Telecom Policy Report articles from August 2003

Telecom Policy Report archives from August 2003

New UNE Rules Could Kill Broadband Competition.
August 6, 2003... Public Utilities Watchdog Group Warns Of Dire Consequences Anxiety over the Federal Communications Commission's new rules on unbundled network elements (UNEs) is running extremely high among consumer advocates across the nation, and...

Where The National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates Stands.
August 6, 2003... A recent report form the National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) concludes that the plan favored by the Bell companies to eliminate wholesale UNE-P access would devastate competition and likely result in unregulated...

PacBell Is Next ISP To Take On U.S. Recording Industry.
August 6, 2003... The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), intent on crushing Internet users engaged in so-called "file sharing" activities, may be facing its toughest opponent yet: Pacific Bell Internet Service, a unit of SBC Communications that...

Telco CEO Seeks 'Non-Discriminatory Access' Legislation.
August 6, 2003... If Larissa Herda has her way, Congress will create and pass legislation that will, once and for all, put an end to the bickering that usually ensues between new entrants in the telecom services arena and local municipality franchise authorities...

Make That A Big Mac, Order Of Fries, And A McWi-Fi Connection.
August 6, 2003... AT&T's now well publicized wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) initiative involving "free" Wi-Fi service to customers of selected McDonald's restaurants signals the beginning of a major new push by the carrier into what it perceives as fertile new...

MCI's New Corporate Motto Should Be: 'What, Me Worry?'.
August 6, 2003... There's a good reason why MCI won't be contesting a proposal last week by the General Services Administration (GSA) urging the federal government to avoid awarding the company anymore contracts. Not contesting the recommendation doesn't cost...

Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Answer The Phone ...
August 6, 2003... The telemarketing industry is gearing up to launch a multi-million dollar lobbying campaign aimed at convincing lawmakers that the recently enacted antitelemarketing legislation - which spawned the National Do-Not-Call Registry - is going to...

Competitor's Quick Complaint Draws BellSouth's Fast Response.
August 6, 2003... When NewSouth Communications last week filed a complaint with the FCC against BellSouth, the Greenville, S.C.-based competitive telco wasn't expecting the Baby Bell to respond as quickly as it did. But BellSouth wasted no time rebutting...

Call For Entries For The 2003 Telecom Marketing Awards.
August 6, 2003... Presented by PBI Media's Telecom Group The Telecom Marketing Awards are among the telecommunications industry's most privileged honors, recognizing the best telecom marketing campaigns and programs of the past year. Choose from 17...

Communications Antes Up In 2004 Presidential Race.
August 6, 2003... It is TPR's practice to examine one congressional member each week, using political donations made to that member by telecom-related entities as a way to graphically illustrate his or her importance to the industry. However, this week we...

MCI, AT&T 'Battle Of The Titans' Begins - Again.
August 13, 2003... War Of Words Escalates As Carriers Lock Horns Amid Fraud Charges Any comity that may have once existed in the relationship between AT&T and MCI is totally gone now, thanks largely to a seemingly relentless barrage of legal and verbal...

Judge Nixes Pro-SBC Briefs From CWA, State Lawmakers.
August 13, 2003... Decision Seen As Bad Omen For Outcome Of Baby Bell's Case Thanks, but no thanks. That was the message sent by Chief Judge Richard Posner of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit to a labor union - the Communications Workers of...

Dumping 'Alaska Bush' Policy Is Good For Broadband.
August 13, 2003... The FCC's decision last week putting an end to a 34-year-old policy that barred competitors of Alascom, Alaska's dominant telco, from competing for customers in the state's most isolated areas could end up being the broadband "kickstart" that...

Dial-Up Internet Modems Dead By 2007? We Think Not.
August 13, 2003... Dial-up modem access to the Internet will be virtually non-existent by the end of 2007, according to market analysis firm Information Gatekeepers Inc. The company bases that prediction on a number of factors, including a highly suspect...

The End Of Long Distance Telephony As We Know It.
August 13, 2003... The end of long distance toll calls may be closer than you think. Voice over Internet Protocol technology, or VoIP, is fast broadening its popularity, especially among telephone users who make a lot of international calls. The technology...

ITU Delegates OK New Mission Statement For Global Communications Network.
August 13, 2003... Dozens of the world's most prominent standards-setting organizations have embraced a mission statement that could become the cornerstone of a more accessible global communications network, officials at the U.N.-backed International...

