ALTS said it was “extremely disappointed” that FCC denied Net2000 complaint against Verizon for refusing to convert special access circuits to enhanced extended links (EELs). ALTs said Commission’s decision (CD Jan 10 p5) took direction never intended in agency’s original conversion rules or by carriers -- CLECs or ILECs -- that proposed those rules. Basically, agency turned restricted enforcement action into rulemaking, ALTS officials said.
Digital broadband transition is subject of Feb. 20 symposium featuring all 4 FCC members at Georgetown U. Law Center. FCC Chmn. Powell will keynote at 8:30 a.m., with closing 4:20 p.m. panel featuring Comrs. Copps, Abernathy and Martin. Symposium is sponsored by Law Center, FCC and Federal Communications Bar Assn., 202-662-9891.
As part of its continuing reorganization, USTA named 4 senior vps who will report to USTA Pres. Walter McCormick and Exec. Vp Regina Blakely: (1) Daniel Phythyon, ex-Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering and former FCC Wireless Bureau chief and onetime NAB lobbyist, named senior vp-law & policy. (2) John Abel, ex-NAB and Geocast, named senior vp-membership, mktg. & business development. (3) Patricia Cole, ex-Resources Connection and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., named chief financial officer. (4) Tom Amontree, who with McCormick joined USTA in July from American Trucking Assn., named senior vp-strategic communications. Meanwhile, Dale Brown, former USTA vp-midsized company affairs, took USTA’s buyout and now is majority professional staffer at House Financial Services Committee.
FCC said it wanted comments by Jan. 25 on FairPoint Communications plan to discontinue resold local service in Verizon territory in Tex. FairPoint, nationwide provider of local and long distance services, has only 55 customers for resale service in Verizon territory, FCC said. FairPoint told Commission it had “reevaluated its business plan” and decided to drop retail service offerings in Tex., concentrating instead on wholesale, carrier-to-carrier service -- W-P-D-549.
FCC Wireless Bureau promoted Michael Ferrante to chief- Licensing & Technical Analysis Branch… Joe Leuci advanced to senior vp-sales & mktg., FiberNet Telecom… Richard Liebhaber, Qwest, and Surya Panditi, Convergent Networks, elected to Internet Photonics board… Lorraine Hadfield promoted to managing dir., ACNielsen N. America… Changes at Cox New England: Brad Shipp promoted to vp-information technology; Deborah Wilson, ex-HorizonGuide, named vp-human resources… Consultant Kathleen Wallman becomes adjunct prof. at Georgetown U., specializing in privacy rights… Alex Chen, ex-3Com, named Comsearch managing dir., Asia- Pacific… Andrew Kaslow, ex-AOL Time Warner, joins Vivendi Universal as senior exec. vp-human resources.
Verizon Wireless confirmed Thurs. that it wasn’t pursuing new negotiations on NextWave PCS licenses (CD Jan 10 p6) until it received its deposit back from Jan. 2001 re- auction. “We are focused solely on getting our deposits back,” Verizon Wireless spokesman said: “We will not discuss our options until we receive our deposits. Under these circumstances we are not interested in new negotiations.” Last week, companies that won NextWave licenses in re-auction asked FCC to refund $3.1 billion in down payments that agency had been holding without interest since Feb. Verizon’s share of total is $1.7 billion. Once deposits are returned, Legg Mason said in research note, “it’s not impossible that the previous framework could be revived, but our sense is Verizon may be skeptical of the prospects that Congress would pass implementing legislation in its current form anytime soon.”
Cablevision’s business telephony division said it won fight with Verizon before N.J. Board of Public Utilities. Board approved Cablevision Lightpath’s renewal of its interconnection agreement with Verizon. Cablevision called decision “an important step in securing facilities-based local telephone competition” in N.J. However, Verizon said it was required by law to interconnect with Cablevision and it had no intention of blocking latter’s service. Instead, points of contention addressed in arbitration were reciprocal compensation, rates and points of interconnection, Verizon said. It’s studying its options and hasn’t decided whether it will appeal, said Bruce Cohen, gen. counsel for Verizon N.J. In separate decision, N.J. board said it would support Verizon’s petition before FCC to provide long distance service in N.J.
AT&T Broadband, which is trying to be taken over by Comcast, has shed some subscribers, it told FCC in ex parte filing. Notice was filed Dec. 18, day before AT&T’s board picked Comcast for deal. AT&T Broadband said in filing that it had sold cable systems in Ohio and Pa. with 120,000 subscribers to Adelphia. AT&T also said it expected soon to pick up cable systems in Washington state with 6,500 subscribers from Northland Cable TV. AT&T said that would lower number of subscribers attributed to it from 21.68 million to 21.6 million. However, it said those figures didn’t include 9.56 million belonging to Time Warner Entertainment and 1.8 million to Time Warner Inc. AT&T has stakes in both holdings, but said it believed those subscribers couldn’t be properly attributed to it in light of decision by U.S. Appeals Court, D.C., in Time Warner v. FCC (CD March 5 p1). If those subscribers were counted, 32.9 million subscribers would be attributed to AT&T. Issue is important because merged entity of AT&T Comcast might have to sell off cable systems to get under ownership limit, which is subject of pending FCC proceeding.
FCC denied Net2000 complaint against Verizon, ruling that latter hadn’t violated Communications Act or agency rules by denying Net2000’s requests for conversion of certain special access circuits to enhanced extended links (EELs). In order adopted Dec. 21 but not released until Wed., FCC disagreed with Net2000 view that ILEC had to convert circuits once CLEC certified that requested circuits carried “significant amount of local exchange service traffic.” FCC said that while self-certification of usage couldn’t be challenged, “ILECs are not required to convert circuits when the requested circuits do not on their face meet the other requirements specified for conversion.” Commission accepted Verizon’s argument that it refused conversion because: (1) Circuits didn’t terminate in colocation space. (2) Not all DS1 lines multiplexed onto DS3 lines met EEL conversion criteria. (3) Loop/transport combination couldn’t be combined with access service.
Continued delay in White House response to Senate Majority Leader Daschle’s (D-S.D.) recommendation to appoint his legislative asst., Jonathan Adelstein, as FCC comr. “is to be expected” in light of pressing world events, Daschle spokeswoman said: “The nomination is moving slowly but surely.” Staffer said Daschle was “waiting for papers to be sent” from President Bush on routine security screening of Adelstein. Daschle announced nearly 2 months ago (CD Nov 16 p1) that he had sent letter to Bush advocating nomination of Adelstein to post left vacant by departure of former FCC Comr. Gloria Tristani. Adelstein would serve out remainder of her term, which ends June 30, 2003. Industry lobbyist said there had been some speculation that delay stemmed from posturing by Bush but emphasized general agreement on Hill that there were no “unusual feelings” between President and Daschle that might prevent Bush from forwarding recommendation to Senate. White House hadn’t commented by our deadline.