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FCC Gives CenturyLink/Qwest Merger Approval
With Conditions Requiring The Tripling Of 40 Mbps Availability
The FCC has given their approval (pdf) of CenturyLink's merger with Qwest. The FCC has imposed several conditions the agency insists will mitigate "the risk of harm to competition," including offering $10 broadband and $150 computers to low income households. The freshly-merged company must also deliver broadband service at speeds of at least 4 Mbps to an additional 4 million households, double the number of current homes that can get 12 Mbps broadband, and triple the number that can get 40 Mbps broadband. The timeline on these requirements isn't specified, but the majority of such requirements are usually things the companies involved had planned to do anyway. CenturyLink of course was only just recently formed after the merger between Sprint spinoff Embarq and CenturyTel.
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pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium Member
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD

pnh102

Premium Member

Another Reason to Defund the FCC

When was the last time the FCC ever denied approval for a major merger in the telecom sector? If it is going to rubber stamp every merger that comes down the pike, then why even involve it in the approval process?

battleop
join:2005-09-28
00000

battleop

Member

Re: Another Reason to Defund the FCC

They have rubber stamped so many that there really isn't a way they can say no. The only companies that probably can't merge are AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon.

pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium Member
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD

pnh102

Premium Member

Re: Another Reason to Defund the FCC

said by battleop:

The only companies that probably can't merge are AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon.

Heh.
Chewyrobbo
join:2005-04-12
Tacoma, WA

Chewyrobbo to battleop

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to battleop
HEY! Don't give them any ideas! Ma Bell might make a comeback.
patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY

patcat88 to battleop

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to battleop
said by battleop:

They have rubber stamped so many that there really isn't a way they can say no. The only companies that probably can't merge are AT&T, Comcast, and Verizon.

Comcast used to be AT&T. We all know who AT&T is going to buy next.
rahvin112
join:2002-05-24
Sandy, UT

rahvin112

Member

Re: Another Reason to Defund the FCC

AT&T doesn't exist anymore. It was split into half a dozen pieces and sold off. What you know as ATT is a company that used to be a baby bell and took the ATT name after buying the last remaining piece of the ATT company and then adopting the ATT name to conceal their origins.
jjeffeory
jjeffeory
join:2002-12-04
Bloomington, IN

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Funny! Don't give them any ideas!
firedrakes
join:2009-01-29
Arcadia, FL

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i want my speeds double

Noah Vail
Oh God please no.
Premium Member
join:2004-12-10
SouthAmerica

Noah Vail

Premium Member

...or Else What?

quote:
FCC Gives CenturyLink/Qwest Merger Approval
With Conditions Requiring The Tripling Of 40 Mbps Availability
And if CL/Quest fails to increase 40Mbs availability x3 - what will happen to them?

Nv

Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02

Karl Bode

News Guy

Re: ...or Else What?

nnnnnnnOTHING.

WHT
join:2010-03-26
Rosston, TX

WHT

Member

Re: ...or Else What?

BINGO.......

Remember the promises made by Verizon in Pennsylvania?

batterup
I Can Not Tell A Lie.
Premium Member
join:2003-02-06
Netcong, NJ

batterup

Premium Member

Re: ...or Else What?

said by WHT:

BINGO.......

Remember the promises made by Verizon in Pennsylvania?

It is ahead of schedule. Every Verizon CO now has DSLAMs; all it takes is for 50 people to sign up for DSL in a Verizon area and Verizon MUST provide it within one year.

toby
Troy Mcclure
join:2001-11-13
Seattle, WA

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to Noah Vail
said by Noah Vail:

quote:
FCC Gives CenturyLink/Qwest Merger Approval
With Conditions Requiring The Tripling Of 40 Mbps Availability
And if CL/Quest fails to increase 40Mbs availability x3 - what will happen to them?

Nv

They will be given more USF and other fees/tax credits, and be made to increase the 1.5Mbps coverage....

tstolze
Premium Member
join:2003-08-08
O Fallon, MO

tstolze to Noah Vail

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to Noah Vail
said by Noah Vail:

quote:
FCC Gives CenturyLink/Qwest Merger Approval
With Conditions Requiring The Tripling Of 40 Mbps Availability
And if CL/Quest fails to increase 40Mbs availability x3 - what will happen to them?

Nv

3X zero =???????????

I may be wrong, but I don't know of any areas that can get 40Mbs now....

scots
Are we there yet??
Premium Member
join:1999-12-06
Raleigh, NC

scots

Premium Member

Re: ...or Else What?

Qwest offers up to 40Mbps:
»www.qwest.com/residentia ··· landing/

CenturyLink only offers up to 10Mbps:
»www.centurylink.com/Page ··· dex.html

Cheese
Premium Member
join:2003-10-26
Naples, FL

Cheese

Premium Member

Wait....

They must offer 150 dollar PCs to consumers? Am I reading this right? How is their place to make sure the consumer has a PC?

Exodus
Your Daddy
Premium Member
join:2001-11-26
Earth

Exodus

Premium Member

Re: Wait....

