Internet entrepreneur Jeff Pulver and SBC Senior Vp Dorothy Attwo...
Internet entrepreneur Jeff Pulver and SBC Senior Vp Dorothy Attwood traded quips and barbs on Pulver’s weblog Fri. over SBC’s plan to offer a new VoIP access tariff. Pulver said he wondered if SBC had a “mad genius” hatching…
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an “elaborate plan to take over the world of communications,” with the new tariff part of it. Attwood said she’s perplexed that SBC is “attempting to bring to the market a product that more efficiently routes IP traffic to POTS users and the result is outrage and suspicion.” She said that, although Pulver expressed doubts about the voluntary nature of the TipTop tariff, it’s “totally voluntary -- no one has to buy it if they don’t want to. TipTop will succeed in the market only if VoIP providers find it to be a worthwhile service at an attractive price.” Attwood said BellSouth has a similar product tariffed at the FCC since May, 2003 and “you know what? BellSouth has not ’taken over the world of communications.'” She said Pulver’s right that there’s still uncertainty about intercarrier compensation but: “Why should we (or any company) put our business plans on hold because the FCC might rule against us, while independent VoIP providers are allowed to proceed freely with their own business plans under the assumption that the FCC will rule in their favor. Until the FCC rules on compensation for VoIP traffic, the law of the land is clear. If the FCC applies different rules than what we have today, we'll abide by them.” Attwood also questioned complaints about the price of the new offering: “Before suggesting that purchasers of TipTop will ‘overpay’ for the service, perhaps it would be wise to see what the rates for the service actually are and what features and functionality come along with those rates.” Pulver had said, among other things: “Potential problems emerge if this offering turns out to be comparable to SBC’s traditional long distance access service, which seems to be SBC’s intention. Does it really matter to SBC or SBC-IP if it has to overpay for this product? It certainly would matter to any unaffiliated VoIP provider.” Attwood signed her comments “dba Mad Genius” and titled SBC’s response “how everyone is voting SBC off Survivor Island before we even get there.”