Wireless carriers disagreed on whether the CMRS market was compet...
Wireless carriers disagreed on whether the CMRS market was competitive enough. As the FCC gathers information for its annual report on CMRS competition, smaller wireless carriers expressed concern about the problems they had experienced in obtaining commercially reasonable roaming…
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agreement with large nationwide carriers. SouthernLinc Wireless complained that Nextel and Nextel Partners -- the only domestic carriers SouthernLinc could roam with -- had repeatedly “engaged in unreasonable roaming practices to the detriment of wireless consumers,” especially those who relied on iDEN networks. It said the FCC “should be aware that there is already market failure for iDEN roaming, and that serious questions remain regarding the availability of roaming in the United States.” Separately, Virgin Mobile said the FCC should focus its attention on “the significant regulatory barriers to entry that threaten the viability of innovative wireless service plans,” instead of technical and economic concerns. It called on the Commission to protect the wireless industry against state and local efforts to “regulate rates, limit wireless products and services to more affluent users and constrain competition.” It also said as the FCC reforms the USF system, it should exempt lower income, lower usage prepaid customers from payment of any USF connections-based fee. Leap Wireless said the CMRS market remained “highly competitive” from the consumer’s standpoint, but it said the Commission should understand the disparity between “the big carriers who possess national market power and the small carriers who do not” and it should “assist the smaller companies in their effort to keep the market competitive.” Dobson Communications and T-Mobile agreed with CTIA earlier comments that the wireless marketplace was “vibrantly competitive.” Dobson urged the FCC to reaffirm its prior finding that “effective CMRS competition exists in rural areas.” T-Mobile said the main concern expressed by rural wireless carriers was about competition from national carriers. “If anything, this demonstrates that the Commission is achieving its goal of increasing competition in rural areas,” it said. T-Mobile said the policy changes proposed by some rural carriers would interfere with competition and its benefits to consumers. It urged the FCC to retain its current licensing rules and avoid intervening in roaming negotiations between rural and national carriers.