A Washington coalition lining up rivals of AT&T and Verizon may soon reveal itself, industry sources close to the matter told us Friday. Coalition organizers are hoping to unite independent wireless companies, competitive local exchange carriers, Google, consumer groups and other historical foes of the big phone companies, sources said. A special-access revamp will be the group’s top priority, at least at first, they said.
The FCC is finishing up changes in an order reducing the time limit for wireline and intermodal ports to two business days, commission officials told us Thursday. The FCC is also considering a further-rulemaking notice asking whether to cut the interval further, officials said Thursday. But the commissioners seem to disagree about whether the FCC needs to issue a rulemaking notice or should just impose a 24-hour time limit. Another point of contention could be the handling of so-called simple ports, a term that some say hasn’t been defined. The commissioners are scheduled to vote on the porting item at Wednesday’s meeting.
The FCC must implement an explicit, competitively neutral cost recovery mechanism if it shortens the number porting interval for wireline and intermodal ports, said the Independent Telephone & Telecommunications Alliance. The commission is working out details of a porting order to be voted on at the May 13 meeting, including how many days to set the interval. Agency officials characterized current discussions among eighth-floor offices as collegial. In a Tuesday letter to the agency, the ITTA said a shortened interval, whether two business or calendar days, “would require burdensome, expensive upgrades” for the association’s mid-sized rural incumbent carriers. Historically, the regulator has permitted recovery of local number portability costs via a line-item charge, and it should continue to do so, the ITTA said. To avoid problems, the FCC should clarify that price-cap carrier may use an exogenous cost adjustment to achieve full recovery of costs, it said. The ITTA estimated its members will need at least 18 months to upgrade electronic systems and staffing.
The Rural Cellular Association didn’t rejoice on the one-year anniversary of the interim cap for the Universal Service Fund high-cost program. Instead, the association of small wireless carriers Friday sent a scathing white paper to acting FCC Chairman Michael Copps. RCA scolded the agency for delaying removal of the “interim” measure, and for imposing the cap in the first place.
The FCC should extend the deadline for deaf people to register 10-digit phone numbers for Internet-based telecom relay service, said AT&T, Sprint Nextel, Purple Communications and five other telecom relay service providers. Many relay users are unaware that they will lose service if they don’t register numbers by June 30 (CD April 17 p3). The companies’ Wednesday petition didn’t suggest a new deadline, but said Dec. 31 “might be achievable” if the FCC acts quickly to address registration and implementation problems.
The FCC circulated Friday a draft order on Verizon’s petition for unbundling rules forbearance in Rhode Island, commission officials told us. It’s not clear what the draft recommends. It’s expected that meetings with Verizon and competitive local exchange carriers will heat up this week. The FCC is under a statutory deadline to rule by May 15 on the petition. If it comes out soon, a decision on a Verizon challenge that’s pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit could influence the final order (CD April 7 p8). Verizon is challenging a 2007 FCC order denying it unbundling relief in Providence and five other markets.
Telecom Relay Service providers gave mixed reviews to a proposal designed to prevent uncertified companies from providing unregulated service and to tighten certification requirements for Internet-based telecom relay providers. Companies must be certified to receive reimbursement from the interstate TRS fund. Petitioner Purple Communications framed its plan as an effort to protect consumers. But in comments at the FCC last week, some accused the company of trying to thwart competition by smaller companies.
The FCC must fix its audit program for the Universal Service Fund high-cost program, USTelecom and CTIA said Friday in a scathing letter to commissioners. The associations queried the accuracy of a November audit report from the FCC Office of Inspector General, which said the high-cost fund had an error payment rate of 23.3 percent. “The current audit program … results in misleading statistics generated as improper payments under the” 2002 Improper Payments Information Act, “which undermines the credibility of the audits and the USF,” they said.
The FCC will vote May 13 on shortening the number porting shot clock for wireline and intermodal ports, as expected (CD April 23 p1), the agency said Thursday. The current draft recommends shortening the interval to two business days from four, but it’s possible that will be edited, an agency official said. Commissioners will also vote on discontinuance requirements for interconnected VoIP providers, and the agency’s yearly rulemaking notice on regulatory fee assessment and collection. The FCC also plans to present an update on the DTV transition and an “action plan” for helping consumers.
The FCC should address “significant marketing advantages” enjoyed by cable companies as it tackles local number portability issues, Verizon said in a Wednesday letter to acting Chairman Michael Copps. The company also lashed out at non-cable rivals, accusing some of breaking existing portability rules. Verizon competitors responded with vitriol.