CPUC Denies Verizon Extension to TracFone Migration

The California Public Utilities Commission denied Verizon an extension to migrate TracFone customers to its network, the carrier told the service list for docket A.20-11-001 Thursday. CPUC Executive Director Rachel Peterson denied Verizon’s June 2 request for a one-year extension, in a letter to carrier Wednesday. It’s a good decision, albeit somewhat generous to Verizon, Center for Accessible Technology (CforAT) Legal Counsel Paul Goodman said in an interview.

CforAT and The Utility Reform Network (TURN) discouraged the CPUC from waiving penalties for Verizon failing to move more than 170,000 customers on non-Verizon networks in two years, as required by the CPUC’s 2021 merger approval (see 2306120037 and 2306080055). Verizon responded that denying an extension would punish customers (see 2306230047). The 2021 order required the carrier to migrate customers by Nov. 22 this year.

“Verizon has not provided complete information to support its extension request and given the incompleteness of its request, Verizon has not demonstrated good cause,” Peterson wrote to Verizon Associate General Counsel Jesus Roman. The executive director suggested ways to modify Verizon’s request if it decides to submit another before Nov. 22. Verizon didn’t comment Thursday.

Verizon’s June 2 letter didn’t "state the specific parameters of its request,” Peterson said. “Verizon should clarify which action and/or condition it is seeking the extension for; for example, customer migration, provisioning new SIM cards and new handsets” or other conditions in the merger order. “Given that D.21-11-030 also adopted a citation program to enforce the conditions of the Commission’s approval of the transaction, it is critical that Verizon eliminate ambiguity regarding its request.”

“Verizon also does not indicate what measures the company intends to take to ensure a successful customer migration process,” said the CPUC executive director. Verizon's June 16 answer to the Communications Division's question about this "does not identify or detail any changes in the strategy Verizon may pursue,” she said.

The CPUC decision is reasonable and appropriately references possible citations, said CforAT’s Goodman. But the executive director could have been tougher since migrating TracFone’s low-income customers wasn’t a minor consideration in the merger review, he said: “This was a core issue in the proceeding.” If the carrier refiles the request as Peterson seems to invite, CforAT would need to see some migration numbers that “look like a good-faith effort,” coupled with a strong plan for reaching customers who haven’t moved, he said.

Companies often “slow roll” migrations “because they’re hoping customers drop off” by switching providers or ending service, Goodman said. “That’s one less customer they have to worry about migrating,” said the CforAT official: Then things “pick up at the end.”