AT&T can get out of the POTS biz tomorrow by selling it and the pieces that are regulated with it. In fact, AT&T was out of the POTS biz in most of the country and bought its way back in.
They could, for example, do cell phone, long distance, and cable TV without being in the POTS biz.
However, they can't provide DSL capacity without being in the POTS biz.
What they want is a monopoly for certain forms of access without having to provide POTS. (I'm not sure exactly what.)
If we buy their "universal service" argument, the solution is actually to use cell phone revenues to bolster POTS service. There's precedent - they took their POTS revenues to build/buy their cell phone service.
AT&T can get out of the POTS biz tomorrow by selling it and the pieces that are regulated with it. In fact, AT&T was out of the POTS biz in most of the country and bought its way back in.
They could, for example, do cell phone, long distance, and cable TV without being in the POTS biz.
However, they can't provide DSL capacity without being in the POTS biz.
What they want is a monopoly for certain forms of access without having to provide POTS. (I'm not sure exactly what.)
If we buy their "universal service" argument, the solution is actually to use cell phone revenues to bolster POTS service. There's precedent - they took their POTS revenues to build/buy their cell phone service.