Sen. Coleman Rankled About RIAA's Subpoena Tactics.
August 13, 2003... Sen. Norm Coleman (R-Minn.) is not a happy camper right now, and it is the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) that has made him that way, according to sources close to Coleman. Coleman, chairman of the Senate Permanent...

Wyden Stays In Front Of Tech-Related Issues.
August 13, 2003... Describing Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) as one of the Senate's most techsavvy members may be something of an understatement. Wyden has been one of the most active members of Congress on issues related to computing and the Internet. He was a key...

Minnesota PUC Rules VoIP Is Telecom Service.
August 20, 2003... Order May Have Broad Implications For Entire Industry The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) may have avoided being plunged into darkness during last week's historic power outage, but it certainly did not avoid being plunged into...

Tauzin, Dingell, Upton Press FCC To Dump TELRIC.
August 20, 2003... Their Unpublished Letter To Powell Garners CompTel's Response The leadership of the House Energy & Commerce Committee is quietly telling the FCC to get rid of the wholesale pricing formula it has been using to determine whether incumbent...

FCC's Move To WLNP Will Save Corporations Millions.
August 20, 2003... Chance For Renegotiating Wireless Contracts Seen As 'Watershed Moment' The recent judicial decision in the D.C. Circuit regarding wireless local number portability (WLNP) will mean millions of dollars in savings for corporate users of...

Virginia Will Be Next To Pass 'Telecom Bill of Rights'.
August 20, 2003... Following the lead of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) has opened a proceeding aimed at creating a "Telecommunications Bill of Rights" for telecom service users in the...

Consumer Groups Hike Pressure To Re-Regulate Cable.
August 20, 2003... CFA, CU Push Congress To Intervene In FCC's Territory Congress is coming under increasing pressure from consumer advocacy organizations to enact legislation that will allow states to once again regulate cable TV rates. If this pressure...

Progressive Policy Institute Blasts Cyber Protection Plan.
August 20, 2003... Group's 'Report Card' Gives Bush Administration Very Low Marks The Progressive Policy Institute, a centrist "think tank" in Washington, D.C., doesn't think much of the Bush Administration's efforts to protect America's cyber networks. In...

Brownback Immersed In Technology Leadership Role.
August 20, 2003... As chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space, Sen. Sam Brownback (R- Kan.) definitely has his hands full these days. His panel has tackled some of the most controversial issues of modern times - everything...

FCC's UNE Order Emerges Amid Controversy.
August 27, 2003... States Will Play Major Role In Shaping Telecom Competition It will take some time for policy analysts to figure out exactly what the FCC's just-released Triennial Review Order (TRO) says - the document is nearly 600 pages long, not counting...

ITAA Calls For Report To Track Fiber-To-The-Home Investment.
August 27, 2003... The FCC's "New Rules for New Wires" policy reflected in the Triennial Review Order (TRO) released last Thursday should be supplemented with transparency about new fiber-to-the-home investments, according to the Information Technology...

Ohio Consumers' Counsel, SBC Ohio Lock Horns.
August 27, 2003... Bell Company's Long Distance Bid Spurs Concerns In what is shaping up to become a furious battle to win the hearts and minds of federal regulators, the Ohio Consumers' Counsel (OCC), one of the nation's most outspoken residential utility...

China's Trade Policy Shift Threatens U.S. IT Interests.
August 27, 2003... The Information Technology Association of America (ITAA) has weighed in on a growing controversy surrounding policy changes purportedly made by China that would restrict government procurement of software to local Chinese companies. The Chinese...

FCC Comes Under Increasing Pressure To Rein In VoIP.
August 27, 2003... A controversial, unprecedented decision two weeks ago by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) defining Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) as a telecommunications service - not an information service - is heightening pressure on the...

TPR's Top Telecom Lobbyists Picks For August.
August 27, 2003... A great lobbyist is an individual who knows and practices the fine art of diplomacy, who doesn't mince words, and who can present an effective - and convincing - point of view without "browbeating" his or her audience. Great lobbyists are worth...

Editor's Note.
August 27, 2003... Telecom Policy Report will not be published next week. TPR's next edition will be dated Sept. 10, 2003. [Copyright 2003 PBI Media, LLC. All rights reserved.]