Testing of BellSouth's Systems Will Ensure Reliable,
Competitive Local Phone Alternatives
BACKGROUND: The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) today
voted in favor of independent testing and certification of
BellSouth's underlying service order systems, known as
"operations support systems" (OSS). In the marketplace, these
systems must be able to handle large volumes of orders that competitors
place with BellSouth as customers switch from one local phone carrier
to the next.
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 calls for BellSouth to develop
fully-functional, electronic OSS as one key piece of evidence to
demonstrate that BellSouth has fully opened its local telephone
monopoly to competitors before it wins approval to offer in-state long
distance services.
The Georgia PSC's decision continues its efforts in making sure
BellSouth's OSS works and it follows the lead of other state
regulators (including New York, Texas and Pennsylvania) to test the
Bell monopoly's OSS before approving any long distance request.
More importantly, these tests can identify and correct flaws in the
Bell monopoly's systems to minimize any customer service issues.
Georgia is the first state within BellSouth's nine-state service
territory to order third-party OSS testing.
(The following statement should be attributed to Brian Sulmonetti,
regional director for MCI WorldCom Public Policy.)
ATLANTA, May 18, 1999 -- "Today's decision is an important
step toward delivering a choice for local phone service in Georgia once
and for all. MCI WorldCom knows first-hand about cracking open monopoly
markets -- just like we did in the long distance industry in the 1980s
and more recently, when we launched residential local phone service in
New York earlier this year.
"This kind of testing is crucial for widespread local phone
competition to take root. And it must be done by a truly independent,
third party tester, who can identify and correct any system flaw that
could jeopardize reliable, local phone service.
"Testing made local phone choice a reality in New York, where
more customers are choosing MCI WorldCom over Bell Atlantic on a daily
basis. While the bugs continue to be worked out of Bell Atlantic's
systems, one conclusion can be drawn: real-world testing delivers a
real-world choice for local phone service."
