Sizing up McCain's Technology Plans. A.K.A., Written by Lobbyists, Corporate Approved.

I've finished reading through McCain's Technology Plan -- it's a quick read, about 50% as large as Obama's Technology Plan but with even less actual content. One telecommunications expert told me, "The fact that it's so thin and fluffy speaks for itself."

That said, there were some good points in McCain's plan (e.g., supporting research and development, increasing H1-B Visas, tax breaks for R&D, supporting national broadband buildout, increasing government transparency, reforming the patent system) -- of course they were all points that were already in Obama's plan, released last fall. In fact, the parallels are fairly substantial (to a point).

But it's in the discrepancies where the two candidates are thrown into stark relief...

Network Neutrality

Obama's says: "A key reason the Internet has been such a success is because it is the most open network in history. It needs to stay that way. Barack Obama strongly supports the principle of network neutrality to preserve the benefits of open competition on the Internet."

McCain's says: "John McCain does not believe in prescriptive regulation like 'net-neutrality,' but rather he believes that an open marketplace with a variety of consumer choices is the best deterrent against unfair practices."

Diversity of Media Ownership

Obama's says: "Barack Obama believes that providing opportunities for minority-owned businesses to own radio and television stations is fundamental to creating the diverse media environment that federal law requires and the country deserves and demands. As president, he will encourage diversity in the ownership of broadcast media, promote the development of new media outlets for expression of diverse viewpoints, and clarify the public interest obligations of broadcasters who occupy the nation’s spectrum."

McCain's says: [Nothing -- there's nothing about diversity or media ownership in his technology plan.]

Lowering the Corporate Tax Rate

Obama's says: [Specific tax breaks for R&D and broadband buildouts, but no cross the board tax cut for major corporations.]

McCain's says: "John McCain will lower the corporate tax rate to 25 percent."

General Worldview Towards Technology

Obama's says: "Obama is also opening up the campaign and giving average Americans a chance to offer opinions and information on important policy issues and Americans have responded: over 15,000 policy ideas have been submitted through the web site."

McCain's says: "Offering simple common sense solutions to real problems is at the core of the McCain’s innovation agenda."

A lot of McCain's plan looks good (a lot of it also looks identical to Obama's plan), but it's this last one -- this McCain worldview that scares the hell out of me. Technology is complicated -- and the solutions we need are fairly complex -- they require an in depth understanding of the problem if you're going to formulate a solution. And McCain clearly doesn't understand some of the core problems.

Take competition, for example. McCain's tech plan states, "Competition has been a great strength for America — offering opportunity, low prices, and increased choice for our citizens. Markets work best when there is robust competition. Competition means that any new devices invented cost less because there are more choices. This ensures more Americans can afford to be part of the digital economy." Yet, when it comes to things like broadband services, the US is paying more for services and has fewer service options than a growing host of other countries. If you can't identify the problem of lack of competition in the first place, how can you possibly solve the problem. Platitudes about competition aren't going to cut it.

A technology plan has to address the massive market conglomerization that's been happening in technology -- from Microsoft to Google, Apple to AT&T. McCain's plan completely sidesteps this issue -- Obama's plan addresses it head-on:

"An Obama administration will look carefully at key industries to ensure that the benefits of competition are fully realized by consumers. Obama will strengthen the antitrust authorities’ competition advocacy programs to ensure that special interests do not use regulation to insulate themselves from the competitive process. Obama will also strengthen competition advocacy in the international community as well as domestically. He will take steps to ensure that antitrust law is not used as a tool to interfere with robust competition or undermine efficiency to the detriment of U.S. consumers and businesses. He will do so by improving the administration of those laws in the U.S. and by working with foreign governments to change unsound competition laws and to avoid needless duplication and conflict in multinational enforcement of those laws. In short, an Obama administration will take seriously its responsibility to enforce the antitrust laws so that all Americans benefit from a growing and healthy competitive free-market economy."

However you come down on these issues, I'd love to hear more about your take on the McCain and Obama plans (either on blog or off). Personally, I'm still waiting for McCain to release a real technology plan -- one that helps consumers and addresses the problems we're facing instead of protecting corporations and ignoring technology market failings.

When McCain states, "