Phone Monopolists, Again

In 1996, members of Congress virtually wrapped themselves in the American flag while passing a telecommunications bill that they said would help the little guy. What a shock that the opposite happened. Consumers saw their phone, cable and high-speed Internet rates increase, and existing providers strengthened their monopolies.

Now, the same ruse has returned. On Wednesday, the House of Representatives passed the proposed Internet Freedom and Broadband Deployment Act, which would relax the already loose regulations of the 1996 Telecommunications Act. Telephone companies would no longer be required to let competitors use their copper phone lines and other facilities to offer high-speed Internet access.

The bill’s principal author, Rep. W.J. “Billy” Tauzin (R-La.), claims that his legislation would spur the local phone companies to make the costly investments needed to bring broadband to poor and rural areas.

In fact, the legislation would essentially let the Baby Bells freeze out competing Internet service providers from digital subscriber line, or DSL, services. That would lead to fewer choices and higher prices for broadband subscribers. There would be no credible price competition. No small and innovative Internet service providers with creative ideas about, for instance, audio- and videoconferencing. As Sen. Ernest F. Hollings (D-S.C.) bluntly put it, the bill is a “blasphemy ... a total fraud that will extend the power of monopolists rather than promote competition.”

Many of the legislators who took to the House floor to support or oppose the bill Wednesday tripped over its highly technical terms--their orations seemingly motivated less by an eagerness to help their constituents than by a desire to court the bill’s proponents (mainly the Baby Bells) or its opponents. Among the foes are small Internet service providers as well as some big ones like AT&T; and Sprint. Both sides together have given $32 million in campaign contributions to members of Congress since debate on the bill began three years ago, according to the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics.

Neither Tauzin nor his opponents could exactly be called friends of the consumer on this issue. But one thing is sure: Despite Tauzin’s overheated contention that his bill is all “about jobs ... about [giving] us all a chance to enjoy this amazing technology,” the legislation is a perfect child of the 1996 Telecommunications Act. It will not help consumers, promote competition or spur innovation.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) should make sure the bill does not leave the Senate alive. FCC Chairman Michael K. Powell should also resist lobbying pressure to relax broadband regulation through backdoor means if the legislation fails.

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To Take Action: Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, (202) 224-2321 or tom_daschle@ daschle.senate.gov. FCC Chairman Michael K. Powell, (202) 418-1000 or mpowell@fcc.gov.