The Adams Legal Firm, LLC 626C Admiral Drive #3 12 Annapolis, MD 21401 202-448-9033 (Tel) 202-448-9040 (Fax) Jbadams62adamslegal Firm.Com

03/2g06 THU 16:38 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGA4L FIRM

THEADAMS LEGAL FIRM, LLC

1474 NORTH POINT VILLAGE CENTER #301 626C ADMIRAL DRIVE #3 12 RESTON, VA 20 194 ANNAPOLIS, MD 21401

TELEPHONE TELEPHONE (703) 738-4812 (202) 448-9033

FACSIMILE FACSIMILE (757) 273-1 120 (202) 448-9040

TAMBER RAY JOHNB. ADAMS Of Counsel Member ~ZICHARDM. TETTELBAUM Of Counsel

March 23,2006

VIA FACSIMILE AND OVERNIGHT DELIVERY Sandra Squire, Executive Secretary Public Service Commission of West Virginia 201 Brooks Street Charleston, WV 25301

RE: Case No. 06-0195-T-CN; Shentel Converged Services of West Virginia, Inc.

Dear Ms. Squire:

Pursuant to Rule 4.3 of the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, I am filing in the above-referenced proceeding the enclosed “Opposition to Petition for Certificate and Petition to Intervene’’ on behalf of Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier Communications of West Virginia by sending two copies today via facsimile transmission and by sending an original and twelve copies, along with a “stamp and return’’ copy, via overnight delivery.

When the overnight package arrives, please mark as received the enclosed “stamp and return” copy and return it to the undersigned in the enclosed postage-paid, pre-addressed

ou for your assistance with this matter.

Sincerely /LJ & John B. Adams WV Bar # 7605 03/23/06 THU 16:39 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM @J 003

Before the Public Service Commission of West Virginia Charleston, West Virginia

Case No. 06-0195-T-CN

SHENTEL CONVERGED SERVICES OF WEST VIRGINIA, INC.

Petition for Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity

OPPOSITION TO PETITION FOR CERTIFICATE AND PETITION TO INTERVENE

Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier

Communications of West Virginia (“Frontier”), by counsel, respectfully submits this

opposition to the petition of Shentel Converged Services of West Virginia, Inc.

(“Shentel”) for a certificate of public convenience and necessity. Frontier also requests

intervenor status in this proceeding. In support, Frontier states as follows:

1. Shentel filed a Petition for Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity on

February 15,2006 (“Shentel Petition”).

2. Shentel requests that it be certificated to provide intrastate telecommunications

services throughout West Virginia both on a facilities-basis and on a resale basis. Shentel

Petition at 5.

3. Shentel describes the services it proposes to provide and the areas where it plans

initially to provide service. Of relevance here, Shentel states that it intends to provide

circuit-switched telephone service to business customers who will be located in business

and office buildings to be constructed on property owned by Tackley Mill, LLC and by

Blackford Village, LLC. These properties are located near Charles Town, West Virginia. __- 03/23/06 THU 16:39 FAX 2024489040 ADAYS LEGAL FIRM 004

Shentel also states that it plans to provide voice telephone service to residential customers

in the Charles Town area using voice-over-Internet-protocol (“VOIP”) technology.

Shentel Petition at 5-9.

4. Shentel omits a material fact from this description.

5. Shentel has entered exclusive contracts with the developers of these properties to ’

be the exclusive provider of voice telephone and other services. Attached are copies of

two ne,wspaper articles describing the exclusive arrangements at Tackley Mill.

6. The newspaper articles focus on Tackley Mill being a residential development.

Frontier, however, believes that commercial development also will occur at Tackley Mill.

7. Based on discussions between Frontier’s local Senior Network Engineer and a

representative of the developer, Shentel and the developer have entered a similar

arrangement for Blackford Farm, which is contiguous to Tackley Mill.

8. Prior to the sale of the Blackford Farm property to the current developer, Frontier

had begun installing equipment necessary to provide service within Blackford Farm.

