Background: MCI today announced that the company has reached an agreement with Qwest on a framework for transparent and mediated negotiations regarding access to the public telephone network. These open negotiations will be monitored by Cheryl Parrino, former Chair of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission and former CEO of the Universal Service Administrative Company. This agreement came in response to MCI approaching Qwest and the other Bell companies in the wake of MCI CEO Michael Capellas' April 1 letter to the FCC accepting the commissioners' call for mediated negotiations.
The following statement can be attributed to Stasia Kelly, general counsel of MCI.
"Qwest's acceptance of our offer for good faith negotiations is a positive step forward. MCI has invited all of the Bell companies to join us in transparent and mediated negotiations, but to date only Qwest has accepted this offer. We call on BellSouth, Verizon and SBC to come to the negotiating table and enter into open, transparent and mediated talks. It is in the interest of all companies and consumers to put our positions on the table, in full view of fair and impartial mediators and to attempt to reach agreement as quickly as we can."
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