Verizon faults anti-business provisions of telecom law

Verizon Pacifica sales and marketing manager Kerry Deets lambasted what she claims were business-restrictive provisions of the newly-signed CNMI Telecommunications Act of 2001.

This, even as Ms. Deets openly declared that Verizon Pacifica will strictly abide by the requirements and standards called for under the new measure.

“The implications of this new law is very serious. Verizon’s official position is that “we abide by the laws in the communities we serve. This new law will not promote competition, it will not stimulate investment, it will not produce lower rates but it will drive away business, including existing business,” she said.

Speaking before the general meeting of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce yesterday, Ms. Deets enumerated 12 points as to how PL 12-39 will be damaging to the telecommunications industry in the CNMI.

She said the creation of a regulatory commission to oversee the function of telecommunications industry players would add another bureaucratic layer, translating to higher costs to companies, which translate to higher consumer rates.

Ms. Deets also criticized the law as being unnecessary since it will merely do what the federal government has sought to accomplish in the Telecommunications Act of 1996.

PL 12-39, according to the Verizon executive, runs against the grain of what the telecommunications industry in the US is already doing.

“In the US, the FCC has moved to deregulate each business area where competition exists in order to facilitate a free market condition and investment opportunities in the telecom industry,” Ms. Deets pointed out.

She said the Commonwealth Telecommunications Act is the exact opposite of activities in the mainland US. Ms. Deets noted that telecom companies would only perceive additional regulation as burdensome.

Verizon’s sales and marketing manager also questioned as to why the telecommunications commission which PL 12-39 seeks to create would be funded by the companies it is expected to regulate, unlike other regularly bodies in the Commonwealth which are funded by taxpayers.

“The new law fosters an environment of business-unfriendly and will drive investment away,” she said. “It adds higher cost to consumers as it contains unlimited government spending that the telecommunications companies must pay for.”

In the perspective of other businesses, especially media, Ms. Deets also said the law is also potentially damaging. She mentioned that the provision which gives the regulatory body the power to set all pricing for products and services offered by players would severely limit telecom companies’ promotions.

The particular provision, according to her, implies that special discounts and promotions may not be offered by industry players without the consent of the commission. It will have 60 days to approve or decline such promotion under the law.

On the other hand, if a certain promotion bombs out, Ms. Deets said, a player would again have to wait for the maximum 60-day review period of the commission.

She also appeared irked by a provision in the telecommunication law that states that shareholders of any telecom company may not sell off any interest or shares without the consent of the commission.

After saying this, she turned to chamber members and asked, “with this (law), will anyone still be interested in buying?”

Ms. Deets also attacked the law’s provision requiring existing telecom companies, like Verizon, to apply for certification with the soon to established commission.

She said that according to the law, failure to get the certification or operating license would result in a $25,000 a day fine for violation of PL 12-39.

“The new law is intrusive and diminished the ability of all telecom providers to compete,” she said. “It is Verizon’s position that we will support amendments that will meet the needs of the community while at the same time, protecting the rights of telecom businesses to continue operations in the CNMI without excessive government intervention.”