Telecompetitor -

AT&T Wants to Kill Sprint-Clearwire Venture

Bernie — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 11:46:20 -0400

AT&T announced their intention to oppose the Sprint-Clearwire venture. AT&T says the regulatory review process isn’t robust enough because Sprint and Clearwire are under reporting the amount of spectrum they will actually utilize. AT&T argues that if all the spectrum represented by the Sprint-Clearwire merger were represented, the FCC would have to scrutinize the merger more closely....

Vonage Gets Another Temporary Lifeline

Bernie — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 00:00:14 -0400

Vonage has a deal in principle to refinance the debt that is threatening to bankrupt the company later this year in December. A new financing deal structure will be lead by Silver Point Finance. It’s a fairly complex deal, requiring Vonage to gain additional financing to cover the total $253 million in debt coming due this December. Under the agreement, Silver Point will provide $125 million,...

Let it Go to Voicemail, It’s Comcast

Bernie — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 23:24:11 -0400

Comcast is joining the caller ID on the television party. While a little late to the party, they plan on moving aggressively into the converged communications arena with other services as well. Caller ID TV will be available in August, followed by caller ID on the PC and visual voicemail for the TV early next year. Other cable MSOs including Cablevision have been offering Caller ID TV for some...

Is U-Verse Worth it?

Bernie — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:33:14 -0400

AT&T released their latest quarterly numbers, revealing the progress of U-Verse and their other business lines. Depending on your point of view, U-Verse is either progressing nicely or is woefully inadequate. AT&T’s PR spin indicates the former, but the real view is only available to AT&T insiders, analysts, and the “flies on the boardroom wall.” If you place U-Verse’s video...

Verizon/Alltel Divestiture Carries Competitive Implications

Bernie — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:25:47 -0400

Ahead of their Alltel acquisition regulatory review, Verizon filed a letter with the FCC outlining their wireless spectrum divestiture plans. In hopes of reducing “market dominance” fears, they plan on divesting of 85 markets, including all of North and South Dakota, and rural serving areas in California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana , Minnesota, Kansas, Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming,...

XO CEO: Bells Are a "Copper Cartel", Stifling Competition

Bernie — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 22:39:01 -0400

XO Communications CEO Carl J. Grivner testified before Congress, and labeled AT&T, Qwest, and Verizon a “copper cartel” that practices anti-competitive and anti-consumer tactics. Grivner testified before the U.S. House Telecommunications Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, stating that the “…competitive [telecom] industry has been a major source of billions of dollars in...

Is Broadband Access a Civil Right?

Bernie — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 10:27:44 -0400

The FCC recently conducted a hearing on the future of broadband and digital media at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh. Among the typical fanfare at FCC meetings like this, an interesting point of view emerged from FCC Commissioner Michael Copps. In his opening remarks, Copps likened broadband access to a civil right. In regards to broadband, Copps says, “no matter who you are, where you...

Congress: Wireline to Wireless Porting is Too Slow

Bernie — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:08:30 -0400

In the hyper competitive world of wireless, telephone numbers can be ported to competing carriers within hours. Several members of Congress have written the FCC, demanding comparable portability timelines for wireline to wireless number portability. Currently, porting a number from a wireline carrier to a wireless carrier can take up to four business days. To address the issue, Senate Commerce...

Verizon Loses Again

Bernie — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:47:40 -0400

Verizon lost its stay request concerning their win back marketing saga. Cable companies filed a formal complaint with the FCC claiming that Verizon was illegally trying to “court” customers back after they decided to switch phone service to a competing cable company. In a strange turn of events, the FCC Enforcement Bureau sided with Verizon, but FCC commissioners voted in favor of the cable...

Verizon Joins "Three Screen" Olympic Club

Bernie — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:39:20 -0400

Just a couple days after AT&T announced a three screen Olympics strategy, Verizon followed suit as well. Verizon will also offer Olympics content on the television, PC, and mobile device. It’s unclear if there are exclusive content deals with each carrier, or if subscribers of both services will have virtually the same experience. In addition to the three screen strategy, Verizon announced...