Free Republic

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--A divided Federal Communications Commission is still struggling to complete before the end of the month key telephone competition rules adopted in concept on Feb. 20. While some in the agency are optimistic the job will be completed by next week, others aren't so sure. The commissioners are scheduled to vote on a major rewrite of media ownership rules by June 2, possibly making completion of the phone rules difficult before then. Meanwhile, a trade association representing the dominant local telephone companies said investment is on hold until the FCC releases the new phone rules. The delay...

DSL Prime News: The Inside Source A leak from the FCC says a deal on line sharing has been reached because the RBOCs are about to build fiber, and therefore no longer hate sharing their outdated copper networks. "The Bells are about to build fiber, and that explains the coming FCC decisions." -- Leak from the top of the FCC Powell is apparently cutting a private deal with Seidenberg and Whitacre. He will give them less competition, and they will promise to build out a fiber or VDSL network. Powell hopes to change a public relations disaster into a...

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell told the Senate Commerce Committee on Monday that "we are at critical crossroads in communications," spurred by computerization. Who could disagree with that? And who could disagree with the five goals set out by the son of Secretary of State Colin Powell for a more vibrant telecom tomorrow: "Bring consumers the benefits of investment and innovation in new communications technologies and services. "Expand the diversity, variety and dynamism of communication, information and entertainment. "Empower consumers, by moving toward greater personalization of communications - when, where, what and how they want it. "Promote universal...

A report released Monday reveals just why the regional Bell monopolies are so frantic about getting FCC Chairman Michael Powell to change the rules and cut off competition for local telephone service. The report shows that at the end of 2002, the Bells' competitors had won customers for an estimated 10 million residential and small business lines - thanks to UNE-P, an acronym that stands for "unbundled network element platform." UNE-P, a critical ingredient in the plan for deregulation laid out by Congress and the White House in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, is bringing Americans lower prices and...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The nation's top communications regulator told lawmakers Tuesday that upcoming decisions on local phone competition and media ownership will not take choices away from consumers. "We will be guided exclusively by the public interest,'' Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell told the Senate Commerce Committee. The agency's decisions this year could reshape the landscape of media companies and the telecommunications industry. All five of the FCC's commissioners testified before the committee. The most contentious issue at the hearing involved an FCC review of rules involving the leasing of telephone networks. The regional Bell companies -- BellSouth...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. regulators are preparing to stop making local phone companies rent their networks to rivals at cheap rates, a move that could reduce competition and price-cutting in the local phone market, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday. The expected change by the Federal Communications Commission would be a huge win for the four regional Bell companies, which are trying to continue their domination of the profitable local market, the report said. It could be a significant setback for their biggest competitors, the two already beaten-down long-distance giants, AT&T Corp. and WorldCom Inc, which have...