1. ITS 602 Purposes of the course
Review the history of US telecommunications as a case study
Examine the basics of regulation, especially as they apply to telecommunications and information
Identify the major issues of current concern

2. Some questions to consider
Do we need regulation?
Does history matter?
Why didn’t the U.S. Telecom Act of 1996 work?

3. Boundaries Type Set by Jurisdictional Regulatory category Service
Technology
Set by
Law
Regulator
Courts

4. Boundaries

5. Classification of Services
Not regulated--yet
Regulated by FCC
Regulated by FCC
and State Commissions

6. Common Carrier Services
FCC and
State Commissions
States????
FCC

7. Interstate and International
Wireline Services
local
State LD
State
Access
Interstate and International LD
Interstate
Access

8. The Players Regulators (federal and state) Service providers Customers
Wireline providers
Wireless providers
Cable providers
VoIP providers
Customers
Residential, small business, large business, service providers themselves

9. The Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILECs)
RBOCs
NYNEX
Bell Atlantic Bell Atlantic + GTE = Verizon (+MCI)= Verizon
Pacific Telesis
Southwestern Bell +SNET = SBC +AT&T = AT&T
Ameritech
Bell South
U.S. West = Qwest
Independents
Alltel (now Windstream)
Sprint United (then Embarq) Embarq+Century = CenturyLink
Century
Chillicothe
+1300 more

10. Regional Bell Companies
No longer Verizon
Now AT&T
Now AT&T
Now AT&T
No longer Verizon

11. 10 largest ILECs in Ohio

13. And now today also . . . VoIP providers Wireless providers
Interconnected
Nomadic
Wireless providers

14. Who provides what? In 1950 (all one monopoly)
International and Interstate Long Distance: “old” AT&T Long Lines
Local: “old” AT&T Local Operating Companies and the Independents
State Long Distance: “old” AT&T Local Operating Companies and Independents
Wireless—not much
After 1984 (Local companies and Long distance companies)
International and Interstate Long Distance: The New AT&T, MCI, Sprint, plus other Long Distance companies
Local: RBOCs and Independents
State Long Distance: RBOCs and Independents, and, after a few years, the long distance companies

15. After 1996 (supposed to be competition everywhere)
International and Interstate Long Distance: AT&T, MCI, Sprint, other long distance companies, RBOCs
Local: RBOCs, Independents, competitive providers (CLECs)
State Long Distance: RBOCs, Independents, CLECs, AT&T, MCI, Sprint, other long distance companies

16. Competition from new providers/technologies
Wireless providers
Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint (Nextel)
Internet access
Cable modem services—cable television companies
DSL—Local telephone companies and competitive providers (CLECs)
VoIP providers

17. Lots of mergers Mergers: Wireless Cingular and AT&T Wireless
Sprint and Nextel
Wireline
SBC and AT&T and Bell South
Verizon and MCI
More mergers, sales and acquisitions to come
Verizon getting rid of rural areas

18. Industry Consolidation
Biggest local telephone companies
Verizon and AT&T
Biggest wireless providers
Biggest long distance providers
AT&T (owned by former SBC)
MCI (owned by Verizon)

19. Changes in ILEC Business plans
Verizon is shedding rural properties
Maine, NH, and Vermont sold to Fairpoint—went bankrupt
Hawaii sold to private equity firm—went bankrupt
Former GTE properties in 9 states sold to Frontier (including Athens, Ohio)—will it go bankrupt????
Ramping up wireless
Shifts from copper to broadband and from circuit switching to IP networks
AT&T’s U-Verse and Verizon’s FIOS

20. So, what do we have today? Cross platform competition
Bundling of services
Cable companies
Cable TV, Cable Modem, Digital Phone (triple play)
And Wireless ???? (quadruple play)
Telephone companies
Wireline telephone, DSL, Wireless (triple play
And IPTV???? (quadruple play)
Issues of pricing and service bundling????

21. Issues of concern Broadband deployment Regulatory status of VoIP
Network neutrality (or can the FCC regulate the broadband network)
Universal service—is it necessary? Who pays for it? How much should it cost? What should be included?
Regulatory parity in cross platform competition
Viability of competition, and the potential for monopoly
And more

22. So…..
What is the role of the regulator?