Frontier has halted all construction at Blackford Farm as a result of the exclusive

arrangement between the developer and Shentel.

9. Plans for Blackford Farm include construction of a conference center, hotel,

church, parking facilities, medical offices, grocery and other retail shopping, bank, and

buildings to house various public service agencies, such as police, fire, and school

facilities. The retail shopping is planned to occupy over 263,000 square feet. The Office

space will occupy approximately 371,000 square feet.

10. At Blackford Farm, construction of streets, along with conduits for telephone and

other utilities, is underway. 03/23/06 THU 16:40 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM 005

1I. The exclusive arrangements between Shentel and the developer of these

properties prevent Frontier from building facilities to serve customers at each

development.

12. The attached news article from the Quad-State Business Journal includes quotes

from a Shentel representative that make clear Shentel’s intent to seek similar

arrangements with other developers and builders.

13. It is unlawful for a telephone utility to enter the kind of exclusive arrangement

that Shentel has entered with the developer of Tackley Mill and Blackford Farm and

intends to enter with other developers.

14. Federal rules governing local competition expressly prohibit carriers from

entering these kinds of exclusive arrangements with respect to “any commercial multiunit

premises.” 47 C.F.R. $64.2500. Federal rules currently do not prohibit such exclusive

arrangements with respect to residential customers, but the FCC is considering whether to

extend this prohibition to residential customers, too. See, e.g., 47 C.F. R. § 64.2501; First

Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in WT Docket No. 99-

21 7, Fifth Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and Order in CC Docket No.

96-98, and Fourth Report and Order and Memorandum Opinion and Order in CC

Docket No. 88-57 (FCC 00-366, (rel. Oct. 25, 2000).

15. Such exclusive arrangements also violate the West Virginia Code and the strong

public policy in favor of competition.

16. Shentel’s entry of these exclusive arrangements is an unjust and unreasonable

practice in violation of West Yirginia Code J 24-2-7(u). These arrangements also violate

3 03/23/06 THLT 16: 40 FA4X 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM

that code section by preventing consumers from reasonably obtaining service from

Frontier and from any other carrier certificated to serve the affected areas.

17. Were Shentel already certificated, its entry of these exclusive arrangements would

be a basis for putting Shentel into receivership pursuant to West Virginia Code $24-2-

7(b) on the basis that Shentel’s management is unresponsive to the needs of customers by

preventing them from obtaining service from other carriers.

18. Shentel also has violated West Virginia Code § 24-2-11 to the extent that it has

begun construction of any plant, equipment, facility, or property for the furnishing of

service without first having obtained a certificate of public convenience and necessity.

19. Shentel’s entry into these exclusive arrangements violates the strong public policy

in favor of competition. Shentel’s express efforts to prevent competition and to deny

consumers the ability to obtain service from other service providers are ample basis for

the Commission to deny Shentel’s Petition.

20. The omission of material fact in its petition related to the services Shentel seeks

authority to provide, and the obvious intent of its management to deny consumers the

ability to obtain service from other carriers despite clear rules and public policy against

such anti-competitive behavior, call into question Shentel’s qualifications to obtain a

certificate of public convenience and necessity.

2 1. In addition to objecting to Shentel’s Petition, Frontier also requests to intervene in

this proceeding pursuant to Rule 12.6 of the Commission’s RuEes of Practice and

Procedure. Intervention is permissible at any time at or before a matter is called for

hearing. Further, as described above, Frontier has a clear interest in this proceeding. 03/23/06 THU 16:41 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM 007

WHEREFORE, Frontier objects to Shentel’s petition for a certificate of public

convenience and necessity, and respectfully requests that the petition be denied. Frontier

further respectfully requests that it be granted intervenor status in this proceeding. Respectfully submitted,

u, J -- -v - 1, ,/- John B. Adi The Adams Legal Firm, LLC 626C Admiral Drive #3 12 Annapolis, MD 21401 202-448-9033 (tel) 202-448-9040 (fax) jbadams62adamslegal firm.com

