A Phone System With Safeguards

Coverage Type: 

[Commentary] Is it time to phase out the telephone system that has been with us since the days of Alexander Graham Bell? The Federal Communications Commission is grappling with this question as more Americans switch from wired phones to cellphones and Internet-based services like Skype.

The FCC is expected to authorize AT&T and other phone companies to replace conventional telephone wires with wireless or fiber-optic connections in certain neighborhoods or a large rural area to see how such a change would work in practice. As the FCC deals with new technology, it needs to keep in place safeguards that have long ensured that the phone system serves everyone. Today, Americans who cannot afford regular phone service can get a subsidized wired or wireless connection. That should continue even if the underlying technology changes. While some Internet-based phone services like Skype do not currently allow calls to 911, regulators should make sure new technology used by phone companies will allow consumers to dial emergency services. And as telecommunications companies upgrade their networks, they should continue to connect to each other’s systems and to devices like home alarm systems and heart rate monitors seamlessly. America has a long history of telecommunications innovation since Bell made the first call to Watson nearly 140 years ago. The issue is not whether the phone system needs to be upgraded. It’s how.

[Dec 23]


A Phone System With Safeguards