The FCC Public Message Services Policy Change: an ETIP Evaluability
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National Bureau of Standards Library, E-01 Admin. Bldg. OCT 6 1981 1911*12 ^T OF k QC /CO L(67 Q t&S TECHNICAL NOTE 1104 \ J ^EAU Of Volume 1 NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS The National Bureau of Standards' was established by an act of Congress on March 3, 1901. The Bureau's overall goal is to strengthen and advance the Nation's science and technology and facilitate their effective application for public benefit. To this end, the Bureau conducts research and provides: (1) a basis for the Nation's physical measurement system, (2) scientific and technological services for industry and government, (3) a technical basis for equity in trade, and (4) technical services to promote public safety. The Bureau's technical work is per- formed by the National Measurement Laboratory, the National Engineering Laboratory, and the Institute for Computer Sciences and Technology. 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'Headquarters and Laboratories at Gaithersburg, MD, unless otherwise noted; mailing address Washington, DC 20234. 2 Some divisions within the center are located at Boulder, CO 80303. NOV 3 1979 <N9t> ft t Cjl-ccl The FCC Public Message Services Policy Change: An ETIP Evaluability Assessment Report — Volume 1 James Bell 1 Sharon Kirby 1 Roland G. Weiss2 Steve Watson 1 'The Urban Institute 2100 M Street, NW Washington, DC 20037 2 Center for Field Methods Experimental Technology Incentives Program National Bureau of Standards Washington, DC 20234 ^ y^dLl ^0U U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE, Juanita M. Kreps, Secretary Luther H. Hodges, Jr., Under Secretary Jordan J. Baruch, Assistant Secretary for Science and Technology .\y-> NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS, Ernest Ambler, Director Issued September 1979 1 National Bureau of Standards Technical Note 1104/ Nat. Bur. Stand. (U.S.), Tech. Note 1104/1, 232 pages (Sept. 1979) CODEN: NBTNAE U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON: 1979 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402 Stock No. 003-003-02117-2 Price $11. Sold in sets only. (Add 25 percent additional for other than U.S. mailing) Ill ABSTRACT This document is a report of work in progress toward evaluating effects of the recent decision of the Federal Communications Commission to open public message services to competition. It is one product of the Regulatory Processes and Effects Project of the Center for Field Methods (ETIP) . The broader project, described elsewhere, is attempting to analyze the effects of changes in regulatory processes on industrial innovation. The joint ETIP/FCC project will involve measuring whether the FCC policy change leads to increases in competition, technological innovation, and public benefit. The first two chapters provide an introduction and snyopsis. Chapter III examines the setting in which the decision occurs in terms of historical de- velopments, industry trends, and views held by various observers. Chapter IV describes the: Commission's mandate for regulation, process for implementing this mandate in terms of regulations and operations, and current industry status. The fifth chapter describes the evaluation logic. The last chapter is an assessment which shows that there are many choices to be made to target the evaluation. A glossary of terms and bibliography are included. Seven appendices are bound separately. Key words: Administrative experimentation; economic deregulation; evaluability assessment; evaluation; Experimental Technology Incentives Program; Federal Communications Commission; regulatory experimentation; regulatory policy; technological innovation; telecommunications. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report could not have been completed without the assistance and cooperation of many people. First and foremost we would like to thank the Federal Communications Commission staff who provided invaluable information both about Commission operations and about issues that are currently being debated within the telecommunications industry. In particular, we wish to acknowledge: • David Irwin, Chief of Policy and Rules; • James Smith, Policy and Rules; • Charles Oliver of Program Evaluation; • Frank Patella, Judy Nitsche, Ken Levy, and Daniel Harrold of Tariff Review and Tariff Proceedings; • Jim Ferris, Complaints and Service Standards; and • Robert James (Domestic Division) and Helene Bauman (International Division) of the Facilities Branch. We would especially like to thank Leonard Sawicki, Program Evaluation Branch, who provided assistance throughout the effort Including reviews and comments on the preliminary drafts of this report. Staff of both The Urban Institute and The Experimental Technology Incentives Program of the Department of Commerce participated on committees reviewing this report and offered advice during the course of research. We would like to thank Victor Berlin, Bud Libman, and Dan Fulmer of ETIP and Robert Sadacca, John Waller, Joe Nay, Lucile Graham, Michael Mulkey, Bill Foskett, Paul Nalley, John Heinberg, and Richard Schmidt of The Urban Institute. Our initial contact with the industry produced a gratifying response. We would like to thank the common carriers which expressed interest in our experimental evaluation of the effects of changes in interstate tele- communications regulation. In some cases, carriers submitted information about their operations. The telecommunications industry is indeed fast moving and complex. We found that the publication Telecommunications Reports provided valuable information about developments in the industry. Mr. Fred Henck, publisher of Reports , very kindly gave us permission to quote his journal. VI We also appreciate the fine job done by Erica Sweeney who edited this report. Finally, we would like to thank the many people who helped to prepare the report. Staff who assisted us include: Kraig Jones, (Ms.) Mike Malone, Mary Sarley, John Fortunato-Schwandt, Ilona Bush, and Barbara Shunney. We are especially grateful to Copper Wilson who, in spite of coming to the project during the final report writing, took responsibility for primary secretarial support, worked long hours to meet deadlines, and also made valuable contributions to the content of the report. James Bell Sharon Kirby Roland Weiss Steven Watson . — — Vll PREFACE Regulatory agencies and regulatory reform are subjects of great interest today, and the effects of regulation on technological innovation and produc- tivity in American industry are of special concern. Many reforms and changes in the regulatory process are being proposed, and some are being made. Each change represents an "experiment" in the operation of our society, even if no one carefully determines the result of that "experiment." Since 1974, the Experimental Technology Incentives Program (ETIP) located in the Center for Field Methods of the National Bureau of Standards has pursued an understanding