NCMR08 4: FACT, continuation

Krishna Jayakar, "I'm a member of the Penn State mafia." Universal service!

Four programs:

• Lifeline and Linkup
• Schools and Libraries (E-rate)
• High Cost Areas
• Rural Health Care

This money comes from end-user fees, to the tune of $7.4 billion over the last four quarters. However, Universal Service Fund (USF) expenses has steadily increased while telecom revenues are flat. Proposals:

• Make the USF funding sustainable
• control costs: capping High Cost Areas Program (I'm going to have to look this up later)
• expand contribution pool. Ouch - he's talking about adding fees to VoIP calls and all broadband traffic. That's not going to be popular.
  
• Improve effectiveness
• Cross-promoting Lifeline and Linkup (again, to look up later)
• Consumer protection against unpredictable phone bills

Long term proposals:

• Emphasize value creation over affordability. I don't understand what this does for universal service.
• Move from uniform service to consumer choice
• Foster innovation in service
• Ensure continuance of support for the disenfranchised

I really don't see how this pro-consumer framework gets us to Universal Service. I'm not saying I disagree, but I don't think Krishna made the case. It might have just been a case of the attack of the Powerpoint presentation - bullet points over coherent argumentation. It happens.

Marvin Ammori, Free Press/University of Nebraska on broadband adoption. "We need to move forward with the idea the competition does work."

• Need info on our markets
• Need to understand other regimes abroad
• Need a broad commitment to competition
• Possibly include some structural separation to create more competitive markets
  
• Net Neutrality