OH Consumer Advocate calls for Residential Customer Benefits in Verizon-MCI Merger

Two large telephone companies with many Ohio customers propose to merge without demonstrating any benefits for residential consumers as required by state law, the Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel (OCC) said last week. The OCC, along with other consumer groups, filed a brief at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) and recommend that the proposed Verizon-MCI merger be rejected unless customer benefits are included as conditions. The conditions cover pricing, consumer protections, access to broadband, community voicemail systems, and competitive local telephone service. Prior to merging, Verizon and MCI are required to gain approval from regulators in several states and at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Regulators in many states, including Ohio, and at the FCC have the power to impose conditions in order to grant merger approval.
[SOURCE: Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel press release]