The FCC Thursday (May 20) voted to clarify what it means for cable and
telcos to have nondiscriminatory access to utility poles, though it
left the heavy lifing on setting and lowering rates and timelines (shot
clock) for a further rulemaking proposal.
The commission's goal
is to set pole-attachment rental rates "as low and close to uniform as
possible," said Wireline Competition Bureau attorney advisor Wes Platt,
while speeding the process of attaching to those poles. Both are seen
as a way to stimulate broadband deployment and competition. The FCC
made pole attachment reform a part of the national broadband plan and
one of its first action items.
The FCC voted to launch the pole
attachment reform process and several other broadband plan-related
items at its monthly public meeting Thursday.
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