Global Conference Partners urged the FCC to reject ‘misplaced’ Ve...
Global Conference Partners urged the FCC to reject “misplaced” Verizon arguments against InterCall’s appeal of a Universal Service Administrative Co. ruling. USAC ruled that InterCall, an audio bridging company, must contribute directly to USF by filing FCC Form 499s.…
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InterCall asked the FCC to reverse the ruling, saying audio bridging providers need not pay in since they aren’t telecommunications service providers. In April, Verizon urged the FCC to deny InterCall’s petition, citing “long-established” commission precedent and need for “level playing field” policy. The commission never said a stand-alone conference service is a telecom service, Global Conference Partners said. And the Bell’s “policy contention is both disingenuous and mistaken,” it said. Verizon faces no “unfair regulatory disparity vis- ?-vis InterCall” because the FCC’s Computer II rules “explicitly treat facilities-based providers differently from non-facilities-based providers” (emphasis in original), it said.