Overseeing the Unforeseeable: A Rational Regulatory Approach to 21st Century Communications

I. THE 1996 TELECOM ACT OVERVIEW...................................... 32 II. IS THE FCC THE REGULATORY SOLUTION? ........................... 33 A. Disparities in Regularity Treatment ...................................... 34 1. Pricing issues.................................................................... 35 2. Service roll out ................................................................. 35 3. Promotions ...................................................................... 35 4. Cable companies: An unregulated competitor ................ 35 III. FIXING THE 1996 TELECOM ACT: THREE SUGGESTIONS...... 37 A. Expand the Scope .................................................................. 37 B. Promote Competition while Reducing Regulation................ 39 C. Address the Difficult Issues ................................................... 40 IV. FCC CHANGES---NEW LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES? ........ 41 CONCLUSION .................................................................................... 41