You may not realize it but you have a legal right to have landline phone service at almost any address in the United States. The Goals of Universal Service, as outlined in the FCC Telecommunications Act of 1996 are to: Promote the availability of quality services at just, reasonable and affordable rates for all consumers Increase nationwide access to advanced telecommunications services Advance the availability of such services to all consumers, including those in low income, rural, insular, and high cost areas at rates that are reasonably comparable to those charged in urban areas Increase access to telecommunications and advanced services in schools, libraries and rural health care facilities Provide equitable and non-discriminatory contributions from all providers of telecommunications services to the fund supporting universal service programs Universal Service goes way back to 1913 when AT&T President Thomas Vail promised "one system, one policy, universal service" in return for maintaining AT&T's (at the time) monopoly.
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The copper landline is dying, and AT&T has suggested some regulatory changes to speed the death along. What it doesn't address is what an all-IP future means for the almost 20 percent who rely exclusively on a landline or the 33 per... Read Post
The FCC has appointed Steven Wildman as its chief economist. Steven Wildman, the James H. Quello Professor of Telecommunication Studies at Michigan State University is the acting chairman of that school’s Telecommunications, Informa... Read Post
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