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Before the
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of )
)
AT&T Corporation, )
)
Complainant, )
)
v. ) File No. E-96-36
)
Frontier Communications of Mt. Pulaski, Inc., )
Frontier Communications-Schuyler, Inc., )
Frontier Communications-Midland, Inc., )
Frontier Telephone of Rochester, Inc., and )
Global Crossing North America, Inc., )
)
Defendants. )
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
Adopted: February 21, 2002 Released:
February 27, 2002
By the Commission:
·
1. In this Memorandum Opinion and Order
(``Order''), we deny a formal complaint that AT&T
Corporation (``AT&T'') filed against Frontier Communications
of Mt. Pulaski, Inc. (``Frontier-MP''), Frontier
Communications of Schuyler, Inc. (``Frontier-Schuyler''),
Frontier Communications-Midland, Inc. (Frontier-Midland''),
Frontier Telephone of Rochester, Inc. (``Frontier
Telephone''), and Global Crossing North America, Inc.
(``Global Crossing'') (collectively, ``Defendants'')
pursuant to section 208 of the Communications Act of 1934,
as amended (``Act'' or ``Communications Act'').1 AT&T
alleges that access revenue-sharing arrangements between
Defendants and certain information providers to which
Defendants terminated traffic constituted unreasonable
discrimination, in violation of section 202(a) of the Act,2
and breached Defendants' common carrier duties, in violation
of section 201(b) of the Act.3 The issues raised in this
Complaint are identical to those raised and denied in AT&T
Corp. v. Jefferson Telephone Co.4 Thus, for the reasons
explained therein, we conclude that AT&T has failed to meet
its burden of demonstrating that Defendants violated either
section 202(a) or section 201(b) of the Act,5 and therefore
deny AT&T's complaint in its entirety. Moreover, we decline
to reach three issues that AT&T raised for the first time in
its briefs, because the tardy raising of these issues
renders the record insufficient to permit a reasoned
decision.6
2. ACCORDINGLY, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to
sections 1, 4(i), 4(j), 201(b), 202(a), and 208 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §§ 151,
154(i), 154(j), 201(b), 202(a), and 208, that the above-
captioned complaint filed by AT&T IS DENIED IN ITS ENTIRETY,
and this proceeding is TERMINATED WITH PREJUDICE.
3. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, pursuant to sections
1, 4(i), 4(j), 201(b), 202(a), and 208 of the Communications
Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. §§ 151, 154(i), 154(j),
201(b), 202(a), and 208, that Frontier's Motion to Dismiss,
and Frontier's Motion to Dismiss Supplement to Verified
Complaint are DISMISSED.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
William F. Caton
Acting Secretary
_________________________
1 47 U.S.C. § 208. AT&T Corp. v. Frontier
Communications of Mt. Pulaski, Inc. et al., Verified
Complaint, File No. E-96-36 (filed July 15, 1996)
(``Complaint'').
2 47 U.S.C. § 202(a). Section 202(a) of the Act
makes it unlawful ``for any common carrier to make any
unjust or unreasonable discrimination in charges, practices,
. . . facilities, or services for or in connection with like
communication service . . . or to make or give any undue or
unreasonable preference or advantage to any particular
person.'' 47 U.S.C. § 202(a).
3 47 U.S.C. § 201(b). Section 201(b) of the Act
provides, in pertinent part, that ``[a]ll . . . practices .
. . in connection with such communication service shall be
just and reasonable, and any such . . . practice . . . that
is unjust or unreasonable is hereby declared to be
unlawful.'' 47 U.S.C. § 201(b).
4 AT&T Corp. v. Jefferson Telephone Co., Memorandum
Opinion and Order, 16 FCC Rcd 16130 (2001) (``AT&T v.
Jefferson'').
5 See generally Hi-Tech Furnace Systems, Inc. v.
FCC, 224 F.3d 781, 787 (D.C. Cir. 2000) (affirming that the
complainant in a proceeding conducted under section 208 of
the Act bears the burden of proof).
6 See, e.g., AT&T v. Jefferson, 16 FCC Rcd at 16133
n.18; Consumer.Net v. AT&T Corp., Order, 15 FCC Rcd 281,
300, ¶ 40 n.93 (1999) (declining to consider an argument
raised for the first time in the briefs). Cf., Building
Owners and Managers Association International v. FCC, 254
F.3d 89, 100 n.14 (D.C. Cir. 2001) (declining to address an
issue raised cursorily in the brief).