In an update to my post FCC Removes DSL Network-Sharing Rules, a panel of federal judges recently upheld the ruling that exempted regional telephone companies from sharing portions of their broadband networks with competitors.
The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied Earthlink's request for review of a 2003 Federal Communications Commission order that left Verizon, BellSouth, Qwest and the pre-merger SBC Communications free, with respect to fiber-based networks, from requirements in a 1996 federal telecommunications law that generally forced such companies to "unbundle" network elements for access by potential competitors.
During oral arguments in May, a lawyer for EarthLink argued that the FCC had behaved illegally in enacting the exemptions because it hadn't adequately assessed the state of competition in the broadband industry. The judges dismissed those arguments, saying federal law "imposes no particular mode of market analysis or level of geographic rigor."
Chris Putala, EarthLink's executive vice president for public policy, downplayed the impact of the court's decision. He said in an e-mail message to CNETnews.com that the company would "continue negotiating our commercial agreements with the RBOCs (regional Bell operating companies) to include fiber to the home when we have products and services to deliver."
