Qwest has won partial relief from price and other regulatory controls in Omaha because of increasing competition in a case that could have broader implications.

The FCC late Friday announced it had relieved Qwest of certain "monopoly" or "dominant carrier" regulations, in large part because of substantial telecommunications investments made by Cox Communications, which provides telephone services over its cable network.

Industry officials had been watching the case closely to see if it would enable regional Bells to relax regulations elsewhere in the country.

The Bells, which own much of the copper-wire infrastructure leading into homes and businesses, have argued in recent years that there's been enough time for competitors to build their own infrastructure.

Source: »www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/b···,00.html