Regulators Eliminate Incumbent Carrier Requirements

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Incumbent local exchange carriers will have to comply with fewer regulations as the result of an order adopted by the FCC last week. The commission also issued two notices of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that could lead to a further reduction in incumbent telco regulatory requirements....Learn More

FCC Report Recommends Reducing Small Telco Rate of Return

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A report issued by the Federal Communications Commission last week recommends a substantial reduction in the rate of return that the nation’s smallest telephone companies earn through the inter-carrier compensation (ICC) system. Since 1990 that rate has been 11.25% but if the recommendations made by...Learn More

FCC Cracks Door Open on Naked DSL, Standalone Broadband

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There has been some tension in the marketplace regarding broadband and voice service, particularly in rural markets. It stems from growing consumer demand for standalone broadband – that is subscribing to broadband without the requirement for an accompanying voice line (sometimes referred to as naked...Learn More

Windstream Pushes Rural Health Care Funding

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LITTLE ROCK, Ark., May 16, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Each year, the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) makes available $400 million in funding through the Rural Health Care (RHC) program, to be used for telecommunications and Internet services for health care providers located in rural...Learn More

CEO: Hosted Services Differentiate Windstream Business Offerings

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Windstream has been gradually transforming itself from a local phone company serving tier 2 and tier 3 markets to a nationwide carrier focused on business services. And according to Windstream CEO Jeff Gardner, the company’s optimal strategy in that market is to focus on customers...Learn More

Iowa Telco Selects ADTRAN for FTTH

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May 13, 2013  — HUNTSVILLE, Ala.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–ADTRAN®, Inc., (NASDAQ:ADTN), a leading provider of next-generation networking solutions, announced today that Marne Elk Horn Telephone is using ADTRAN’s Total Access broadband platform to underpin a network-wide upgrade of its last mile service offerings for local schools, residential...Learn More

Metaswitch Targets IMS Core with Clearwater Open Source Code

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Metaswitch Networks today launched Project Clearwater, an open-source code that aims to enable network operators to create a cloud-based IMS core. The code will be available to network operators and others free of charge — although network operators or a third-party would need to do...Learn More

Lumos Networks Launches Metro Richmond With 100 Gig Connectivity

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WAYNESBORO, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Lumos Networks Corp. (NASDAQ:LMOS), a leading provider of fiber-based bandwidth infrastructure & IP Services in key mid-Atlantic markets, today announced plans to build 100 Gig wavelength routes connecting Richmond to Ashburn and Lynchburg in Virginia. These networks are poised to handle the exponential...Learn More

TDS Introduces Live Chat for Sales, Service Assistance

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May 07, 2013 — Connecting with the Sales and Service team at TDS Telecommunications Corp. (TDS®) just got easier. Now people looking for assistance can live chat with a TDS representative once a category is selected. Instant online conversations will assist both new and existing...Learn More

RUS Makes Telecom Loans, Cites Budget Uncertainty

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service this week announced it has awarded loans totaling $26 million to two rural telecom companies. In the announcement, the USDA also took the opportunity to note that it “remains focused on carrying out its mission, despite a...Learn More

Iowa Network Services Acquires HR Outsourcing Firm

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Iowa Network Services, owned by 122 small Iowa telcos, may be best known as the operator of a statewide fiber network. But in recent years the company has been diversifying – and the latest example of that strategy came this week with the announcement that...Learn More

FCC Chairman Nominee Wheeler in His Own Words

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Former telecom trade association chief and current venture capitalist Tom Wheeler, nominated yesterday to replace Julius Genachowski as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, has been hailed for his industry expertise. In a blog that he has written regularly since joining Core Capital Partners several...Learn More