Why Is The FCC Subsidizing The Least Efficient Providers Of Rural Telco Services?
from the questions,-questions,-questions dept
The Universal Service Fund (USF) is a huge boondoggle for telcos, who keep getting more and more money out of it, with almost no oversight into what's done with that money. And, the way it's set up, it actually blocks more innovative (and cheaper!) services from being used to improve connectivity in rural areas. It's good to see others are beginning to notice this. News.com is running an article from Gregory L. Rosston at Stanford who points out that the USF rewards companies for being the least efficient providers. That is, by showing how much more it costs the telcos to provide for rural users, the FCC grants them even more money. In other words, the less efficient they are, the more money they get. Not exactly the type of incentives the FCC should be setting up -- but given FCC chair Kevin Martin's super chummy relationship with the telcos, perhaps it's no surprise.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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Filed Under: efficiency, favoritism, fcc, kevin martin, telcos, universal service fund
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The Rip Off
Articles about the lack of oversight abound.
But look at all the other sink holes of Government collected cash, and people are surprised by this one?
This is the biggest reason I went VOIP.
Thats why I have always liked the idea of a simple majority in congress being able to lower taxes, and a supper majority needed to raise taxes.
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WTF!! Is A Telco?!?!
I havn't used a Telco since broadband internet.
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Re: WTF!! Is A Telco?!?!
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USF
Unfortunately, the Democrats (Adelstein and Copps) want to continue the subsidies to all. Oh by the way, Gregory Rosston at Stanford, was an FCC economist during the CLinton years who also supported keeping these subsidies and even expanded the program to include all the schools and libraries in the United States.
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Re: USF
Rural consumers deserve the same services as their urban cousins. Wireless and broadband bring jobs, and wireless E911 brings better public safety. Don't our citizens deserve roadside emergency medical help regardless of whether they live in Montana or Maine, Oregon or West Virginia... or Boston or New York City? Representatives of rural areas should be interested in this matter. Wireless is a much less expensive way to bring economic development to less populated areas, but it still costs real dollars, and the FCC is trying to ensure that only Martin's chummy landline friends get that buildout funding. But more and more consumers are "cutting the cord," and ignoring the fact that people increasingly want the new technologies is like an ostrich sticking its head in the sand, or like those who denied the Internet was going to be big.
Stop the anticompetitive subsidy hoarding, I say, and let all of the technologies have their fair share if they can prove that they're using it for actual, efficient rural buildout and rural operations. Reward efficient providers, not those whose expenditures are high: you'll get more mileage out of it.
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Still Subsidizing Grandpa's Technology
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If You Care, Do Something
This will do a lot more good than all the blog responses you might post today.
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USF
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