Uncategorized Related Posts

Posted February 28, 2011 • 1 comment

By Joel Lubin, AT&T Vice President of Public Policy Last Wednesday, the Congressional Internet Caucus sponsored a panel discussion on the key hurdle to bringing broadband to all Americans – universal service and intercarrier compensation reform.  If you weren’t able to make the Congressional event you missed a riveting discussion (and no, we’re not being facetious)….

Posted February 18, 2011 • 1 comment

So, yesterday afternoon, Level 3 filed a three-page, single spaced letter to FCC Chairman Genachowski explaining to him that he didn’t really mean that the Comcast/Level 3 dispute is not covered by the FCC’s recently announced net neutrality rules and the press got it wrong. To do that, Level 3 set forth, in quotes, its…

Posted February 17, 2011

By Jeff Brueggeman, AT&T Vice President of Public Policy Last week, the FCC officially launched the secret weapon in getting us to 100% broadband, its Universal Service Fund (USF) and Intercarrier Compensation (ICC) reform effort. Coincidently, this week, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released (on time and on budget) its National Broadband Map.  The…

Posted February 16, 2011

I was watching Almost Famous last week with my fifteen-year-old son, Matt.  In one of the scenes, William Mitchell (the Cameron Crowe character) is furiously typing up his story for Rolling Stone magazine on an electric typewriter in his bedroom.  Matt watched for a moment, turned to me and said, “What is THAT.”  I laughed…

Posted February 15, 2011 • 1 comment

After seeing NAB’s latest salvo in the spectrum debate in the Feb. 7 issue of Communications Daily, I have to admit that I agree with NAB on one point:  it’s time to move beyond the rhetoric.  Let’s dissect NAB’s most recent retort. First, NAB claims that the “spectrum crisis” rhetoric is overheated.  There’s certainly been…

Posted February 10, 2011

Congressman Peter T. King, Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, and Ranking Member Bennie G. Thompson have introduced legislation (H.R. 607) to make more spectrum available to public safety for a nationwide wireless broadband network.  The following statement may be attributed to AT&T Executive Vice President of Federal Relations Tim McKone: “Chairman King’s and…

Posted February 10, 2011

In case you weren’t able to attend last Friday’s Free State Foundation event, you missed AT&T’s Jim Cicconi talk about what the FCC needs to focus on now that we’ve moved on (right?!) from the “exhaustive and exhausting” net neutrality debate that took up the majority of the Commission’s time and energy for the past…

Posted February 10, 2011 • 6 comments

President Obama today unveiled details of the Administration’s National Wireless Initiative, which is designed to bring wireless broadband to at least 98% of Americans.  The following statement may be attributed to John Donovan, AT&T Chief Technology Officer: “President Obama has outlined a comprehensive and aggressive plan that lays the groundwork for bringing wireless broadband to…

Posted February 8, 2011 • 5 comments

Maybe that doesn’t have the toe tapping groove of the opening line from Sgt. Pepper but it seems a fitting way to mark the 15th Anniversary of the 1996 Telecommunications Act.  And, maybe the occasion won’t get the same play that Facebook got for its 7th anniversary last week, but that law was the first…

Posted February 3, 2011

In a statement yesterday, NAB raised points they thought it important to note.  We think it’s also important to note that in the last four years alone, AT&T paid more than $10 billion simply for the rights to spectrum for our LTE wireless build.  This amount had to be paid before we could even begin…