Court Delivers Win for Video Competition July 1st, 2008

We were asked to share our thoughts in a post at The Hill’s Congress Blog about last Friday’s decision by the Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, which upheld the FCC’s 2007 Order streamlining the local franchising process for telecom companies trying to compete with cable companies.

The FCC Chairman has long recognized that competition with cable offerings provides the best solution to rising cable prices, and that lowering hurdles for telecom companies to invest in video helps increase the availability and capacity of broadband networks. The court’s decision provides invaluable support for this vital objective and USTelecom and our member companies will continue the work to achieve the goals of increased investment in broadband networks and a level regulatory playing field.

You can read the whole post, which excerpts from USTelecom’s press statement about the benefits to consumers this decision will bring, here.

We’ll have a vidcast about this coming soon, as well.

FCC “Win-Back” Decision Threatens Competition June 24th, 2008

Although the decision was adopted Friday, yesterday the FCC formally released its Memorandum Opinion and Order in the complaint against Verizon by cable companies operating as competitive voice service providers. The finding was that Verizon’s retention program–using targeted marketing calls to customers who have requested a local number port to a different carrier–violates section 222(b) of the Communications Act “by using, for customer retention marketing purposes, proprietary information of other carriers that it receives in the local number porting process.”

Chairman Martin took the sensible position of strongly disagreeing with the Order, noting that cable providers engage in the very same kind of “win-back” marketing when their own customers want to switch video service providers; the particular rules in question only apply during local number porting for traditional voice service providers, not to cable. Martin added that companies offering identical bundled services should be regulated the same, regardless of platform. He summed up his dissent by stating that the decision could “thwart competition, harm rural America, and frustrate regulatory parity.”

You can find more commentary on retention marketing and its effect on competition from the crew at Tech Liberation Front, with posts from James Gattuso, Berin Szoka, and Adam Thierer.

USTelecom Vidcast: Kevin Rupy on Copyright and IP June 16th, 2008

What do intellectual property and copyright have to do with broadband and telecom? We sat down with USTelecom’s Kevin Rupy, director of policy development, to find out.

House Oversight Committee Signals Interest in Universal Service June 11th, 2008

Monday, Rep. Henry Waxman (D – Calif.) sent a letter in his capacity as Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin. The letter requested information related to the Universal Service Fund, specifically information about USF disbursements to telecommunications providers under the high-cost support program.

Although there is currently no formal committee investigation on universal service, Chairman Waxman’s letter indicates an interest in the issue on the committee’s part. USTelecom will be sure to keep you up to date about developments on universal service, both in Congress and at the FCC.

USTelecom Updates New York State Telephone Association on Developments in DC June 6th, 2008

Earlier this week, I joined the New York State Telephone Association at its annual convention to provide an update on issues of interest to telecommunications carriers that are currently in play in Washington, DC, specifically issues that are under consideration in Congress and before the FCC. Of particular focus were USTelecom’s efforts on such vital policies as universal service reform, intercarrier compensation, net regulation, and broadband deployment.  I also presented information about USTelecom’s work on behalf of the industry regarding pole attachment rate parity, inter-modal local number porting, and implementation of the FCC’s post-Katrina order on emergency power requirements. Part of the goal of my presentation was to provide the attendees with some useful context on the issues, so I also discussed background on recent FCC decisions, and the status of ongoing Congressional efforts.

Carriers Small and Large Discuss Strategies for Success June 6th, 2008

On Tuesday, I moderated a panel discussion at the Global Telecommunications Meeting, sponsored by Intelsat. The panel was entitled “Modern Telecom Carriers: Success Amidst the Turmoil,” and it focused on broadband connectivity and advanced services. The speakers ranged from among the most advanced communications companies in the world–Verizon and KT of Korea–to Microcom, a small carrier providing service in the jungles of the Congo via Wi-Max, and OPT, which provides voice, data, and video services in French Polynesia. These service providers discussed their strategies for success in the highly competitive telecommunications marketplace of today and tomorrow.

