FCC puts off rural funding and freemium decision

The Federal Communication Commission scheduled it for election day, but they will not vote to reform intercarrier compensation and rural telephone subsidies as part of the Universal Service Fund (USF). While it may be brought up again, it probably won't be until the new presidential administration appoints new commissioners. Supporters had hoped for a delay to hold hearings in December. 

Some services, such as free conference calling, use loopholes in intercarrier tariffs to pay the bills. So some smaller states became a haven for services free-to-consumers but with costs born by the phone companies of out-of-state callers. These only becomes a problem for bigger carriers when their long distance services are sold at a flat rate while underlying costs vary. Some of the proposed rate reforms would have closed these loopholes. In anticipation of this ruling, companies like Skype partner VAPPS left their freemium model for a subscription model.

The country's largest carriers supported leveling the tariffs, which would have cut off payments to small phone companies supporting about one third of the United States. Opposition to these reforms came from telecom unions, state regulators, rural phone companies and rural ISPs.

Barack Obama expressed support for the USF, for funding rural telecom access, and for expanding the reach of broadband to rural America. The Chairman's decision clearly had nothing to do with today's election. 

tags: skype, policy, election, 2008, regulation, rural, suburban, access, fcc, obama, mccain, presidency, president, us, united states, voters, icc, usf, tariff, demographics, demography, broadband

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