Federal Communications Law Journal articles from June 2006

Federal Communications Law Journal archives from June 2006

Ten years under the 1996 Telecommunications Act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... Approximately every two years, on average, Congress makes significant changes in the nation's rule of law governing the communications and media industries. Sometimes the changes express direct commands, but more often than not, the new laws...

The 1996 Telecommunications Act: ten years later.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... Like all legislation, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") was justified on the basis of the public interest. And as in many legislative processes, the public interest was interpreted by each stakeholder group as coterminous with its...

Looking backwards and looking forwards in contemplating the next rewrite of the communications act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. THE CO-EVOLUTION OF LAW, TECHNOLOGY, SECTOR ORGANIZATION, AND PERFORMANCE III. THE INCOMPLETE CONCEPTUAL FOUNDATIONS FOR REGULATORY REFORM A. Unbundling B. Tradeoffs Between Economic and...

Open video systems: too much regulation too late?(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... There are lessons to be learned from the nonstarters in regulatory historic. A good example in the 1996 Telecommunications Act ("1996 Act") (1) was Section 653's creation of open video systems ("OVS"). (2) OVS was an attempt to create a...

Interconnection policy and technological progress.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTERCONNECTION POLICY BEFORE 1996 II. INTERCONNECTION AND THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1996 III. THE INTERNET AND INTERCONNECTION I. INTERCONNECTION POLICY BEFORE 1996 The network effect in telephone service makes a...

A public interest perspective on the impact of the broadcasting provisions of the 1996 Act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. SECTION 201: BROADCAST SPECTRUM FLEXIBILITY III. SECTION 202: BROADCAST OWNERSHIP IV. LICENSE RENEWAL PROVISIONS V. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION The broadcasting provisions contained in Title II of the...

Rivalrous telecommunications networks with and without mandatory sharing.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. NETWORK SHARING RULES PURSUANT TO THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1996 III. TESTING THE "STEPPING STONE" THEORY A. Growth in CLEC Lines B. Cable Telephony: The Dog That Didn't Bark. IV. INVESTMENT...

The failure of competition under the 1996 Telecommunications Act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. BY THE NUMBERS: FEEBLE COMPETITION III. THE FUTURE IV. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION The Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") replaced the regulatory framework of a monopoly era with a radical...

No sight like hindsight: the 1996 Act and the view ten years later.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. THE 1996 ACT: TRULY LANDMARK LEGISLATION III. CONGRESS LOOKED BACK AND THOUGHT AHEAD IV. WHAT WE CAN SEE IN HINDSIGHT: PITFALLS ON THE COMPETITIVE ROAD V. WHERE TO NOW? PRINCIPLES TO KEEP IN MIND GOING ...

The law of unintended consequences. (Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... Whether intentional or not, the 1996 Telecommunications Act ("1996 Act") was transitional legislation, focused largely on the constituencies that battled before Congress at the time of its passage, with compromises to address historic...

Deregulation and market concentration: an analysis of post-1996 consolidations.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. THE ISSUE II. THE CHANGING INDUSTRY STRUCTURE III. EMPIRICAL FINDINGS A. Vertical Concentration. B. Local Concentration IV. INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS V. OUTLOOK I. THE ISSUE For several decades, U.S....

Swallows, sausages, and the 1996 Act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... In an annual ritual that rivals the swallows' return to Capistrano in regularity, if not longevity, February in Washington is heralded by a flock of commentary on why the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") is not living up to...

Politics and telecommunications. (Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... The Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") has frequently been cited as landmark legislation. In fact in Tom Friedman's bestselling book, The World Is Flat, cites the 1996 Act as the basis for many recent developments. Friedman suggests...

The 1996 Telecommunications Act.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. THE 1996 ACT: A NEW HOPE III. REFORM BUT WITH CAUTION IV. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION Without a doubt, the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") has been a triumph for the cable industry and...

The greatest story never told: how the 1996 Telecommunications Act helped to transform cable's future.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... It'll be 10-to-1 in our favor. I would say that by 2000, we'll have 50 percent of the cable TV business--no doubt about it, which is why some cable companies are in a panic. Meanwhile, the cable companies won't have even 3 percent of telephony...

Section 202(h) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996: beware of intended consequences. (Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. JUDICIAL CONSTRUCTION OF SECTION 202(h) III. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION This is a story about a reasonably obscure provision of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("I 996 Act"), and about the story behind...

Are you better off today than you were ten years ago? Residential consumers and telecommunications reform.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. BROADBAND DEPLOYMENT III. CONSUMER PROTECTION IV. ACCESSIBILITY V. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION Five years ago I asked this question about the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") and concluded...

Transformation: the 1996 Act reshapes radio.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. LICENSE RENEWALS III. LOCAL OWNERSHIP IV. NATIONAL OWNERSHIP V. IMPACT AND OUTLOOK I. INTRODUCTION While the Telecommunications Act of 1996 ("1996 Act") focused largely on updating common carrier...

Endangered species, lassoes, and unmet promises.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... I. INTRODUCTION II. A LEARNING EXPERIENCE III. DOING BETTER NEXT TIME A. Endangered Species B. Lassoes C. Unmet Promises IV. CONCLUSION I. INTRODUCTION The Eighth Circuit, in its famously evocative...

Responses by the Federal Communications Commission to WorldCom's accounting fraud.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... WorldCom's disclosure of billions of dollars of financial fraud on June 25, 2002 challenged the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") in several major ways. The FCC proclaimed its commitment to enforce its rules to protect consumers against...

'Wi-Fi'ght them when you can join them? How the Philadelphia compromise may have saved municipally-owned telecommunications services.(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... When the Mayor of Philadelphia announced his plan to provide municipally sponsored Wi-Fi Internet access, Verizon, the incumbent telecommunications service provider organized lobbyists to block the plan. The compromise eventually struck between...

Private eyes are watching you: with the implementation of the E-911 mandate, who will watch every move you make?(Telecommunications Act of 1996: Ten Years Later Symposium)
June 1, 2006... The FCC's E-911 mandate, which will ensure that emergency operators automatically receive a caller's location information, should help save lives. However, privacy advocates have expressed concern over the potential for wireless carriers, the...

Creation of the Media.(Book review)
June 1, 2006... I. AN ANALYSIS OF CONSTITUTIVE MOTIVES II. AN APPLICATION OF HISTORY III. CONCLUSION Paul Starr's Creation of the Media provides a rich history of the social, political and legal infrastructure that shaped the American media...