Industry Groups Pleased FCC Examining Details of Possible Special Access Data Request
A decision on an options memo, which started circulating at the FCC last week asking what should be in any special access data request, could come relatively quickly, industry and commission officials said. The Wireline Bureau circulated the memo while Michael Copps was still acting chairman (CD June 29 p1). A special access investigation is one of several dozen items awaiting attention by Chairman Julius Genachowski, though it could be moved to the front of the pack, officials said.
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The memo seeks input from other commissioners on such issues as the procedures that should be followed in a data request, the kind of facilities data that should be collected and how to collect data on factors involved. It also seeks input on what’s involved in the decision for a competitor to build new facilities to a building and on the appropriateness of the phase 2 trigger used to determine that a market is competitive.
“I wouldn’t be surprised to see the FCC do something on rates as part of its overall broadband initiative,” said a regulatory attorney not directly involved in the proceeding. Industry sources on both sides of a fight between competitors and incumbent local exchange carriers on the form a request should take welcomed Copps’ circulation of the memo. “The commission has more than enough data to act, but if they feel they need to gather data we don’t oppose a fast and focused request, so much so that we put a data request proposal and commitment to submit our own data on the record back on June 3,” said Maura Corbett, spokeswoman for the NoChokePoints Coalition. “If this would take [the issue] off the table, we're fine with that. This needs to move. We're thrilled that they obviously agree with that.”
“The CLECs have been very willing to be accusatory but not as willing to be as forthcoming with their data as they would expect the ILECs to be,” said President Curt Stamp of the Independent Telephone & Telecom Alliance. “To the extent the data treats everyone the same, that would be a good thing from our perspective. If the FCC is going to do something they need to have a full and complete record in front of them to do it and not just based on a random sampling of other data that has been collected so far.”
“We have said all along that the FCC needs to have accurate data on the state of competition to make an informed decision on high capacity services,” said Tom Amontree, senior vice president at USTelecom. “So we are glad to see that the CLECs and other competitive companies who have so far refused to provide the necessary data have finally come around.”
“Collecting data, whatever they end up doing, is probably going to be a good idea,” said Lawrence Spiwak, president of the Phoenix Center, which published a paper this week on the need for better special access data. Spiwak warned that data by itself is useless and the FCC needs to ask for the “right” data. “There is not enough data and the data tends to come form one side, which is the incumbents,” he said. “You end up having the incumbents say the market is competitive. Well how do we know? Nobody wants to file any data. Nobody wants to so anything here. You sort of end up with these regulatory quagmires.”
In an FCC filing this week, NCTA urged the FCC to exercise caution if it seeks data on special access prices. “NCTA urges the Commission to tailor any data collection request to avoid overly burdensome requests for information regarding a company’s future construction of facilities,” the cable group said. “Given the numerous fact-specific variables that factor into such decisions, it is unlikely the Commission will be able to develop a ‘one size fits all’ set of proxies to predict future investment and it should not collect data for that purpose.” Instead, the agency should examine locations served by competitors and “should use this information to test the accuracy of predictions previously made using its current triggers for granting pricing flexibility.” Cable operators are concerned that the data could be used by ILECs to the disadvantage of competitors and special access customers, and strict confidentiality requirements are critical, NCTA said.