An association of tech groups is adding its name to the list of industry voices who oppose a proposal by the Federal Communications Commission to regulate business data services for broadband access.
“To meet the growing demand for ubiquitous nationwide high speed broadband deployment … government should advance only those policies that actively promote and encourage, rather than deter, private investment,” the Internet Innovation Alliance said in a public comment issued Tuesday.
Companies known as incumbent local exchange carriers, or ILECs, have invested in expanding fiber networks used by businesses around the country. A rate regulation proposal before the FCC would cut the wholesale prices ILEC providers are able to offer, a move that proponents say would foster competition.
The IIA, which is composed of telecom companies such as AT&T and nonprofits including Americans for Tax Reform, argued the move would harm future investment in broadband infrastructure, to the detriment of the broader economy.
“Surely … the commission need not wait for a recession or a sharp decline in the market capitalization of those American companies providing investment in telecommunications and broadband services to forbear from regulation.
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“It is not government’s role to help individual competitors save money or raise their stock price,” the comment said. “Instead, government’s goal here should be aimed at ensuring the widest and fastest deployment of advanced technology, which will occur without regulation of the BDS market.
“In fact, unwise and overreaching BDS rate regulation will actively hinder this deployment,” the comment added.
A group of nine rural senators sent a letter to the FCC this month asking the agency to be thorough in its review of information before passing any new rules. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, sent his own letter asking the agency to be sure that regulations “reflect marketplace conditions.”
