Persuading Local Loop Unbundling

timod

In the Sunday Business Post:
http://www.sbpost.ie/story.jsp?bottomadvert=&rightadverts=&rightnav=/common/adverts/right/communicationsright.html&leftadverts=&advert=/common/navs/top/communicationsbanner.htm&title=Communications&story=WCContent;id-44443&list=businesspost

This looks good.

Melody to persuade Irish to unbundle local loop
By Adrian Weckler
Dublin, Ireland, 28 April, 2002

A former chief executive of the US Federal Communications Commission has been given until November to persuade Irish telecoms operators that unbundling the local loop can be profitable. Bill Melody has been appointed chairman of an industry group set up by telecoms regulator Etain Doyle.

The group will attempt to show operators such as Eircom and Esat how to calculate long range
interconnection costs. Disputes over these tariffs -- the price at which Eircom charges other operators for access to local telephone lines -- have delayed local loop unbundling and the availability of high speed internet to consumers.

Melody said that he expects to beat the November deadline. "Lawyers and economists are making careers out of calculating costs on this, but I argue that a lot of it is unnecessary. There are better ways of doing it and short circuiting the process can work."

He said that he was unfamiliar with the recent history of Irish telecoms regulation. "I know a little bit about the Irish situation, though not enough," he said.

"I know that the first round of interconnection had difficulties, but then most countries have difficulties. The goal is to get something that may not be perfect but is workable."

Melody runs one-week training courses for European regulatory authorities on unbundling the local loop. He also lectures at Dutch and Danish universities.

"The debate over the costing exercise is just the surface," he said. "The real debate is the competitive position of the various players."

"Unless you approach it carefully you will favour one operator over another and that's been a problem in the European experience." He said that among his priorities would be to convince Eircom that it can have a profitable wholesale business.