Internet2: Separate and unequal

Internet2 will not be an immediate solution to existing problems of the Internet for most higher education institutions. It will not solve the problem of slow connections on a typical fall afternoon day. In fact, Internet2 members will still depend upon the existing Internet for much of their packet delivery, at least for a few more years. While the Internet2 Project is elitist, its goals are worthy—to develop meaningful applications for a next-generation of Internet which will be shared with those currently limited to using the public, global Internet. There are the questions of if, and when, the high-speed differentiated network and quality of service capabilities of Abilene and/or the vBNS will reach user desktops. Additionally, when will faculty incorporate Internet2-developed applications in their classrooms? Furthermore, do not expect the Internet2 members to willingly expand access to their high-speed networks—they have learned from the past. As in the 1980s and 1990s, it may become necessary for the federal government to assume the role of catalyst to increase access to these high-speed networks. Timing will be a critical issue. How long will it take to migrate applications developed by Internet2 to the existing Internet? The longer it takes to deploy meaningful and useful applications to the existing Internet, and the longer it takes for other higher education institutions to gain access to these high-speed networks, the more persuasive the perception of the Internet2 Project as elitist, separate, and unequal. 40