Telecom Policy Report articles from March 2005

Telecom Policy Report archives from March 2005

The Big Apple Readies Wireless, Broadband Initiatives.
March 2, 2005... NYC Tech Council 'Boroughs' In For New Services New York City's municipal government is preparing to accelerate initiatives to promote more ubiquitous wireless and broadband access to the Internet in urban communities, with an emphasis on...

House Hosts Merger Confab.
March 2, 2005... The House Energy and Commerce Committee under Chairman Joe Barton (R-Texas) today (March 2) is scheduled to host a hearing on the current developments in telecom carrier mergers at 10 a.m. in Room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building....

Qwest Presses Investor Case For $8.1B MCI Purchase.
March 2, 2005... With no word from MCI on its proposed $8 billion purchase, Qwest Communications International yesterday reiterated its case to investors that its acquisition terms should be seriously considered and that the combination of the two companies...

FCC Slaps AT&T With Retro Calling-Card Payments.
March 2, 2005... After many weeks of speculation and a lot of reporting in this newsletter, the Federal Communications Commission finally admonished AT&T for avoiding universal service fund (USF) contributions and intrastate access charges on its prepaid...

UNE, USF Remands Weigh Heavily On The Commish.
March 2, 2005... Possibly just as disruptive as judicial decisions that could completely overturn FCC decisions are the court remands that throw back orders to the commission and its staff to rethink and rewrite legally disputed rules and regulations. Current...

Treading Water On CMRS/LEC Compensation.
March 2, 2005... The FCC last week amended its rules on Intercarrier Compensation (ICC) applicable to wireless operators and incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) by prohibiting the use of tariffs that impose ICC obligations on non-access, commercial mobile...

Survey: Paltry Rural LNP Demand.
March 2, 2005... There is "minuscule demand" for wireline-to-wireless porting of telephone numbers, despite widespread availability of the service to rural consumers, according to the results of a National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA)...

Congress Sifts Through Merger Pros And Cons.
March 9, 2005... Yet Not Much Seems To Stand In The Way Of Consolidation Congress last week continued its soul searching on how to rework the Telecom Act of 1996, with attention turning to the underlying reasons for the pending mergers of some of the...

Ohio Consumers' Counsel Wants SBC-AT&T Scrutiny.
March 9, 2005... The Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel (OCC) told state regulators SBC Communications and AT&T should present evidence that their proposed $16 billion merger will benefit Ohio residents and that it will have no negative impact on customers...

Qwest Still A Bridesmaid?
March 9, 2005... Until last week, Qwest Communications International management was miffed that MCI would not respond to its second $8 billion purchase proposal, but MCI - with the consent of agreed-upon acquirer Verizon Communications - finally revealed that...

FCC Action On VoIP Blocking: The Tip Of The Iceberg.
March 9, 2005... The recent FCC action against a North Carolina local exchange carrier (LEC) for allegedly blocking VoIP traffic transiting into its operating territory may be the tip of the iceberg when it comes to similar investigations into such activities....

Waiting For Powell's Successor: Patience Is A Virtue.
March 9, 2005... The White House has not yet named a replacement for outgoing FCC Chairman Michael K. Powell but, so far, the inaction appears to be devoid of any industry-wide high anxiety. Slightly more than six weeks has elapsed since Powell announced...

Policy Meltdowns Could Promote More Carrier Self-Help.
March 9, 2005... With a backdrop of the 1996 Telecommunications Act being vilified on a regular basis from numerous quarters, major aspects of wireline-competition regulation appear to be heading for a meltdown. If this is so, the potential fallout has service...

House Rural Caucus, Subcommittee Tackle VoIP.
March 16, 2005... Carriers Again Claim Outdated Regs Are Slowing Deployment Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) technology and carriage is starting to get additional attention in light of potential rewrites of the 1996 Telecom Act during the 109th session of...

Where Ex-FCC Personnel Are Landing.
March 16, 2005... The cats are out of the proverbial bag. The Aspen Institute says outgoing FCC Chairman Michael K. Powell will become a senior fellow at its Communications and Society Program for a three-month period effective upon his departure from the...

The FCC, The Courts And LNP: Two Different Definitions.
March 16, 2005... The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit just issued two decisions reflecting a mixed bag on the Federal Communications Commission's orders and implementations for so-called "intermodal" local number portability (LNP)...

SBC-AT&T Merger Update: 180 Days And Counting.
March 16, 2005... The clock is ticking regarding the FCC's review process for approving SBC Communications' proposed $16 billion acquisition of AT&T; the move, which started March 11, essentially sets up a timeline for routine merger reviews that normally take...

