U.S. FCC seeks broadband market competition comments

* FCC to seek comment on competition in business broadband

* Has said wireless industry lacks effective competition

* Could eventually lead to more policies, regulations

WASHINGTON, Sept 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. communications regulator on Wednesday said it would start to analyze the competitiveness of the broadband business marketplace.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission is seeking comments on competitiveness from businesses, customers and others, which could be a possible first step in imposing more policies and regulations to increase competition.

"This important first step will enable the FCC to analyze the broadband business marketplace with the goal of ensuring that businesses realize the maximum benefits of broadband services and competition," the agency said.

Earlier this year, the FCC for the first time since 2002 did not describe the wireless industry as having "effective competition."

That omission was seen as possibly setting the stage for U.S. regulators to impose policies and regulations to increase competition for consumers who are demanding more data plans on their mobile handsets to surf the Internet and watch videos.

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, in remarks to a group of eBay sellers on Wednesday, said one of the concerns the agency has heard from small businesses is that there is "insufficient competition in signing up for broadband and that the prices are too high."

"Our competition policies around broadband will be very important, we believe, to making sure that you have accurate choices for broadband and that there's real competition leading to better service and lower prices," he said.

The FCC chairman also said that the broadband infrastructure, both wired and wireless, was "good, but it's not good enough." Up to 24 million Americans live in areas where they don't have broadband infrastructure, he said.

In the United States about 65 percent of Americans who could subscribe to the Internet do so but "that's not good enough," he said, making the comparison with Singapore where it is about 90 percent.

"That's a huge gap," and the goal is to close that gap in the next 10 years which would spur job creation, he said.

Increasing broadband access to rural and low-income families and small businesses is a major part of the National Broadband Plan issued by the Federal Communications Commission earlier this year.

(Washington newsroom; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)