more on A Clash of Principles in Philly

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Brett Glass <brett () lariat org>
Date: December 7, 2004 1:46:16 PM EST
To: dave () farber net, Ip <ip () v2 listbox com>
Subject: Re: [IP] A Clash of Principles in Philly

Robert Poe of America's Network (a magazine which caters to the 
interests
of incumbent local exchange carriers) writes:

> The words "idealistic" and "industry" don't often appear side by side 
> in a sentence. But in reality, the telecommunications industry is one 
> whose products almost universally benefit people ‹ unlike, say, the 
> donut industry.

In other words, "What's good for Verizon is good for the country." 
Where have we heard
similar words before? ;-)

[SNIP]

> The dispute revolved around a proposed Pennsylvania state law, two 
> years in the making, that would prohibit government entities at any 
> level from offering public broadband services without first giving 
> private providers the chance to do so.

Alas, Mr. Poe misrepresents the law here. The law specifically gives 
ONLY the incumbent
local exchange carrier -- not competitive local exchange carriers, 
cable services, or
wireless ISPs -- the right of first refusal. Thus, it protects only one 
company: Verizon.
What's more, it does not require that the ILEC actually be providing, 
or have plans to
provide, such services. The ILEC only needs to have a "network 
modernization plan" somewhere
in the state -- perhaps in another city.

--Brett Glass


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