At Press Time: Is The Bidding War Heating Up?
March 16, 2005... Rumors are circulating that both Verizon Communications and Qwest Communications International may be preparing to raise their respective $8 billion and $6.7 billion bids to acquire interexchange carrier MCI this week. Deutsche Bank Securities...

New 'Truth In Billing' Rules Raise A Ruckus.
March 16, 2005... At last week's Open Meeting, the FCC decided to extend its "truth-in-billing" consumer protection strictures to mobile wireless by removing an existing exemption for commercial mobile radio service (CMRS) carriers from the rules requiring that...

The FCC's New Advisory Group.
March 16, 2005... The FCC received 70 applications for membership in its Consumer Advisory Committee, and it named 35 members, including 10 to represent consumer interests, 10 to represent disability interests, 2 to represent state regulators' interests, 2 to...

State Regulators And The Stocks They Own.
March 16, 2005... It's no secret that most of us own telecom stock in one way, shape or form. However, is it right for those who regulate the industry to own shares in carriers, manufacturers or other telecom-related companies? Fortunately, disclosure rules...

GAO Report Attacks FCC Management Of USF, E-Rate.
March 23, 2005... Congress Scrutinizes 'Fraud, Waste & Abuse' The Universal Service Fund's scandal-ridden schools-and-libraries Internet access subsidy program known as "E-Rate" - currently handled by the third party Universal Service Administrative Co....

Martin Takes Center Stage At The FCC.
March 23, 2005... Long-favored candidate Kevin J. Martin last week was designated as the new Federal Communications Commission chairman by President George W. Bush, ending two months of speculation about Michael K. Powell's successor but starting a new round...

Rep. Upton And The Hottest Seat In The House.
March 23, 2005... Like the bill amendment he sponsored last year extending E-Rate's disbursements for 12 months, Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.) - as chairman of the House Energy Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet - is likely to be a...

How Cablecos Plan To Win The Telco Game.
March 23, 2005... Back when they were full-fledged monopolists and continuing to the present day, telcos have always known how to mount impressive grassroots lobbying campaigns. Much of the carriers' latest lobbying efforts are tied to their exploration of...

Will March 28 Be 'Blue Monday' For Qwest's MCI Bid?
March 23, 2005... Interexchange carrier MCI says its board of directors will respond to the latest increased purchase offer made last week by Qwest Communications by close of business March 28; the company is reviewing a revised Qwest merger bid of $10.50 in...

At Press Time: Level 3 Pulls Its Hot VoIP Petition.
March 23, 2005... Level 3 Communications just backed off on a request submitted to the FCC to exempt certain voice-over-Internet Protocols (VoIP) calls from access charges. Under FCC rules, Level 3's forbearance petition (originally filed in December 2003)...

Query To Congress On FCC: To Be Or Not To Be?
March 30, 2005... Academia Questions Regulator's Role, Modus Operandi As the U.S. Congress considers broad regulatory reform amid a possible rewrite of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, lawmakers would probably do well to re-examine the overriding policy...

NASUCA Challenges Billing Decision.
March 30, 2005... The National Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA) filed in an appeal of a recent FCC decision on truth-in-billing rules, contending deceptive telephone charges will continue on long-distance and cellular bills; appeals...

The 'Bill-And-Keep' ICC Hot Potato.
March 30, 2005... Although there are different proposals for a new, unified intercarrier compensation (ICC) regime, the FCC's latest proceeding on the long-sought revamp could make or break the often-discussed "bill-and-keep" concept, allowing carriers...

OPASTCO Board Vets Rural Alliance Principles.
March 30, 2005... The board governing the Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies (OPASTCO) voted unanimously to adopt the intercarrier compensation and universal service principles set out in February by the Rural...

States Overruled On Naked DSL; 'Tying' Scrutinized.
March 30, 2005... Based on a BellSouth Telecommunications request for declaratory ruling, the FCC ruled state regulators can't require incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) to provide digital subscriber line (DSL) loop facilities to voice subscribers of...

Supremes Schedule Lists 'Brand X,' MGM Arguments.
March 30, 2005... The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday was scheduled to hear oral arguments on two seemingly disparate cases that some legal observers and public-activist groups believe could have a common impact on the openness of both Internet broadband access...

With Qwest Gone, Verizon Now Eyes MCI Asset Transfer.
March 30, 2005... Despite Qwest's last-minute extension of its offer deadline and grumblings from shareholders regarding an alleged low-ball figure, MCI's board of directors has decided to stick with its plan to accept Verizon's kicked-up-a- notch $7.6 billion...

Texas 911 Suit Targets Vonage; PR Campaign Launched.
March 30, 2005... The Texas lawsuit filed last week against voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) carrier Vonage Holdings - for allegedly failing to make clear to consumers that its current offering does not include automatic access to traditional emergency 911...