The FCC today announced that it has granted the National Cable Telecommunications Association (NCTA) conditional forbearance on the issue of cable companies acquiring competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs).  The FCC's action grants limited forbearance from Section 652(b) of the Communications Act in an effort to "harmonize the rules that apply to transactions between competitive LECs and cable operators regardless of which entity acquires the other." 

Section 652(b) prohibits cable companies from acquiring more than a 10 percent ownership interest or any management interest in local exchange carriers that provide service in their franchised areas unless all impacted local franchising authorities agree to a waiver of the provision. Section 652(a) prohibits local exchange carriers from acquiring more than a 10 percent ownership interest or any management interest in cable companies that provide service within their telephone service areas unless the local franchising authorities agree to a waiver of the provision. Because telephone service area is defined as the area within which a LEC was providing local telephone service on January 1, 1993, the FCC confirmed that Section 652(a) does not apply to CLEC acquisitions of cable companies and the grant of forbearance means that the Section 652(b) prohibition will not be enforced with respect to cable company acquisitions of CLECs.

In its order, the FCC stated that "mergers between cable operators and competitive LECs, both of which usually are non-dominant providers of telecommunications services, potentially serve many pro-competitive goals and appear consistent with the purpose and history of section 652. Streamlining the regulatory approval process for such transactions-without eliminating the important safeguards of the Commission's review of such mergers-can enhance facilities-based competition and spur technological innovation and investment that will benefit consumers."

Numerous significant changes to policies governing the communications industry are on the horizon, and at the COMPTEL PLUS Fall 2012 Convention & EXPO, you will be able to find out more about how these reforms, as well as the upcoming elections, may impact your business.  COMPTEL PLUS will feature a track dedicated to Policy Perspectives: Washington Impact, during the convention October 7-10 at the Gaylord Texan in Dallas.

Sessions in this track include:

• USF Contribution Reform: What's at Stake? - Led by Lampert, O'Connor & Johnston, this panel will include policy pros from the FCC, Google, the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance, and Sprint.
• Billing Disputes: How to Comply with Reforms and Regulations - This panel, featuring speakers from ATG Consulting, Hypercube and Transaction Network Services, will be moderated by Technologies Management Inc.
• Election 2012: How Results Could Shift the Policy Landscape - Moderated by Telecommunications Reports, this session's speakers include former Rep. Chip Pickering and a senior vice president from EarthLink.
• Last Mile Access for the 21st Century: The Transition to All-IP - This panel, led by Cbeyond, will include speakers from EarthLink, Sprint and tw telecom inc.
• Connecting America: How Competitors Successfully Invested in Broadband for Rural Markets - Moderated by TeleQuality Communications Inc., this panel will feature speakers from BalsamWest FiberNet, LS Networks and NTS.

Policy-related educational programming also includes a half-day Wednesday workshop hosted by Davis Wright Tremaine, which is entitled A Three-Hour Tour of the New Universal Service Fund: Rough Seas or Smooth Sailing?

To see the full schedule of educational sessions, visit the COMPTEL PLUS Schedule-at-a-Glance.

Register Today
Even though COMPTEL PLUS is less than a month away, there's still time to register online.  Once registered, you can take advantage of the Business PLANner to download the registration list, discover prospective customers and set up meetings at the show.

Exhibitors and sponsors at the COMPTEL PLUS Fall 2012 Convention & EXPO, and COMPTEL members, are invited to submit news for the COMPTEL PLUS Show Daily, a news magazine that will hit the newsstands in the Gaylord Texan the mornings of Monday, October 8 and Tuesday, October 9.  The deadline for submitting news is this Thursday, September 20.

All news items should be submitted as a Word document. You also are welcome to include graphics, which should be print quality and in JPEG format. News should be e-mailed to Show Daily Editor Bruce Christian. Companies wishing to advertise in the Show Daily should e-mail Publisher Berge Kaprelian or call 480-503-0770.

The Show Daily editorial staff will make every effort to include all news sent to them by the September 20 editorial deadline. News submissions received via e-mail after September 20, or on-site during COMPTEL PLUS, will be included in the Show Daily solely on a space-available basis. Full editorial guidelines are on the COMPTEL PLUS Website.

All COMPTEL Committee meetings are held at the Association's headquarters, 900 17th Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, D.C. 20006, unless otherwise noted.  All times listed are Eastern. For more information, call 202-296-6650.

September 18  Regulatory/Legislative Committee Meeting
2 p.m.              Contact Karen Reidy

September 25  Regulatory/Legislative Committee Meeting
2 p.m.              Contact Karen Reidy