Line Sharing Not Dead Yet

from the token-agreement dept

After the FCC removed the requirement for Bells to share their lines with competitors, many pointed out that those competitors could still negotiate line sharing agreements on their own. However, with the Bells significantly overpricing line sharing (monopoly power does wonders), it didn't seem like many deals were forthcoming. Covad was one competitor that, while also looking at alternative technologies, took some of the Baby Bells to court for anti-trust violations. Today comes the news that they've settled with both Verizon and MCI (separately, of course, as they're two separate companies for another few days or so) and will be able to resell lines at a set price. Of course, from the telco side this probably makes sense. They get a lawsuit off of their back and they have a token line sharing customer they can point to as evidence that they're not holding back competition. Though, if you're Covad right now, it seems pretty likely that you're not relying on this agreement and are actively working to push forward with wireless broadband to route around the telcos.

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