Telecom Policy Report articles from December 2006

Telecom Policy Report archives from December 2006

FCC's Martin Makes Pro AT&T/BellSouth 'McMerger' Move.
December 4, 2006... The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is ready to pull excused GOP Commissioner Robert M. McDowell, its newest member, into the AT&T/BellSouth merger approval vote in order to break the nearly two-month-old 2-2...

GAO Gives FCC A Competitive Dedicated-Access Reality Check.
December 4, 2006... For at least the second time this year, the watchdog Government Accountability Office (GAO) has roasted the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) about the regulatory agency's methods of collecting and assessing telecom market data that can...

'Baby' Cincinnati Bell Wins Regulatory Price Flexibility.
December 4, 2006... The near-forgotten, once-monopoly status of Cincinnati Bell Telephone came home to roost this past week as Ohio regulators granted the company's request for "light touch" alternative regulation on basic services, thus achieving parity with...

Former U.S. Advisors Make Public-Safety Interoperability Plea.
December 4, 2006... Two former U.S. Department of Commerce assistant secretaries for communications and information this past week made public pleas that the Administration and Congress as soon as possible implement viable emergency systems that are interoperable...

Sprint Nextel's Forsee Heads Presidential Telecom Panel.
December 4, 2006... President George W. Bush designated Gary D. Forsee, Sprint Nextel's chairman and CEO, as the new chairman of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC) that provides industry-based advice and expertise on issues,...

Congress Quits As R&D Tax Credit, Anti-Pretexting Bills Pass.
December 11, 2006... The 109th session of the U.S. Congress adjourned during the early hours of Dec. 9 without progress on any sweeping telecom reform or national video- franchising legislation. Nevertheless, it passed important bills dealing with the...

FCC's McDowell Cleared To Mull AT&T/BellSouth Decision.
December 11, 2006... Republican Federal Communications Commission (FCC) panelist Robert M. McDowell, the regulator's newest member, apparently has been cleared to participate in and vote on the controversial AT&T/BellSouth combination, although he had initially...

California's Broadband Policy Task Force Gets Started.
December 11, 2006... Following up on an executive order to stimulate state-agency deployment of broadband technologies (TelecomWeb news break, Oct. 30), California recently put into motion the activities of a voluntary task force that will recommend steps the...

Lawmakers Ask FCC To Maneuver Funds To Safeguard USF.
December 11, 2006... Some 31 members of the House of Representatives from both political parties have asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to manipulate available rollover universal service fund (USF) money to keep the entire subsidy program viable...

FCC Names Warning System Advisory Panel Members.
December 11, 2006... The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has chosen the members of a special committee tasked with looking into how to incorporate existing and future wireless services and technologies into a multimedia national emergency alert system...

Tensions Mount As FCC Readies Local Video-Franchise Order.
December 18, 2006... After some two years of telco lobbyist beefing about local franchise authorities (LFA) at the state and national levels, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) this week appears likely to take a up an already-controversial order that...

AT&T/BellSouth Approval: No Date With Destiny...Yet.
December 18, 2006... With the controversial AT&T/BellSouth merger proposal absent from the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) public meeting agenda (TelecomWeb news break, Dec. 14) this week, speculation now is rampant over whether the regulator by year's...

Think Tank Warns Muni Wi-Fi Enthusiasts: Be Wary And Wise.
December 18, 2006... A Los Angeles-based think tank is warning current and future municipal broadband Wi-Fi sponsors that while enthusiasm for the Internet-access-policy concept is reasonable, government authorities should be a bit wary of vendors offering free...

Verizon Gets NJ Regulator's Initial IPTV Approval.
December 18, 2006... As an indicator of the speed at which telcos want to see in video entry approvals, Verizon Communications late last week received New Jersey's regulatory approval for its initial state-level franchise application that paves the way for the...

Commerce Taps Hatfield As Spectrum Advisory Committee Chairman.
December 18, 2006... The U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) has named a chairman for a new RF committee formed to provide the Bush administration with advice and recommendations regarding new wireless technologies and how they relate to homeland security,...

FCC Again Extends Debate On Verizon's Unbundling Escape.
December 18, 2006... For the second time in two months, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has extended industry debate on a Verizon Communications bid to free select urban wire centers from its remaining unbundling obligations amid a series of...