Jeff Pulver, the unofficial godfather of the VoIP business, has been traveling the globe with pulver.com’s regulatory counsel Jonathan Askin and is just now turning his attention toward the FCC’s USF Order, which requires VoIP providers to contribute to the universal service fund. It has also taken some time for the FCC to push its 151-page order out the door.
Aside from the first-time application of fees on VoIP providers (with fees applied to 64.9% of revenues), the Order has a number of nasty surprises for VoIP companies. One particularly outrageous provision: if a VoIP provider wants to rebut with actual revenue figures the 64.9% “safe harbor” rate, which is supposed to represent the proportion of revenues flowing from interstate services, then that provider is subject to state regulation.
Pulver’s summary of the Order’s details is well worth reading because it reveals just how many rules get spawned with even the simplest FCC decision. Jeff is appealing to the blogosophere to help get the word out about this development. Leading the fight against new regulatory burdens on VoIP providers is the Pulver-backed VON Coalition.
Cynthia Brumfield at 3:03 PM|Comments(0)
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