Telecom Policy Report articles from April 2006

Telecom Policy Report archives from April 2006

FCC, DoJ Ponder Trio Of 'Super-Merger' Apps.
April 3, 2006... Late last Friday, AT&T, BellSouth and Cingular Wireless filed formal license/asset transfer and antitrust clearance applications with federal agencies seeking approval for their "super merger" that clearly eclipses last year's AT&T/SBC and...

AT&T Tells The FCC: No More Wholesale Common-Carrier DSL.
April 3, 2006... At the same time it sought permission at the FCC and at the DoJ to merge with BellSouth and Cingular Wireless, AT&T also told the regulator it no longer will offer wholesale digital subscriber line (DSL) transport as a common-carrier service...

Is The 'Martin Plan' Still A 'Stealth Tax?'.
April 3, 2006... Interim or no, the proposed USF numbers approach continues to be labeled as the "Martin plan" and a "stealth tax" by some consumer-advocacy opponents. One such vocal group, the Keep USF Fair Coalition, last week warned that a number-based...

USF Fans Weigh Martin's 'Reverse Auction' Idea, Capitol Hill Reforms.
April 3, 2006... If they were watching closely last week, followers, advocates and critics of the universal service fund (USF) program witnessed Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin J. Martin posit what he called a "reverse auction" idea for USF...

PUC Pressure: AT&T Backpedals On Pennsylvania Job Cuts.
April 3, 2006... Pennsylvania apparently has persuaded the new AT&T (following its combination with SBC) to retain more than 250 call-center jobs in the state, diffusing a potential clash over the possible work loss with the Pennsylvania Public Utility...

Video-Franchise War-Of-Words Frenzy Continues Unabated.
April 3, 2006... The telco-vs.-cableco war to change the video-franchising environment reached a frenetic pace both inside and outside Washington, D.C., all last week as lobbying groups on both sides of the fence (along with consumer protection/rights...

Litigation Makes A Big Difference.
April 3, 2006... By Frank Barbetta, editor, Telecom Policy Report There has been a tendency among lawmakers to ask broad questions about why some countries appear to have better-oiled competitive/network enhancement policies and successes compared with...

House Video-Franchise Bill Moves Along, But Critics Raise Litigation Specter.
April 10, 2006... As Republican-led video-franchise legislation last week made its way through a House subcommittee with much rancor over details and amendments, a consistent Democratic worry was that telcos benefiting from such a bill could still find...

Dead Amendment Could Have Halted Foreign Franchise Owners.
April 10, 2006... It may have come out of left field for the House subcommittee bill mark- up on video franchising, but one of the interesting yet defeated amendments would have imposed foreign-ownership restrictions on incumbent carriers that get national...

Californian Posits E-Mail As A Regulated Utility.
April 10, 2006... Business plans by the likes of AOL and Yahoo! to charge companies different fees for sending customers volume e-mail messages (TelecomWeb news break, Feb. 6) in recent months have backfired, instead causing nationwide protests and debate....

AT&T Flexes Its Muscle In Indiana, California.
April 10, 2006... As the national video-franchise issue as well as its links with fiber and broadband deployment rages in Washington, D.C, it's no secret the telco-vs-cable battle has been even more intense where it all started - on the state level. And while...

Canada Implements Sweeping Local Deregulation.
April 10, 2006... Canadian regulators have put into motion a sweeping long-term plan to deregulate local exchange telephone services, thus allowing incumbent carriers pricing freedom in competitive markets (but not in non-competitive ones) and restricting...

China: Bad Boy, Whipping Boy Or Bully?
April 10, 2006... By Frank Barbetta, editor, Telecom Policy Report Not a week seems to go by without a news item about a People's Republic of China business development or controversy, and many of the headlines involve telecom activities, the Internet,...

Wireless Broadband Gets Added Luster With New Legislation, FCC Moves.
April 17, 2006... The future of more wireless broadband alternatives for Internet-access subscribers brightened last week as momentum grew behind Capitol Hill legislation to share under-used broadcast spectrum and regulatory initiatives on RF allocations took...

CompTel Asks Court For FCC Wireline Review.
April 17, 2006... Late last Friday, Competitive Telecommunications Association (CompTel) dissatisfaction with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and its perceived pro-telco leanings (TPR, March 27) boiled over into a 78-page court request to review a...

Fresh Protests Seek Federal Excise Tax Demise.
April 17, 2006... Amid reports that the U.S. government might finally consider eliminating the federal excise tax (FET) on communications services and a lawsuit now pending against the 3-percent levy on monthly consumer bills, calls to get rid of the unique...

Gov. Kaine Signs Virginia Flat Tax.
April 17, 2006... Virginia's Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has signed communications tax-reform legislation that streamlines such levies into a statewide flat-rate structure and eliminates local cable-franchising fees (TPR, Jan. 30). Virginia's House of...

N.Y. Revises Pricing Policy But Some Rates Jump.
April 17, 2006... New York State has adopted a new telecom-policy framework giving incumbent carriers flexibility in pricing in response to what state regulators say is an increasing presence of competition in the industry. However, the decision is also...

Local Franchise Battles Go Topsy-Turvy In FL Capital, CA Court.
April 24, 2006... Local video-franchise battles on the state level appear likely to be seeing some topsy-turvy developments if recent events in Florida and California provide new indicators of what will be happening nationwide. In the Sunshine State's...

ITU Focuses On IPTV Standards.
April 24, 2006... Speaking of Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), the international community is now in the early stages of an IPTV standardization effort. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) says it formed a Focus Group on IPTV (IPTV FG) to...

New Activist Coalition Seeks Nothing Less Than 'To Save The Internet'.
April 24, 2006... A new telecom-oriented activist organization will be pounding the pavement in Washington, D.C., shortly, but its leaders and members aren't looking for jobs. They're looking to "save the Internet." The SavetheInternet.com coalition will...

ICC, VoIP & USF: So Much To Do, But The FCC's Taking Its Time.
April 24, 2006... Many contentious issues remain unresolved at the Federal Communications Commission - including intercarrier compensation (ICC), Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and the universal service fund (USF) - but the industry is hoping a full...

FCC Forbearance, Verizon's Push.
April 24, 2006... A case in point on the Federal Communications Commission's handling of company by company instead of comprehensive decision making easily focuses on the forbearance petition process that allows carriers to seek exemptions from Title II...

The FCC Starts The Clock On AT&T/BellSouth Deal.
April 24, 2006... The Federal Communications Commission last week started its self-imposed 180-day "time clock" to review the asset/license transfer applications involved in the proposed $67.1 billion all-stock "super-merger" merger of AT&T (formerly SBC) and...

NTIA Enters The Federal Spectrum-Allocation Transition.
April 24, 2006... One week after the Federal Communications Commission disclosed a series of rules governing the upcoming June 29 auction of Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) frequencies for third-generation (3G) offerings (TPR, April 17), the National...

Heads Up: House Goes At It Again On Franchise Bill.
April 24, 2006... A key House of Representatives committee this week will resume the mark- up process on a controversial bill establishing a national video franchise system pushed heavily by major telcos seeking to quickly offer Internet Protocol television...