If I'm reading this right, they have to offer computers to low-income users for $150.

They could just get some cheap ass netbook and never take a hit at all.

Cheese
Premium Member
join:2003-10-26
Naples, FL

Cheese

Premium Member

Re: Wait....

said by Exodus:

If I'm reading this right, they have to offer computers to low-income users for $150.

They could just get some cheap ass netbook and never take a hit at all.

Yes, they could, but why should they? It's not an ISP job to ensure someone has a computer to be able to use the services.

Exodus
Your Daddy
Premium Member
join:2001-11-26
Earth

Exodus

Premium Member

Re: Wait....

No, of course not, but we could fill up the board with all the places that government shouldn't be putting their nose in.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

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I totally agree and I could see the new company telling the FCC to screw off on this. Especially since netbooks can be had for that price if you shop just right at Wal-Mart and alike.
patcat88
join:2002-04-05
Jamaica, NY

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said by Cheese:

said by Exodus:

If I'm reading this right, they have to offer computers to low-income users for $150.

They could just get some cheap ass netbook and never take a hit at all.

Yes, they could, but why should they? It's not an ISP job to ensure someone has a computer to be able to use the services.

But its required by the pols to get votes from minorities.

Now how many of those "low-income" users carry prepaid smart phones?

Slowville
@centurytel.net

Slowville

Anon

Re: Wait....

My income went from 55K to 5K a few months ago, no unemployment in a whistleblowing case... (I quit) I have no cell phone and Nettalk for my phone. No Dish, CC, Fios, TW, Food. But I do have slow naked DSL. Gotta have that IMO.

Transmaster
Don't Blame Me I Voted For Bill and Opus
join:2001-06-20
Cheyenne, WY

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said by Cheese:

They must offer 150 dollar PCs to consumers? Am I reading this right? How is their place to make sure the consumer has a PC?

There is an easy explaination for this. With the iPad all but killing off the market for the Netbook what else are they going to do with these cheap turkeys,

Ken
viperlmw
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join:2005-01-25

viperlmw to Cheese

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said by Cheese:

They must offer 150 dollar PCs to consumers? Am I reading this right? How is their place to make sure the consumer has a PC?

"The FCC has imposed several conditions the agency insists will mitigate "the risk of harm to competition," including offering $10 broadband and $150 computers to low income households .... the majority of such requirements are usually things the companies involved had planned to do anyway."

I believe the last part explains the first part.
iansltx
join:2007-02-19
Austin, TX

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Because it looks good for politicians.

Also, ChromeOS nettops should do the job decently withut too much of a subsidy.
genzoulv
join:2004-10-05
Las Vegas, NV

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Member

Nice loophole, FCC!

What's the point of telling them to do something with no timetable? Could they make it anymore obvious this is being rubber-stamped? lol

Fox McCloud
Crazy like a fox.
join:2006-07-23

Fox McCloud

Member

Finally

Glad to see this finally approved (I think that's everyone involved now); hopefully we'll start to see better routing on Centurylink's network once the two integrate more.
dynodb
Premium Member
join:2004-04-21
Minneapolis, MN

dynodb

Premium Member

Re: Finally

said by Fox McCloud:

Glad to see this finally approved (I think that's everyone involved now); hopefully we'll start to see better routing on Centurylink's network once the two integrate more.

Don't expect to see changes in the near future, either with Qwest or Cent Link. Think months and years rather than days or weeks.

It's going to take a relatively long time (and plenty of money) to fully integrate the many different systems and processes; it always does.

Fox McCloud
Crazy like a fox.
join:2006-07-23

Fox McCloud

Member

Re: Finally

said by dynodb:

said by Fox McCloud:

Glad to see this finally approved (I think that's everyone involved now); hopefully we'll start to see better routing on Centurylink's network once the two integrate more.

Don't expect to see changes in the near future, either with Qwest or Cent Link. Think months and years rather than days or weeks.

It's going to take a relatively long time (and plenty of money) to fully integrate the many different systems and processes; it always does.

I know it won't be overnight--I didn't mean to imply that one bit.
Kearnstd
Space Elf
Premium Member
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ

Kearnstd

Premium Member

a better idea would be

To require them to have 80% of all technical support positions in the US to be allowed to merge.

I think any merger of any companies should now come with provisions to require them to have a certain percentage of work done here in the US.

Fox McCloud
Crazy like a fox.
join:2006-07-23

Fox McCloud

Member

Re: a better idea would be

said by Kearnstd:

I think any merger of any companies should now come with provisions to require them to have a certain percentage of work done here in the US.

Which will only make things all the more expensive for them...

batterup
I Can Not Tell A Lie.
Premium Member
join:2003-02-06
Netcong, NJ

batterup

Premium Member

$150 computers to low income households.

Sounds good. A $3.99 bottle of Thunderbird will get me a brand new government computer.

Unusual taste; most defiantly.

»www.youtube.com/watch?v= ··· 7mBQrzXU