FCC Wants Hard Look at Special Access Before Tackling Overhaul
Hoping to refine its testing before tackling a special-access overhaul, the FCC issued a wide-ranging public notice seeking information on non-ILEC and “out of region” ILEC facilities. An FCC official told us the commission wants to come up with the right measuring stick for gauging special-access concerns. The notice, published late Thursday, promises that a separate data request is coming.
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The notice asks telcos for a wide array of details on connections per location, office-sharing in wire centers, maps of interoffice and end-user fiber, whether companies own or lease their connections and how many they own or lease, how many lit and unlit fibers companies own or lease, and the number of locations where companies own or lease connections.
FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell welcomed the data request. “For about 3-1/2 years I've been calling for a very granular, building by building, cell tower by cell tower mapping initiative regarding special access,” he said in an interview Friday. “We need to know who is providing services, where and for roughly how much and under what contract terms. … This is possible to do. It’s not as daunting as it sounds."
The Justice Department did a similar analysis before the SBC-AT&T and Verizon-MCI mergers, McDowell said. “It’s going to be difficult to amend or revise the Kennard order on special access without having that kind of granular information.” Since that order, many new entrants have come into the market, but the FCC doesn’t have good information on where they have facilities. “Having more data for this complex issue is always helpful, but it remains to be seen who voluntarily sends in information and how much we actually get."
Industry and public interest groups also cheered the notice. Each side in the special-access debate said its position would be vindicated. The NoChokePoints Coalition of telcos and public interest groups said it was sure the data “will clearly demonstrate how AT&T and Verizon are exploiting their control over high-capacity broadband facilities to reap outrageous profits at the expense of the rest of the economy, at time when we can least afford it."
Public Knowledge said Thursday’s notice signifies that the commission is “closing in on key issues” and that an overhaul will come “sooner rather than later.” The group said “while the request is voluntary at this point, the FCC has the power to compel full and honest responses. We expect the FCC will use that authority if it doesn’t receive the information it needs.”
Verizon spokesman David Fish said his company had urged the FCC to issue Thursday’s notice. “The data will show that the market is competitive and that prices are declining,” he said in an e-mail. USTelecom said its members will “participate fully” and it hopes all companies will do the same. AT&T spokesman Michael Balmoris said his company got involved in the two previous FCC’s requests for information while “others have not.”
Special access is a huge issue for Sprint and other independent wireless carriers, said Charles McKee, a vice president. “Sprint is happy to see the commission taking action in the docket,” he said. “We think data collection will demonstrate the broken market.” McKee said it’s critical that the commission asked for data from ILECs, as well as CLECs and special access customers. “The data they requested is going to demonstrate the dominance of the ILECS in this market,” he said. Sprint is a member of the NoChokePoints Coalition.