former Vice President Al Gore. He currently serves as chairman of Mobile Future.