On Tuesday August
2, 2016, a group of nine U.S. Senators from rural states submitted
a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler asking him to use the most up-to-date
data when analyzing competition in the business data services (BDS) market. The
Senators stated: “As you work toward a final rule, it is especially important
for rural states like ours that the Commission use all the available data,
including the data submitted earlier this year by the major cable operators, to
both measure competitive markets accurately and ensure that the regulations for
noncompetitive markets are based on the real cost to provide service.” They
added that regulations adopted through the use of outdated or inaccurate data
will harm robust investments in BDS and “rural constituents will face
significant challenges in accessing the 21st century global economy.”
In June 2016, I
wrote a Perspectives from FSF Scholars
entitled “The
FCC Cannot Proceed in the BDS Proceeding with a Flawed Analysis,” where I
raised concerns about the inaccuracy of the FCC’s BDS data collection and its poor
analysis in which it estimates how competition among BDS providers impacts BDS
prices but fails to acknowledge the impact that consumer demand has on BDS
prices.
Additionally, FSF
scholars submitted
comments regarding the FCC’s BDS
proposal and President Randolph May and Senior Fellow Seth Cooper
co-authored a Perspectives from FSF
Scholars entitled “The
FCC’s Special Access Proposal Is Infected With Special Pleading,” where
they discuss how the FCC’s proposal is essentially regulatory-capture by a few
BDS competitors pleading to obtain special rent-seeking treatment.
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