tw telecom to #FCC – regulate #VOIP! #telecom
Joan Engebretson of Connected Planet has filed a report – TW Telecom asks the FCC to declare IP voice a telecommunications service. tw telecom (formerly Time Warner Telecom), a large midwest based fiber service provider, says that, despite having the necessary switches, incumbent telcos are refusing to negotiate IP-to-IP peering connections. The incumbents want to preserve the archaic time-based ‘access charge’ structure – admittedly the financial lifeblood of rural telcos. The public suffers through 1) higher costs, and 2) signal degradation due to conversion processes. Access charge reform is already slated but uncertain. tw telecom wants the FCC to make the move to 1) force the telco’s to come to the table, and also to give providers the right to appeal to State utility regulators for intervention if required.
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