FCC exempts Verizon from broadband regulations

Matt Hamblen   Today’s Top Stories   or  Other Networking and Internet Stories  

The Impact of Social Networks on Mobility Strategies The Promise of Mobile Unified Communications ProCurve Access Control Video Implementing VMware Server Virtualization on Juniper Networks Infrastructure Using a High-Performance Network Backbone to Meet the Requirements of the Modern Government Data Center The Guide to Troubleshooting Application Problems Mobility @ the Speed of Business Computerworld Executive Briefing: Automating Network Management Virtual Reality Sign up to receive Networking and Internet Resource Alerts

March 23, 2006 (Computerworld) -- The Federal Communications Commission announced this week that it has exempted Verizon Communications Inc. from regulations affecting high-speed data services for businesses, including a requirement that it file proposed prices with the government.

The decision, which took effect without a formal vote on March 19, outraged large corporations that buy data and voice services from Verizon, as well as smaller phone companies. A group of 27 large corporate telecommunications customers had argued in a 14-page brief that Verizon should not be exempted from FCC rules because business broadband markets are not yet competitive and services are costly.

“Verizon was already price-gouging customers while it was regulated, and this action significantly raises the risk for prices to increase on the broadband building blocks for enterprise customers,” said Colleen Boothby, a Washington attorney for the companies, known as the AdHoc Telecommunications Users Committee. “This kind of decision -- to give Verizon what it wants regardless of whether that hurts customers -- is what gives Washington a bad name.”

She predicted that the decision will be appealed.

“Anybody who buys these services for a living knows that the market for business broadband just isn’t competitive,” Boothby said. “That may be a politically inconvenient fact, but it’s still a fact.”

With one seat unfilled on the five-member FCC, commissioners were split along Democratic and Republican party lines over the Verizon petition for exemptions. Although the matter never came to a vote, Verizon’s petition was approved under a rarely used statute that allows a company’s request to be approved unless the FCC denies it within a certain period of time. That period expired on Sunday, and the decision was announced the next day.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate, both Republicans, said in a statement that the FCC decision will help Verizon roll out broadband by eliminating regulations that deter investment in new services. They noted that Verizon said it will continue to make DS1 and DS3 service available in a nondiscriminatory manner.

“This relief will enable Verizon to have the flexibility to further deploy its broadband services and fiber facilities without overly burdensome regulations,” Martin and Tate said in the statement.

But the Democrats on the FCC, Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein, said in separate statements that they oppose the Verizon exemptions. “I am deeply disappointed,” Copps said in his statement. “This is not the way to make environment-altering policy changes.”

Copps said he worried that the Verizon ruling “erases decades of communications policy in a single stroke,” and said the result could be that Verizon is freed from obligations such as having to cooperate with federal wiretapping statutes or having to pay into the Universal Service Fund, which is used to subsidize voice and data services mainly in rural areas.

Continued...
1 | 2 | NEXT  

Print this Story

Send Us Feedback

E-mail this Story

Digg this Story

Slashdot this Story

"Yahoo investors have all the reason in the world to feel bitter today, as the company stock hovers at $12,..." Read more... "This company has what it calls a "best-shore" approach to help desk support. Translation: It's offshore -- and not really..." Read more... Read more Networking posts or See all Blogs

Feds considering changes to H-1B application process in wake of report Exploit code loose for six-month-old Windows bug With market meltdown, which tech firms become predator or prey? More top stories...

The Grill: Privacy is a thing of the past, says private investigator Report: World Bank servers breached repeatedly Apple asks judge to make iPhone lawsuit moot

