Dear Commissioner,
I am writing to urge you to block the proposed SBC/AT&T and Verizon/MCI mergers
(WC Dockets 05-65 and 05-75, respectively). These mergers would stifle
competition and would decrease options while increasing price. They could even
worsen the "digital divide" at a time when over 60 percent of Americans don't
have high-speed Internet service in the home.
Big Bell companies are blocking access to their networks and stopping
competition before it can even begin for local, long-distance, the Internet,
cell phone services, and new technologies like making calls over the Internet.
If these mergers go through, only two companies will control 90 percent of the
consumer market. These mergers would put the interests of large corporations
over the interests of individual consumers, and you have a duty to block them.
In a world of increased competition, consumers could be enjoying unlimited local
and long-distance telephone calls, as well as high-speed Internet access, for
just $40 -- $15 for community Internet and $25 for unlimited phone calls over
the Internet. But today, this costs about $90 more than double the price! The
FCC should block these mergers and find new ways to bring down the costs of
these services, particularly high-speed Internet which has become essential to
modern life and is the gateway to exciting new techn!
ologies, like making phone calls on the Internet and streaming in video over
the Internet. America is falling behind the rest of the world in broadband
deployment. We are now 16th, far behind countries like Japan and Korea, which
have opened up the building blocks of broadband phone and cable lines to
competitors. This merger would only worsen these problems and therefore must
be blocked. They would stifle competition, raise prices, and lead to fewer
choices, making the problem worse, not better.
Sincerely,
Douglas Broughman
91 Bickford Dr
Palm Coast, FL 32137-9369