March 23,2006 03/23/06 THU 16:41 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM @ 008 l&l UUL 03/23/2006 17:31 FAX 1 585 263 9986 FRONTIER LEGAL SERVICES

AFFIDAVIT AND VENFICA’MON

State: of New York ) 1 County of Monroe )

TO WIT:

I, Greg8 C. Sayre, depose and state:

I am Assistant Secrdary for Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier Communications of West Virginia. Tbe facts relating to the matters addressed in Frontier’s “Opposition to Petition for Certificate and Petition to Intervene” in Case No. 06-0195-T-CNhave come to be known to me in the course of my employnent. J have reviewed Mat document and attest that tlie facts described therein are true and correct to the best of my information, knowledge, and belief.

date f

Taken, subscribed, and sworn to before me lhis’ dayof md,2006. 009 03/23/06 THU 16:41 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM

ihentel to Provide 03/23/06 THU 16:42 FBS 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM @ 010

6 QUADSTATE BWSblESS JOURdAL * ‘MARCH ufod Shentel to’PutFiber to New Homels in by Peter HeemWP Verizonisnottheonlytelwm vice in the wrthern Sheddoah Val- hurt their ability to offer consumers wiring Wadband, tu the home. ley, then teaming with Sprint to offer bundled television, Interuet and de- Sh~mudoahTelecommuxkation com- personal communicationssehcea~ong phone services. pany is &so entering the market, albeit the hterstate 81 corridor. “We fiavc applied for a.fkan- on a smaller scale, focusing ou new “This will be OUT fitfiber-to- chi& aY Tackley Mill, and we have no housing developments: in the Quad- the-home anzmgernent,” said Nancy reason to believe it won’t be panted by state region. Sbdler, vice president of marketing at the &ty* of Ranson,” said Stadler. The Edinburg, Vas,company Shentel. “We already have fibec optic Adelpbia Communicat~cms, has tmmd into an exclusive agtee- going to Ranson, so we ohly need a inc.isthec&le TV fianchiseholchfot mmt with ~eesburg,Va, developer> one-mile extension to TmMey Mill. 3effekn County, but that c~mpmy, RCMSRRgacy Custom Homes to build We’ll put fiber to the house, while the still in bankruptcy, Will be split up IUIadvanced fiber optic network for builder is respbnsible for inside the betweea Time Warner Cable and Legacy’s newest community, TacMey home,” C~~mcast,with the latter company tak- Mill in Ranson, W,Va. Shentel Wig SWer said Shenkl’s basic ing over operatinns in the Quad-rrste provide a suite of telecommunications service to the home would be paid for region because it has system in w- solutions to the 1,000-unit develop- through the homeowners’ &sociation cent territories. Frontier, a unit of-- ment, including local and long distance- fees, much like garbage collection is 7x11sCommunications Company, isthe -- handled. Premium services will be wireline provider for JeffersonCoay. telephone service, digital cable TV, paid for on a residence-bd-residence Hoping to take advantage Qf high-speed Internet access and secu- basis. I its fiber optic capacity dong the Inter- monitoring. rity Shentel has expcrjchcc in both state 8 1 corridor and th growing vol- According to Shentel, those the cable and broadband Internet buui- ume of housing developments in the: services include Voice over internet ness, 11 has the cable TV fY@chise for Quad-statet&on, Shenteldoesn’tph Protocol {VoIP), a full channel line-up Shenandoah County, and offers dial- on stopping its rollout of fiber-to-the- of video including High Definition TV up and DSL Internet service in scvcral home at theTacWe y Mill developmat. and pay-per-view, home security, and nearby markets. “We’re working on severaI~fherprcrs- internet connectionswith the advantage Shentel will havea“heaJ-end” pects,” said Stadler. “It’s going to be of scalable bandwidth for operation in Ranson, but cugtorney Lier- an initiative of ours ping forward, telecommuters and home offices. vice will be provided tlh‘ough its “Fiber-to-the-home is very ‘Tackley Mill provides an ex- Winburg ofice. “It’s basically plug valuable, especiaily to new home buy- cellent opportunity for us to showcase and play,” said Stadler. ers, and i$s an advantage to the build- the laksbtelecom services over a supe- The issue of allowing teiecom ers who can differentiate hix new rior delivery platform,” said Christo- companies to provide cabie TV ser- housing developments. The system is pher French, president of Shentel, in a vices, thereby competing ;with cable scalable [to the homeowner] in the fu- press release. “Serving upscale com- companies like Comcast Inc. and ture, which is important because ad- munities like Tackley Mill promotes Adetphia: Commwnicationsl that have vances:in technobgy are so qui&’’ Shentel’s strategy of continued growth franchise agreements with local gov- National hornbuilderscentex and diversification. We look forward ernments, has become a po&d foot- Homes and Baezer Homes are building to working with Legacy and the city uf ball. froposed federal legislation would out the Tackley development, which Ranson in crcating a vibrant comu- streamline the video franchising pm- will include 600 single-family homes nity.” 2 cess for phone companies qat want to and400 townhauses. WhGn uked what Shentel has a history of being offer their customers telephone ser- the rninimum size development would first to market in wireless communica- vice, be for Shentelto strike addwith other tions, having pioneered cellular ser- Telephonecompanies wanting developers, Stadler said, “It depends to wire fiber-to-the-home e running on the agreement; everyone is Mer- ads on “V and in print u ging state ent. We work with the developer in the legislators to allow cable cT mpetition. first phase, then with the builders.” CableTVcompanies, onthe her hand, - argue that changing existin1 laws may -4- - 03/23/06 THU 16:44 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing “Opposition to

