Telecom Policy Report articles from November 2005

Telecom Policy Report archives from November 2005

New NPRM Rocks Local Franchise World.
November 7, 2005... The Federal Communications Commission late last week rattled the local cable-franchising community with a decision to examine municipal franchise practices, posing some dicey legal issues about the federal regulator possibly encroaching past...

Washington Tunes Into DTV For More Action.
November 7, 2005... As part of last week's debate and vote on the Budget Reconciliation Bill (S.1932), the U.S. Senate late Thursday passed the Digital Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 by a 52-47 margin. It retains an April 7, 2009, hard date to migrate...

Telecom Reform Draft May Air House Laundry.
November 7, 2005... This Wednesday (Nov. 9), the House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet is scheduled to hold an open staff discussion of its 70-page telecom reform draft bill (TPR, Sept. 19), but there are...

FCC Mega-Merger Conditions Have Limited Lives.
November 7, 2005... The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) last week gave its unanimousapproval to the proposed $16 billion SBC Communications/AT&T and to the $8.5 billion Verizon Communications/MCI deals in exchange for protective operational conditions...

Mr. President: Fill The FCC's Chairs.
November 7, 2005... By Frank Barbetta, editor, Telecom Policy Report It's really about time President George Bush paid a little more attention to the Federal Communications Commission, specifically by filling the GOP vacancy left since Michael K. Powell...

Public Safety/911 Policy Weaving A Tangled Web.
November 7, 2005... Policy making on public-safety communications last week took a number of twists and turns as legislation to codify Internet Protocol emergency call- handling obligations progressed. However, a lawsuit challenging the Federal Communications...

House Telecom 'Reform' Legislation: Better Luck Next Year?
November 14, 2005... A wide disparity between the first and second drafts of a proposed telecom bill, disputes between political leaders over the language and disgruntled lobbying interests are fueling a Capitol Hill conclusion that telecom reform legislation may...

FCC Nomination: Happy Days Are Here Again For The GOP.
November 14, 2005... Notwithstanding the likely return of current Democratic Commissioner Michael J. Copps to the Federal Communications Commission for a five-year term expiring June 30, 2010, the limelight at the regulator clearly will be brightest over last...

VoIP's 911 Waterloo Plays Out At FCC, In Court.
November 14, 2005... As the Nov. 28 deadline approaches for Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services to provide 911 capabilities and with the ruling being challenged in the courts, the Federal Communications Commission hopes to clear the air on several...

USF Provisos Tag Along With Appropriations Measure.
November 14, 2005... Universal service fund (USF) issues and provisos made their way into U.S. Congress debate and voting last week on the Science, State and Justice Appropriations Bill for the government's 2006 fiscal year, which mainly deals with monies for...

IIA Group Urges Franchise Reform.
November 14, 2005... In response to the House telecom bill activities, the Internet Innovation Alliance (IIA) advocacy group last week urged Congress to address franchise-fee reform. As such, it released a study ostensibly analyzing the potential beneficial...

House DTV Bill Progresses Intact Via Budget Measure.
November 21, 2005... The digital television (DTV) transition bill and its allocations survived virtually intact as part of the larger annual budget reconciliation measure that squeaked through the full House of Representatives during last Friday's early- morning...

Senate Mulls FCC Candidates As Abernathy Leaves.
November 21, 2005... It appears that folks in the Federal Communications Commission's human- resources department may have some top-priority personnel paperwork to complete in a hurry by year's end as the U.S. Senate reviews at least two nominations to the...

Barton Eyes December For Telecom-Act Vote.
November 21, 2005... Although disputes over the disparity between the first and second drafts of a proposed telecom-reform bill threatens further progress in the House of Representatives this year (TPR, Nov. 14), a feisty Joe Barton (R-Texas) reportedly still is...

Industry, Consumer USF Advocates Beef Up Support.
November 21, 2005... Telco interests and consumer groups seeking to blunt perceived threats against the universal service fund (USF) program stepped into the spotlight once again last week, disclosing new members in their USF-defending organizations as well as...

Merger Deals Restart Approval Queue.
November 21, 2005... Consolidations in both the wireline and wireless carrier businesses are continuing to revitalize the queue of proposed mergers seeking approvals and authorizations at state and federal regulatory agencies. The Federal Communications...

Court Denies E911 Stay But Leaves Door Ajar.
November 21, 2005... The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected a petition by four carriers to negate or to push back the Federal Communications Commission's mandate that Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers handle enhanced 911...