[February 18, 2004] SBC Applauds FCC For Action On Internet-Based Communication Services The Federal Communications Commission has launched an inquiry into the rules and regulations that will govern the Internet Protocol (IP) services industry, and approved the Pulver petition, which establishes that IP to IP transmissions that don't touch the local phone network are classified as interstate information services. It also set aside for a separate decision the longstanding dispute over whether access charges apply for long distance phone calls that begin and end on the nation's local phone networks but are carried over an IP network at some point in the call. Please attribute the following response to Edward E. Whitacre, Jr., Chairman and CEO of SBC. We applaud the Commission for taking a leadership role in starting a process that will set new rules for innovative, Internet-based communications services and the networks that support them. We're excited about the opportunities this will give us to deliver new services to customers in this dynamic, swift moving industry. This proposal to establish a nationwide policy framework is consistent with the position we set forward a week ago in calling for minimalist regulation for voice-over IP and other IP platform services. Keeping them free from old rules designed for legacy services and networks will help bring advanced IP-based communications to Americans faster and more efficiently. The roadmap SBC established in its filing will assist the commission in creating the bottoms-up regulatory approach - adding rules only as needed - that will bring untold benefits to consumers. By beginning the inquiry on the appropriate framework and approving the Pulver petition, the FCC also provided relief for the entire industry that was facing the Balkanization of rules and procedures. We hope that state commissions will now set aside potential IP proceedings and begin working with the FCC on building the kind of environment that will nurture this technology. Today's FCC action has nothing to do with the AT&T access charge avoidance scheme, and we're gratified the FCC did not include AT&T's petition in its upcoming rule making proceeding. We're heartened the FCC recognizes that AT&T's claims have nothing to do with innovative new services on the IP platform horizon, and are pleased the Commission has committed to expeditiously resolve this issue. AT&T has been using the Commission for the past 16 months to circumvent the current rules of the industry. The FCC should not delay any further in stopping this scheme, which will jeopardize the country's universal service structure and threaten other vital public policy issues that are critical to consumers. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]