Center Urges FCC to Retire “Legacy” Rules to Speed Up High-Speed Internet Growth

In recent reply comments to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the Center for Business and Public Policy argues that outdated regulations are forcing companies to waste billions of dollars on obsolete technology.

At the heart of the debate are Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILECs), which are the traditional, “legacy” telephone companies that originally built and owned the nation’s copper-wire phone networks. Under rules set in 1996, these companies are still required to maintain old-fashioned “analog-style” systems (known as TDM architectures) to help competitors connect to their networks.

The center’s analysis highlights three critical reasons for a policy shift:

Economic Waste: Maintaining these “antiquated” copper networks costs billions — AT&T alone spent approximately $6 billion on them in 2024.
Diverted Investment: Every dollar spent propping up 20th-century technology is a dollar that cannot be invested in modern, high-speed IP-based (Internet Protocol) fiber and wireless networks.
A Changed Market: While these rules were meant to break up monopolies in 1996, the traditional phone companies’ share of the market has plummeted from 100% to just 3% today.

The center maintains that “putting sand in the gears” of this technological transition creates unnecessary waste for the economy and slower service for consumers.

Read the center’s full analysis on network modernization.