KEY POINTS:
The latest OECD figures for broadband are due this week, but before the official release of them, the survey, which benchmarks 30 countries, has sparked heated debate in the US.
I'm currently sitting in an airport lounge at JFK airport in New York watching the issue debated on the Fox news channel.
The OECD puts the US at 15th place for broadband lines per person in 2006, down from No. 4 in 2001.
That's annoyed a lot of Americans and led the House Energy and Commerce Committee to approve legislation that will allow for an "annual inventory" of broadband services to be taken each year. It will cover everything from the plans available, to data transfer speeds, prices and number of subscribers.
As the AP reports: "The inventory wouldn't cover other countries, but a cursory look shows the US lagging behind at least some of them.
"In South Korea, for instance, the average apartment can get an internet connection that's 15 times faster than a typical US connection. In Paris, a "triple play" of TV, phone and broadband service costs less than half of what it does in the US"
Any comparison to South Korea when it comes to broadband speeds and availability is flawed, as the country stands virtually apart in the world with its impeccable broadband record.
This is the result of good Government policies to encourage infrastructure development and the early decision to push fibre optic cables out to just about every apartment building in the country.
The OECD figures haven't been released at the time of writing this, but it will be interesting to see how New Zealand does in the latest rankings.
The US certainly seems to be slipping in OECD comparisons, as other countries, including ours, improve their broadband access speeds and penetration.
