FCC abandons line sharing requirements for broadband internet

[raj2001]

Slashdotted (http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/03/02/20/1848232.shtml?tid=103)


http://biz.yahoo.com/rc/030220/telecoms_fcc_broadband_1.html

U.S. FCC relaxes broadband line-sharing rules
Thursday February 20, 12:16 pm ET

WASHINGTON, Feb 20 (Reuters) - The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted to exempt new high-speed communications networks from requirements that they be shared with competitors, a move aimed at encouraging investment in bringing fast Internet access to consumers.
The FCC also decided that existing copper lines need only be shared with competitors if high-speed Internet providers are prepared to offer voice services as well.

The decision could favor established local telephone companies like BellSouth Corp. (NYSE:BLS - News) and hurt independent broadband providers like Covad Communications Group Inc. (OTC BB:COVD.OB - News), which do not currently offer voice service.

[JStanton]

What does this mean for Earthlink DSL? I was just looking into getting it (due to the $10 month discount we get for being Dish customers).

- Jim

[Bill R]

What a stupid FCC decision! What is going to happen is that a lot of DSL vendors are going to go out of business and the ILECs are going to be able to raise their rates for those services. The only thing that is going to keep prices half-way in line is that cable companies (somewhat) compete with the ILECs for high speed internet service.

[Protectionism sweeping USA]

Now WildBlue will have a chance of success.

[waydwolf]

    Well, who needs to wait for the spectre of Tauzin-Dingle to be resurrected?

[waydwolf]

Originally posted by Bill R
What a stupid FCC decision! What is going to happen is that a lot of DSL vendors are going to go out of business and the ILECs are going to be able to raise their rates for those services. The only thing that is going to keep prices half-way in line is that cable companies (somewhat) compete with the ILECs for high speed internet service.

    The ILECs in many cases DO NOT CARE about consumer level ISP services and would gladly drop their DSL services in a heartbeat and go back to living in their serene world of business to business and voice services. The sort of inane attitude that the rest of the telecom industry has noted is the primary reason so many have been well and soundly shtupped in the market time and again.

    But no one ever accused Ma Bell of raising any geniuses.

    It will be cable and terrestrial wireless for fixed emplacements and satellite and terrestrial wireless for mobile emplacements anyhow.

    And Covad got in bed with an ILEC so not like they're too badly off. Northpoint and Rhythms are defunct. Most DSL providers are merely ISP resellers of some other organization like Covad and colocators are few in number.

    The one thing that occassionally puzzles me is what in the Hell is AT&T doing with the former Northpoint infrastructure they bought? They said back when they took it that they would adhere to the agreement with the other @Home involved MSOs not to directly compete in other operator markets via other mediums, but @Home is dead and they've sold the broadband company to Comcast. I wonder if Comcast got the DSL colocations along with it.

 

[raj2001]

Originally posted by JStanton
What does this mean for Earthlink DSL? I was just looking into getting it (due to the $10 month discount we get for being Dish customers).

- Jim

If this means the end of Covad, this will probably mean that EL will have to supply DSL through the telco (like Verizon) tell customers that they're really getting 768kbps DSL speed instead of the 1.5MB they LIE and tell you that you can get. Take it from one dissatisfied EL sub, EL, hands down, is the worst ISP experience I have ever had.

[bryan27]

Offering a voice service is easy. If it means letting the broadband companies share the lines then all the broadband companies have to do is set up a price structure for local voice service submit it to their state utility commission for approval and begin selling voice service. They wouldn't have to build anything since the telephone infrastructure is already there.

Here is a perfect example. My telephone company is locally owned and competes directly with Verizon usinge the same telephone infrastructure that Verizon uses. The telephone company I use also offers broadband, dial-up, etc... The way things are set up here is that the state utility commission owns the telephone infrastructure with Verizon contracted to maintain it.

So basically what happens here to offer voice is that a company calls Verizon, and Verizon turns on (flips a switch) the line for the location that the competing telco has ordered to be turned on.

If anything this FCC order will create more voice service competition as the broadband providers start offering voice services. If the broadband providers set everything up right they will not only get to keep their broadband service, but will take away voice subscribers who are unhappy with their current service.