Verizon asks FCC to stop reduced rates for competitors

VERIZON ASKS FCC TO STOP REDUCED RATES FOR COMPETITORS
[SOURCE: Boston Globe, AUTHOR: Carolyn Y. Johnson]
Verizon Communications is trying to shed requirements that the telecom giant give its competitors network access at reduced rates. The company has petitioned the Federal Communications Commission for "forbearance" from the rules because Verizon says competition now makes the regulated rates unnecessary. Consumer advocates oppose the petition, and lawmakers worry that Verizon's petition is an inappropriate use of an arcane piece of telecommunications law that could set a precedent allowing companies to escape regulatory obligations. The petition itself hinges on a piece of the 1996 act meant to foster competition. The law requires companies such as Verizon to give competitors access to portions of their network at regulated prices, because building the "last-mile" connection between a central office that routes calls and a customer, or the part of the network that connects central offices, was expensive and a barrier to competition. Verizon argues that it is now in the public interest to scrap the requirement in the Boston, Providence, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Virginia Beach, Va. metropolitan areas.
http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2007/08/15/verizon_as...