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Bruce Kushnick New Networks Institute Reverse AT&T-ALEC

Bruce Kushnick New Networks Institute Reverse AT&T-ALEC. Welcome to Brooklyn. “They Will Not Close Down the Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN) on My Watch. Period.”. Ma Bell. 1 million employees Owned the hardware, including the phones. Owned the 22 local phone companies.

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Bruce Kushnick New Networks Institute Reverse AT&T-ALEC

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  1. Bruce KushnickNew Networks InstituteReverse AT&T-ALEC

  2. Welcome to Brooklyn “They Will Not Close Down the Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN) on My Watch.Period.”

  3. Ma Bell • 1 million employees • Owned the hardware, including the phones. • Owned the 22 local phone companies. • Owned AT&T Long Lines. • Owned Bell Labs. • Was regulated on local service prices. • Not Regulated on Long Distance charges.

  4. Judge Harold Greene

  5. The Seven “Baby Bells”

  6. Al Gore’s Information Superhighway, 1992

  7. Telecom Act of 1996 • Open the “Last Mile”. • Lower prices and advanced services *(broadband) though competition. • Allowed indie ISPs to use “line sharing” for DSL. • Allow AT&T & MCI to offer local Service. • If the networks were open, the Bells could enter long distance.

  8. AT&T and Verizon Merger Mania at&t • Southwestern Bell (SBC) • Pacific Bell • SNET • Ameritech • AT&T • BellSouth Verizon • Bell Atlantic • NYNEX • GTE • MCI • Alltel

  9. 3 Big Bells, No Competition.

  10. Rise and Fall of Internet Service Providers

  11. AT&T & Verizon • AT&T U-Verse – Copper-to-the-Home Bait & Switch. • Verizon has FiOS. – Fiber-to-the-home • AT&T --only 4.3 million U-Verse TV • Verizon only 4.7 million FiOS TV Digital Dead Zones: • AT&T stopped deploying-abandoning 50%. • Verizon stopped deploying -abandoning 50% • NO CABLE COMPETITION.

  12. America was Charged $360 Billion Dollars for Networks We Never Got. You Paid About $3000.00

  13. Wireless • Wireless: AT&T and Verizon split up the market– enhanced revenues– 200 million customers. • Wireless is a wired product. • Special Access 80%profits • Collusion of wireline-wireless • Deals with the cable companies.

  14. Cable Companies? • Lobby with the phone companies. • Closed Networks – Can’t choose channels or video providers. • Bandwidth caps to block outside video. • Can’t replace Set Top Box. • “Social Contract” – Customers Paid $42 Billion for Upgrades.

  15. CommTrust-ALEC Close PSTN. • 23 states removed telecom regulation. • 19 states block municipalities. Damage: • Remove “Carrier of Last Resort” – Phone breaks – too bad. • Shut down remaining competitors. • No Net Neutrality. • Remove Regulatory Oversight.

  16. Immediate Threat Federal: • AT&T -FCC –Technical Advisory Council-”Sunset the PSTN” • AT&T Gets FCC Task Force started • AT&T, USTA Petition filed -- Active • Congressional Hearing Feb 6th, 2013

  17. 12 Competitors– One Big Bell.

  18. Why We Will Lose • ALEC- key state legislators, whole legislatures. • AT&T-funds state legislators • AT&T ‘foundation’ grants –legislators Skunkworks: • CommTrust -Skunkworks- multi-state • “Legit” funded groups – Caucus • Astroturf groups-multi-state • Co-opted Non-profits • Media has no clue

  19. Our Side? • No ‘other side’. AT&T is now at&t. • Co-opted basic terms. • No unified messaging. • No Education • No deep pockets. • No ‘coordinated’ group response. • Our allies can be our own enemies. • Tech and Internet community. • Unions, competitors, --- ‘middle ground’ • No media campaign. • Pot shots, small wins SOPA, etc. • No Offensive Plan, Tit-for-Tat.

  20. Reverse ALECWhich Future do you Want?

  21. Read My Lips • Privatized Public Property – Investigate. • Upgrade the Networks – We Paid Them to do it. • Open the Networks– Customers Choose their Internet, Phone, Cable or Broadband Provider. • “Keep your hands off my bits.”

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