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To: Sosmartinov who wrote (71324)	11/14/1999 12:02:00 AM
From: 2MAR$	Respond to of 120523

<Edit: SF...what FCC decision>....sorry don't have a link....:-) WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - High-speed Internet service over telephone lines should get a boost next week from the Federal Communications Commission, industry officials said on Thursday. The agency is expected to order major local carriers, such as Bell Atlantic Corp. <BEL.N> and SBC Communications Inc.<SBC.N>, to share their lines and allow competitors to offer high-speed data service while the established carrier continues to offer basic voice service to the same customer. So-called line sharing could dramatically reduce the monthly fees upstart data carriers have to pay the major local carriers for leasing use of the copper wires that run into the homes and businesses of customers. Under current rules, data carriers have to pay the full cost of a line even if they only want to offer high-speed Internet connections. The largest data-oriented upstart carriers are NorthPoint Communications Group Inc.<NPNT.O>, Covad Communications Group Inc.<COVD.O> and Rhythms NetConnections Inc. <RTHM.O> All of the new companies, as well as the Bells, rely on Digital Subscriber Line technology to speed Internet connections. DSL transmits information over an ordinary phone line in frequencies that cannot be heard by the human ear and are not typically used by regular voice traffic. The most popular versions of DSL are limited to customers living within about three miles of a phone company central switching office and offer speeds 50 to 100 times faster than ordinary modems. So far, DSL deployment has lagged behind the cable industry's roll-out of high-speed Internet service over cable wires. About 250,000 people subscribe to DSL compared to more than a million cable modem users, according to analysts. The FCC's order is expected to be adopted at a public meeting next week but could be delayed at the last minute. Itwould likely set a price for carriers wanting to split a line with a major carrier. Major carriers were seeking a 50-50 split, allowing competing DSL providers to lease a line for half the charge of the whole line. Competitors sought a more lopsided split with a data discount of as much as 90 percent. REUTERS Rtr 17:14 11-11-99 Copyright 1999, Reuters News Service

To: Sosmartinov who wrote (71324)	11/14/1999 12:32:00 AM
From: SMALL FRY	Respond to of 120523

To put it simply... the 50/50 DSL line sharing with the Bells is what concerns us the most. It's a little more complex with the GTE - Bell Atlantic/ GTE Internetworking - COVD/NPNT/Jato Comm deal but that's only part of it. Also: biz.yahoo.com 11/11/1999 Reuters English News Service (C) Reuters Limited 1999. WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - High-speed Internet service over telephone lines should get a boost next week from the Federal Communications Commission, industry officials said on Thursday. The agency is expected to order major local carriers, such as Bell Atlantic Corp. and SBC Communications Inc., to share their lines and allow competitors to offer high-speed data service while the established carrier continues to offer basic voice service to the same customer. So-called line sharing could dramatically reduce the monthly fees upstart data carriers have to pay the major local carriers for leasing use of the copper wires that run into the homes and businesses of customers. Under current rules, data carriers have to pay the full cost of a line even if they only want to offer high-speed Internet connections. The largest data-oriented upstart carriers are NorthPoint Communications Group Inc., Covad Communications Group Inc. and Rhythms NetConnections Inc. All of the new companies, as well as the Bells, rely on Digital Subscriber Line technology to speed Internet connections. DSL transmits information over an ordinary phone line in frequencies that cannot be heard by the human ear and are not typically used by regular voice traffic. The most popular versions of DSL are limited to customers living within about three miles of a phone company central switching office and offer speeds 50 to 100 times faster than ordinary modems. So far, DSL deployment has lagged behind the cable industry's roll-out of high-speed Internet service over cable wires. About 250,000 people subscribe to DSL compared to more than a million cable modem users, according to analysts. The FCC's order is expected to be adopted at a public meeting next week but could be delayed at the last minute. Itwould likely set a price for carriers wanting to split a line with a major carrier. Major carriers were seeking a 50-50 split, allowing competing DSL providers to lease a line for half the charge of the whole line. Competitors sought a more lopsided split with a data discount of as much as 90 percent. (( Aaron Pressman, Washington newsroom, 202-898-8312 )).

To: Sosmartinov who wrote (71324)	11/14/1999 12:48:00 AM
From: SMALL FRY	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 120523

COVD - here's another one... www2.marketwatch.com infoworld.com FCC shows mixed approach to Internet access By Paul Krill and Jennifer Jones InfoWorld Electric Posted at 3:04 PM PT, Nov 12, 1999 The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) later this month will likely force local phone companies to share their lines with emerging Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) companies - a move that sharply contrasts with the FCC's hands-off approach to regulating cable-based Internet access. Just weeks before FCC's Common Carrier Bureau will pry open local telephone lines, the agency's Cable Services bureau chief vowed that the FCC - at least for now - will not tinker with the cable-access market, DSL's rival industry. Despite the FCC's mixed approach to two leading kinds of remote access, which are quickly replacing traditional dial-up, both industries are rapidly maturing. The FCC's Bureau Chief Deborah Lathen said multiple methods of broadband access, such as cable modems, DSL, and wireless, need to compete unfettered by government intervention to enable expanded access and lower prices. "We very much believe that we have to let the marketplace work," Lathen said in a speech this week. Although Lathen included DSL in that list, another FCC bureau is regulating DSL expressly to spur competition. Specifically, the agency is widely expected on Nov. 18 to require incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) - mostly the regional Bell companies - to share lines with rival DSL companies. But while the FCC makes a decisive move on DSL, it is not yet weighing in on the "open-access" cable debate. The FCC spelled out its reluctance to get in the cable fray in an October report. "It is not clear whether current systems will maintain their same positions in the broadband industry, or whether new, and as yet undisclosed systems, will dominate the market," the report said. However, Internet service providers such as America Online, MindSpring, and others, charge that the closed cable system limits their ability to reach users. AT&T, which recently acquired cable giant Telecommunications Inc. (TCI), for now exclusively provides Excite@Home to its cable subscribers. AT&T recently signaled that it may open its infrastructure voluntarily. M. Patrick Witherington Jr., government affairs vice president at AT&T, said the company may expand ISP access to its cable systems once the Excite@Home arrangement expires in 2002. Just last month, FCC officials said cable access dwarfed DSL connections to U.S. homes. But that could change with the DSL line-sharing mandate, said Jonathan Askin, vice president of the Association for Local Telecommunications Services, which represents competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs). "The main thing this will do is change the price points and make it more feasible for new competitors to enter the market," Askin said. The ILECs naturally oppose linesharing. In comments filed to the FCC, the U.S. Telephone Association (USTA) officials argued that line-sharing raises the issues of responsibility for line maintenance. USTA officials also argued that line-sharing would dampen ILECs' mood to invest in and pursue new technology. SF