Details Emerge on Wheeler's IP Transition Draft Order
Details emerged Friday on a draft FCC order to move along telcos' IP transition, in interviews and comments from GOP commissioners, including some concerns. The FCC plans to take a series of further actions to facilitate next-generation networks, Chairman Tom Wheeler had said, outlining the IP transition item he put on the tentative agenda for the July 14 meeting (see 1606230074). Wheeler said the FCC would continue to uphold "enduring values" of "competition, consumer protection, universal service, and public safety" as telcos and Internet providers replace legacy copper lines with next-generation networks to provide greater speeds, efficiency, capacity and innovation.
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One part of the draft order would adopt rules growing out of a rulemaking last year that proposed specific criteria to assess the adequacy of IP-based services intended to replace legacy copper-based phone services being discontinued, said a telco official. Another would address a non-dominance petition filed by USTelecom, the official said.
An FCC official said the item would take four main actions: (1) remove the "outdated designation" of ILECs as "dominant" in the legacy switched access marketplace; (2) establish a framework for evaluating a request for discontinuing a legacy voice service as part of the technology transitions; (3) refine the FCC’s discontinuance and notice requirements to make sure the public "is aware of and prepared for" such transitions; and (4) partially grant a petition for reconsideration of the August 2015 order "to make a minor change" in the timing of Communications Act Section 214 discontinuance for competitors impacted by a copper retirement.
Commissioner Mike O'Rielly said he had concerns with the NPRM proposing criteria for evaluating IP-based services as replacements for legacy copper-based systems but supported removing the ILEC dominant carrier designation. Also at the news briefing after the FCC's Friday meeting, Commissioner Ajit Pai said the agency had engaged in much foot-dragging and it's "high time" it relaxed or repealed various regulations to facilitate the transition from copper networks to fiber and other next-generation systems. "I remain foolishly hopeful the agency will focus on tomorrow rather than yesterday," he said.
"Recognizing the changing role of traditional, local land-line telephone service in a marketplace where consumers have a range of choices, I propose removing the outdated designation of incumbent carriers as the dominant providers in the long-distance voice market, freeing them from outdated regulations," Wheeler said in a blog post Thursday. "To speed the transition to faster, better networks, this package recommends a streamlined framework for evaluating requests to discontinue legacy service. To ensure the public is aware of and prepared for requests by providers to discontinue traditional services, we would refine our Section 214 notice requirements."
"When communications networks advance and evolve, new opportunities open up for the American people," said Wheeler. "I remain committed to continually reevaluating the Commission’s rules and policies to make sure they are facilitators -- not impediments -- to progress. And that’s why I am pleased the Commission is poised to take these significant steps to advance our broadband future." The FCC didn't comment Friday.
USTelecom welcomed Wheeler's announcement and plans. “Chairman Wheeler’s proposal to remove some outdated regulations on landline telephone companies and streamline regulatory processes for moving from old-fashioned networks to modern Internet-based ones will benefit consumers, competition and innovation," said President Walter McCormick in a statement. "While we don’t know the details, we are hopeful that speedy implementation will allow our members to bring consumers newer and better services more quickly with the elimination of regulatory red tape.”
Public Knowledge cited the tech transition's importance and voiced some optimism. “It's hard to overstate how critical the telephone network is to the operation of this country," said PK staff attorney Meredith Rose in a release. "Everything from school fire alarms to point-of-sale systems to at-home medical monitors depends on the phone system to work. That is in addition to millions of Americans who rely on self-powered legacy copper systems to deliver basic, reliable telephone service. It's no exaggeration to say that most of modern American society -- including the internet -- was built on the back of the copper phone network. As technology evolves, it is absolutely critical to make sure that the transition from legacy copper to new fiber-based technologies happens with minimal interruption both to consumers and key services. From what we know of the item circulated, the Commission's new rules will provide a framework to ensure that, as copper lines are retired and removed, the replacement lines offer the same functionality and capabilities with only minimal interruption.”