Ackerman: Federal regulators ‘over-manage’

BellSouth Chairman and CEO Duane Ackerman today said the over-management of telecom policy by federal regulators has resulted in “disincentives” for continued capital investment by telcos, and this will continue to negatively impact the technology sector and the overall economy.

Speaking to the Birmingham, Ala., Rotary Club, Ackerman said the telecom sector has undergone “overwhelming change” in recent years, but that current regulation – which was written at a time “when alternative technologies were not as pervasive as they are today” – does not take into account today’s competitive marketplace or the emergence of digital technologies.

As evidence, Ackerman said that two-thirds of the traffic on BellSouth’s network is now data, and that 122 million cell phones are in use nationwide, compared to 192 million access lines.

Ackerman called for the FCC to adjust its policies so that the market determines the fate of competitors and that its rules focus on creating regulatory parity between competing technologies.

“We need new rules for a new world,” Ackerman said. “We are asking for the deregulation of our industry. The same rules that apply to all the other players – whether it’s cable, satellite, wireless or any new technology – should also apply to us.”– Glenn Bischoff, senior writer