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There's an app for that! Or is there?
Telecommunications continues to evolve
This month, colleges are welcoming new students. Which is probably why I'm seeing nonstop ads about the best cell phone plans for college students. Remember
the phones we were
using when these 18-year-old students were born? That should tell you all you need to know about how fast the telecom industry has changed in their lifetime.
The question is:
What will the industry look like when these students are pushing 40? Unfortunately, I can't predict the phone of the future, but I can provide insight
on today's changing telecom industry in Florida.
Helping us perceive future trends is the Florida Public Service Commission's (PSC) annual
Report on the Status of Competition in the
Telecommunications Industry.
Data from Florida
telecommunications companies over a 12-month period is compiled in the report, and is delivered to the Florida Legislature by August 1 each year.
Some of the report's highlights
are listed below, or you can access the full report
here.
For the sixth year in a row, total wireline business access lines exceeded total residential lines, according to our annual report. Not surprisingly,
it confirmed that Florida consumers
continue to shift from wireline service to wireless and VoIP services; data also indicates that residential migration may be slowing down.
Landline losses are due to customers changing
their primary phone lines to VoIP phone and wireless voice service.
Competition within the telecommunications industry is fueling mergers and acquisitions. This market consolidation trend continued in 2016 with
several new telecom mergers and acquisitions,
as the industry continued displaying dynamic growth and innovation. The number and variety of competitive choices among all types of service providers
suggest that competition is positively
impacting Florida's telecommunications market.
AT&T, CenturyLink, and Frontier Florida - the State's largest incumbent local exchange carriers providing traditional wireline service - continued
to lose access lines in the national wireline market.
During 2016, CenturyLink experienced a six percent decline in residential access lines, while AT&T declined 22 percent and Frontier declined 25
percent in the Florida market.
Residential consumers have been eliminating traditional landline service over the last decade. While their reasons vary, saving money and desiring
more mobility are likely reasons for
landlines going down the same path as rotary phones.
AT&T and Frontier's mix of residential and business wirelines are slowly shifting toward business lines, which now comprise approximately 48
percent of their access lines.
Competitors have almost 98 percent of their accounts in the business sector.
As in past years, VoIP and broadband drove the telecommunications markets in 2016. There are an estimated 21.1 million wireless handsets in
Florida and an additional 4.2 million cable
VoIP subscribers. Over 73 percent of Florida households have a broadband connection with download speeds of at least 3 megabits per second.
The essence of a sophisticated communications
infrastructure in Florida depends upon the strength of its evolving broadband networks.
With current market conditions and increasing competition in the industry, Florida's telecommunications regulation also continues to change. While the
Florida Department of
Agriculture's Division of Consumer Services can resolve issues with call completion, slamming, and cramming, the PSC still processes cases involving
area code relief, number
conservation plans, number resource reclamation, local number portability, and other numbering issues. We also facilitate dispute resolutions between
carriers about local
interconnection agreements and other wholesale issues.
Universal service remains a policy goal in Florida. The PSC oversees the federal Lifeline Assistance program which provides discounted telecommunications
and broadband services
to eligible customers so they can stay connected to their family, friends, and communities. We also oversee the Florida Relay Program, providing
telecommunications services for the
deaf and hard of hearing, and facilitate the resolution of consumer complaints relating to Lifeline, Relay, and pay phones.
The once vital landline probably won't be around when this year's freshmen turn 40. As we gaze into the future, I predict that students in the Class of
2021 might be the
inventors of even more advanced services, still benefitting consumers and contributing to economic growth. In years to come, we might even see physical
phones disappear.
One thing's fairly certain - we will push the boundaries of interconnectedness in the next 20 years, just as we have in the last!
Julie I. Brown, FPSC Chairman
CONTACT THE PSC:
On-line: www.FloridaPSC.com
E-mail contact@psc.state.fl.us
Call toll-free number: 800-342-3552
Fax toll-free: 800-511-0809
Send a letter to: The Florida Public Service Commission
2540 Shumard Oak Blvd., Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0850
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For immediate access to PSC consumer information,
download the free Barcode Scanner app on your smartphone, and scan our new 2d barcode
(also called QR or quick response codes).
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September Commission Calendar
| 9/4 |
Labor Day Holiday |
| 9/6 |
FPL/St. Johns River Prehearing |
| 9/7 |
Commission Conference |
| 9/12 |
Ten Year Site Plan Workshop |
| 9/13 |
FPL/St. Johns River Hearing |
| 9/19 |
IOU Hedging Practices Prehearing |
| 9/27-28 |
IOU Hedging Practices Hearing |
August News Releases
Florida PSC Commission Conference, Special Conference on Thursday
PSC Telecom Report Shows Competition Fuels Consumer Choice
PSC Concludes Utilities, Inc. of Florida Rate Case
Florida PSC Nuclear Cost Recovery Hearing Set for Tuesday
Calhoun County Senior Citizens Association, Inc. Named PSC Helping Hand
Tampa's Hakeem Investments Receives PSC's Triple E Award
PSC Recognizes Florida Lineworker Appreciation Day
July / August Notable FPSC Dockets
Electric Industry
Docket No. 20170175
08/14/2017 - Joint petition for approval of amended territorial agreement in Orange and Osceola Counties, by Duke Energy Florida, LLC and Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Gas Industry
Docket No. 20170176
08/14/2017 - Petition by Florida Division of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation for approval of special contract with Sebring Gas System, Inc.
Telecommunications Industry
Docket No. 20170172
08/08/2017 - Application for certificate to provide local telecommunications service by Triton Networks, LLC.
Water and Wastewater Industry
Docket No. 20170171
08/07/2017 - Resolution of the Board of County Commissioners of Leon County declaring Leon County subject to the provisions of Section 367, Florida Statutes.
Docket No. 20170178
08/21/2017 - Application for original certificates of authorization for existing utility currently charging for water and wastewater service in Polk County, by The Harbor.
July / August Notable FPSC Orders
Electric Industry
Order No. PSC-2017-0321-CO-EQ
♦ Docket No:
20170077
08/10/2017 - Order PSC-2017-0321-CO-EQ makes Order PSC-2017-0278-PAA-EQ effective and final; docket to be closed.
Order No. PSC-2017-0331-CO-EI
♦ Docket No:
20170069
08/18/2017 - Consummating order PSC-2017-0331-CO-EI makes Order PSC-2017-0283-TRF-EI effective and final; docket to be closed.
Gas Industry
Order No. PSC-2017-0330-CO-GU
♦ Docket No:
20170110
08/17/2017 - Consummating Order PSC-2017-0330-CO-GU makes Order PSC-2017-0289-TRF-GU effective and final; docket to be closed.
Telecommunications Industry
Order No. PSC-2017-0329-CO-TP
♦ Docket No:
20170082
08/16/2017 - Consummating order PSC-2017-0329-CO-TP makes Order PSC-2017-0290-PAA-TP effective and final; docket to be closed.
Water Industry
Order No. PSC-2017-0311-FOF-WU
♦ Docket No:
20150012
08/07/2017 - Order PSC-2017-0311-FOF-WU approves transfer of County-Wide Utility Co., Inc.'s water system
and Certificate No. 390-W to Southwest Ocala Utility, Inc. effective 7/13/17; existing rates and charges shall
remain effect until a change is authorized by the Commission; SOU shall be responsible for filing Utility's 2015
and 2016 Annual Report and all future Annual Reports and future RAFs; RAFs have been paid through December 2016;
Commission declined to make net book value and acquisition adjustment at this time, matter shall be taken up at next
rate proceeding for Utility; docket to be closed.
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