Health hazards for IT workers -- how that desk job wears your body down Too much junk food, too little exercise and a 24/7 tether to technology? Your body ain't happy, friend. Let us count the pains. NASA robot sends back evidence it's snowing on Mars Instruments on the surface of Mars have detected falling snow that is likely evaporating before it reaches the planet. Wall Street's collapse may be computer science's gain One positive development stemming from the collapse of Wall Street may be a boost in interest in computer science and IT careers among students who were previously interested in financial services jobs. Installing Linux apps: A few good tips Getting new software installed on Linux doesn't have to be hard, but it can differ depending on what you're installing. Windows Vista A to Z Reviews, analyses, how-tos, visual tours, hot issues and predictions about Microsoft's new OS. More Continuing Coverage After 9/11: Homeland Security Apple's iPhone Ask a Premier 100 IT Leader Bill Gates steps down BlackBerry Legal Battle Data Security Breaches Electronic Voting Firefox H-1B Visas HP's Boardroom Scandal Handheld Devices Hurricane Katrina Aftermath Microsoft Legal Issues Microsoft's Vista Open Source RFID Technology SCO's Linux Fight Sarbanes-Oxley Act Spam Voice Over IP Wi-Fi Windows Meta File Vulnerability Windows XP Service Pack 3 IT Careers 2010 Four years from now, the IT field will be a vastly different place. Will you be ready? More Special Reports Premier 100 IT Leaders 2007 Best in Class 2006 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2006 Premier 100 IT Leaders 2006 Salary Survey 2007 Best Places to Work in IT 2007 IT Forecast 2007 Premier 100 IT Leaders 40 Years of Computerworld ASPs, Take Two Best Places to Work in IT 2003 Best Places to Work in IT 2004 Best Places to Work in IT 2005 Best Places to Work in IT 2006 Business Intelligence Home Runs Business Intelligence: Smarter BI Business Intelligence: The Future of BI CRM Goes Vertical CRM: Sober CRM Career Planning Guide 2005 Careers: IT Profession 2010 Computerworld Horizon Awards 2005 Data Management: Mining for Gems Data Management: Taming Data Chaos Development: Hard-Workin' Web Sites Development: New Tools New Choices Development: The New World of Application Development Development: The Web Services Tsunami Development: Web Services Hurdles Disaster Recovery: Preparing for the Worst E-commerce Grows Up E-mail/Groupware: Big Decisions Faces of Mobile IT Forecast 2006 Global Mobile Hardware: Multiple Cores, Multiple Challenges Hardware: On-Demand Un-Hyped Hardware: The Shape of Things to Come Horizon Awards: 10 Cool Cutting Edge Technologies IT Management: Guide to Managing Vendors IT Management: Navigating Global IT IT Management: Recovery Ahead IT Management: The Future of IT IT Management: The Resourceful Project Manager Innovative Technology Awards 2004 Management: Reinventing IT Microsoft in Transition Mobile/Wireless Leaders and Laggards Mobile/Wireless: The Untethered Worker Mobile/Wireless: Tiny Gadgets, Huge Costs Network Management: Taking Control Networking: Turbulence Ahead! Networking: VoIP Goes Mainstream Operating Systems: In the Slow Lane Operating Systems: Linux Goes Global Operating Systems: Should You Nix Unix? Outsourcing: Offshore Buyer's Guide Outsourcing: Outsourcing Dangers Premier 100 IT Leaders 2004 Best in Class Premier 100 IT Leaders 2005 Best in Class ROI: Do the Math! Salary Survey 2003 Salary Survey 2004 Salary Survey 2005 Security Action Plan Security: Compliance Headaches Security: Proactive Security Security: Risk and Reward Security: Tips From Security Pros Souped-up Security Storage: Battling Complexity Storage: Cheap & Secure Data Stores Storage: Stretching Your Storage Dollars Storage: The Lean Storage Machine Storage: The New Rules of Storage Storage: The Ultimate Backup Guide Supply Chain: Missing Links Supply Chain: RFID Reality Check The Business of Security Web 2.0 Security Wireless: Wireless At Work All Zones Application Performance Zone Business Continuity Zone The File Data Management Zone Security Management Zone The SAS Zone Business Intelligence and Analytics Zone Windows Protection Zone The Enterprise Search Zone Software as a Service Zone The Security Zone See your link here

Advance your BlackBerry(R) solution management know-how this July Advance your BlackBerry(R) solution management know-how this July BlackBerry Technical Seminar, register today! Go to the webcast  Cut Data Center Energy Costs Get this white paper now! (Source: Liebert) Cooling accounts for 35% of data center energy consumption. Discover strategies that can reduce cooling energy costs by as much as 40%, including simple steps you can take to get more from your existing cooling system and emerging technologies that can increase cooling capacity and data center density. Download this white paper  Computerworld Executive Briefing: Automating Network Management Download this Executive Briefing now (a $195.00 value), compliments of ProCurve Networking by HP. (Source: Computerworld) This briefing looks at the basics of network management, which tend to get lost in the dizzying array of products and processes. It also examines new tools that are on the way to help IT executives deal with management in the new era of automation.Download this Executive Briefing now (a $195.00 value), compliments of ProCurve Networking by HP. Download this executive briefing  White Papers Read up on the latest ideas and technologies from companies that sell hardware, software and services. Business Transaction Management: Facilitating the Management of Virtual Environments Quick Sizing Guide for SAS Grid Running on HP BladeSystems and EVA Storage Prudential Financial protects its brand with Symantec Data Loss Prevention solutions View more whitepapers

• Feds considering changes to H-1B application process in wake of report
• The Grill: Privacy is a thing of the past, says private investigator
• Exploit code loose for six-month-old Windows bug
• More top stories 

Accelerate your pursuit of perfection For almost 80 years, Kodak has been helping banks, insurance companies, healthcare providers, government agencies and other businesses produce billions of document images. So Kodak is uniquely positioned to know and deliver–what customers want: easy-to-use scanners that output the best possible image quality. Download this white paper now!

Preston Gralla: Apple plays the bully again Apple is once again unleashing its attack dog lawyers. This time against a college for using an apple in its logo. ... [more]