Biting off as much as it can chew Council sinks its teeth into interconnectivity >BY Denise Pappalardo, East Coast Bureau Chief

The Federal Communications Commission has been grappling with issues and concerns surrounding interconnection since the Telecommunications Reform Act was signed in February. Last week, a committee created to address the technical aspects of interconnection held its first meeting at FCC headquarters in Washington, D.C. Its goal: To come up with recommendations to help the FCC and the industry implement this vital component of telecom competition. The group, called the Network Reliability and Interoperability Council, will address network interconnectivity and pinpoint network barriers to interconnection and accessibility. It also will review how standards are set and the FCC's role in that process. The council got started with the help of the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions, known for setting up industry think tanks. Ivan Seidenberg, Nynex chairman and chief executive officer, heads the group. By this time next year, the council is expected to make recommendations that will ensure optimal reliability, interoperability, accessibility and interconnectivity, he said. Section 256 of the Telecom Act addresses interconnection, and in Seidenberg's words, raises the question of how users will continue to seamlessly communicate over interconnected networks while carriers ensure quality of service. During its initial meeting, the council divided into two focus groups. The first, led by Chairman John Gunter, chief technology officer at BellSouth, will address network interconnectivity and planning oversight, including technical, operational, security and interoperability issues. The group will be divided into a network team and a customer equipment team. The network team will determine the barriers to network accessibility and interconnectivity and develop solutions to overcome them. The customer equipment team will come up with procedures the FCC should follow to conduct effective oversight of network planning to ensure interoperability. Focus group II, chaired by Jerry Peterson, technical standards director at AT&T, will address the FCC's role in standards-setting activities, including evaluating the effectiveness of current processes. The Reliability Council is a federal advisory committee chartered by the FCC. Its charter expires Jan. 6, 1998.