Petition for Certificate and Petition to Intervene” in Case No. 06-0195-T-CN was served

upon the following via first class mail, postage pre-paid, this 23rd day of March, 2006.

Richard Gottlieb Lewis, Glasser, Casey & Rollins, PLLC BB&T Square, Suite 700 300 Summers Street P.O. Box 1746 Charleston, WV 25326

Yaron Dori Matthew Wood Hogan & Hartson, LLP 555 Thirteenth Street, NFV Washington, DC 20004

Jonathan Spencer Shentel Converged Services of WV, Inc. 500 Shentel Way P.O. Box 459 Edinburg, VA 22824 03/23/06 16:44 FAX 2024489040 ____ .----THU -- ADAMS LEGAL FIRM @ 012

THEADAMS LEGAL FIRM, LLC

626C ADMIRAL DRIVE #3 12 1474 NORTH POINT VILLAGE CENTER #301 ANNAPOLIS, MD 21 401 RESTON, VA 20194 TELEPHONE TELEPHONE (202) 448-9033 (703) 738-4812

FACSIMILE FACSIMILE (757) 273-1 120 (202) 448-9040

TAM5ER RAY JOHN B.ADAMS Of Counsel Member RICHARDM. TETTELBAUM Of Counsel

March 23, 2006

VIA FACSIMILE AND OVERNIGHT DELIVERY Sandra Squire, Executive Secretary Public Service Commission of West Virginia 201 Brooks Street Charleston, WV 25301

RE: Case No, 06-01 95-T-CN; Shentei Converged Services of West Virginia, Inc.

Dear Ms. Squire:

Pursuant to Rule 4.3 of the Commission’s Rules of Practice and Procedure, I am filing in the above-referenced proceeding the enclosed “Opposition to Petition for Certificate and Petition to Intervene’’ on behalf of Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier Communications of West Virginia by sending two copies today via facsimile transmission and by nding an original and twelve copies, along with a “stamp and return” copy, via overnight

ight package arrives, please mark as received the enclosed “stamp and it to the undersigned in the enclosed postage-paid, pre-addressed envelope.

Thank you for your assistance with this matter.

Sincerely L??Ak* John B. Adam WV Bar # 7605 - 03/23/06 THU 16:44 FAX 2024489040 ADAMS LEGAL FIRM 013