Neither Fish nor Fowl: New Strategies for Selective Regulation of Information Services

INTRODUCTION................................................................................... 374 I. TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES VERSUS INFORMATION SERVICES ....................................................................................... 380 A. The Supreme Court Endorses Cable Modem Internet Access as an Information Service............................................. 382 B. DSL Migrates from Telecommunications Service to Information Service ................................................................. 387 II. VOIP SERVICE REGULATION ...................................................... 391 A. VoIP Service Providers Must Contribute to Universal Service Funding Regardless of Their Regulatory Status ......... 392 B. Outline of the Universal Service Funding Process .................. 393 C. The FCC’s Decision to Include VoIP Service Providers as Compulsory USF Contributors Upheld .................................. 399 D. Mandatory Wiretapping Cooperation for VoIP and Internet Access Providers ........................................................ 403 III. ERODING A NEW COMPETITOR’S COMPARATIVE ADVANTAGES ............................................................................... 412 A. Have Courts Become Too Deferential to the FCC?............... 414 B. Reasoned Analysis or Results-Oriented Decision Making?.... 419 CONCLUSION....................................................................................... 420