I kicked off the panel with a short presentation on the range of technologies available today and the market forces that present challenges and opportunities to service providers. I also presented slides reminding the audience of the evolution of communications network from the traditional voice PSTN to the voice/data/video IP-environment of today and the potential for the next-generation network that is just around the corner that will provide ubiquitous broadband connectivity across any platform, connecting the enterprise and consumer to any device, anywhere in the world.

The panelists included Maui Sanford, director of fixed telephone services for OPT; Bobbi Phillips, director of product strategy at Verizon; Kwon, Yeong Mo, assistant vice president for international and satellite telecommunications at KT; and Laurent Ntumba, CTO of MicroCom.

Take a Vacation…With Broadband Now! May 27th, 2008

Did you know that 61% of travelers receive text updates on their mobile devices for flight arrival or departure status? And more than 60% of Americans will use the Internet to book travel in 2008? So what does broadband have to do with your summer vacation plans? Find out in the latest installment of our broadband news update, Broadband Now.

Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez Calls for an Internet “Unfettered by Regulation” May 23rd, 2008

Earlier this week, US Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez gave a speech before a conference in New Orleans on communications policy. In the speech, Gutierrez echoed a number of the themes that USTelecom and NextGenWeb.org have been sounding in recent months about substantial potential of broadband to change our lives in a range of areas, including health care, education, consumer applications, and entertainment.

Specifically, Gutierrez identified the need to encourage investment in next-generation networks, noting the substantial investment broadband companies have made in infrastructure–$70 billion in North America last year alone. He put that substantial investment into perspective by citing the fact that “the cost of building the interstate highway system in today’s dollars would be about $20 billion annually over 25 years,” a fact often noted by USTelecom’s Walter McCormick in reference to the staggering investment network operators have put into our communications infrastructure. As network traffic increases with new applications, Gutierrez continued, “to keep pace, providers must develop new capacity and maintain the flexibility to manage their networks effectively and transparently.” In closing, the secretary added, “imposing regulations, throwing up barriers and creating more hurdles for industry and consumers is not the right approach… I believe it is critically important that we preserve the vibrant and competitive free market that exists for the Internet, unfettered by regulation.”

Click here to read Secretary Gutierrez’s remarks in their entirety.

Broadband Meets Broadcasting at NAB/Telecom2008 April 16th, 2008

As we previously mentioned, yesterday USTelecom’s Walter McCormick delivered a keynote address at the Telecom2008 Conference going on now as part of the NAB Show in Las Vegas.  In discussing the state of broadband in the United States, McCormick called for sensible, clear broadband policies at every level of government to ensure that broadband companies can continue to offer “this vital infrastructure toward all Americans so no community is left behind.”

McCormick also made a very interesting point about the nature of America’s broadband infrastructure:

“[U]nlike virtually every other industrialized nation today, these primary arteries of our modern economy - the bridges, ports and highways of our increasingly digital nation - are being built not through massive taxpayer-financed public works projects, but through sensible policies that have unleashed vigorous private investment from diverse competitors.”

Just after McCormick’s address, USTelecom Executive Vice President Regina Hopper moderated a panel discussion on how leading broadband providers are bringing the broadband revolution to television, news and entertainment.  The panel featured Dan York, Executive Vice President, Programming for AT&T, and Terry Denson, Vice President-Content Strategy and Acquisition for Verizon talking about their new, innovative fiber offerings, what they mean for the broadcasting community, and what the future may hold for consumers in a broadband world.  The panel got great write-ups at both Telephony online and xchange Magazine online.  Be sure to check them out.

USTelecom Vidcast: Kevin Rupy on the 700 MHz Auction April 11th, 2008

Kevin Rupy, USTelecom’s director of policy development, recently sat down to talk with us about the FCC’s recent 700 MHz spectrum auction and what the future may hold for the auction’s winners–and their customers.