CSIS 160

Josh Ancel

Chapter 5 Terms

1.NECA- Nation Exchange Carrier Association -Formed in 1983 by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as a not-for-profit membership corporation, NECA plays an important role in administering the FCC's access charge plan -- a plan that helps ensure that telephone service remains available and affordable in all parts of the country. Directly and through its subsidiaries, NECA also administers a number of other significant federal and state programs, each designed to keep the United States telecommunications system the most widely used in the world.

NECA is governed by a board of directors <director.htm> elected annually by its local telephone company members. The 15-member board includes telephone company representatives as well as individuals from outside the telephone industry.

2.Exchange Network Facilities for Interstate Access (ENFIA) Exchange Network Facilities for Interstate Access (ENFIA) is AT&T's pricing arrangement for local loops offered to Other Common Carriers (OCCs) network to the local telephone company's central office (CO).

3. Feature Group A- Offers access to the local ecchange carriers network through ta sucbscriber type line connection arrrangement uset in the rearly days of OCC's, until equal access using tan access tandern central office is available.

4. Feature Group B- is simialre to FGA, but provides a higher quality trunk connection from end CO to the IX carriers faciliteise, instead of teh subsciber type line. The IC customercan origingatea call form anywhere within the LATA, while FGA requires customers to initiate the call form within the local exchange carrier connectiong to the IXC. FGB billing to the IX are on a flat usege basi, adn a dicount is applicaible.

5.Freature Group C is the traditional toll service arrangements offerd by LECs to AT&Tprior to breakup of the BELL System. Quality is uperior, and the ervice includes automatic nuberidntification of teh callng party, answerback, and disconnection supervision, and teh subscribers can use either a dial or touch tone pad. The FGC service is offerd only to AT&T without a discount.

6.Feature Group D is a clss of sevice assocated with equal access arrangements. All IX carriers enjoy identical connections to the local exchange carrier. All customer dial the smae number of digits, and can reach teh predetermined IX of therir choice by dialing 1 plus the telephone number being called. When equal acess is implementd , all other features groups convert to FGD count. In some cases an IX carrier may desire to maintain reates will apply.

7.CABS- Carrier Access Billing- Acess charges that are applied to each IXC accourding to the LATA in which they originateed or terminated toll traffic on the LEC local network.

8.Incumbent LECs- Short for incumbent local exchange carrier. An ILEC is a telephone company that was providing local service when the Telecommunications Act of 1996 was enacted. Compare with CLEC, a company that competes with the already established local telephone business

9.CLEC- A Competitive Local Exchange Carrier is a telephone company that competes with an Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier (ILEC) such as a Regional Bell Operating Company (RBOC), GTE, ALLNET, etc.

With the passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, there has been an explosion in the number of CLECs. The Act allows companies with CLEC status to use ILEC infrastructure in two ways:

1) Access to UNEs

Important to CLEC telecommunications networking is the availability of unbundled <network.htm> elements or UNEs (through a collocation arrangement). UNEs are defined by the Act as any "facility or equipment used in the provision of a telecommunications service," as well as "features, functions, and capabilities that are provided by means of such facility or equipment." For CLECs the most important UNE available to them is the local loop, which connects the ILEC switches <switch.htm> to the ILEC's present customers. With the local loop, CLECs will be able to connect their switches with the ILEC's switches, thus giving them access to ILEC customers.

2) Resale

Another option open to CLECs is the resale strategy. The Act states that any telecommunications services ILECs offer at retail, must be offered to CLECs at a wholesale discount. This saves the CLEC from having to invest in switches, fiber optic transmission facilities, or collocation arrangements.

In any case, a CLEC may decide on one or the other or even both. So, you can see why obtaining CLEC status is very beneficial, especially for <ISP.htm>s, who may easily get access to the copper loops and other switching elements necessary to provide <xDSL.htm> services.

Recently courts, in response to the growth of cable Internet access, have also required cable companies to follow the same guidelines as ILECs.

Applying for CLEC status is a very tedious and complex process that involves a Regulatory Attorney or Consultant, the State Public Utilities Commission, and about 50 other steps. But remember, it will be worth it, and now is a good time, because the courts continually are trying to force ILEC costs to CLECs down and are making access to UNEs easier in the name of fair competition. So, get in before regulators begin to re-regulate the other way.

10. ETCs-Eligible Telecommunication Carriers -An State selected LEC to recieve Federal universal service support.

11.TRS-Telecommunications Relay Services fund a nationwide program taht helps speech and hearing impaird individuals make telephone calls, using specialized equipment, to others with convential CPE facititeis.

12.Traffic Sensitive costs- elements that are used exclusivley for hauling tooll traffic beyond the exchange carriers end central office.

13. Non Traffic Sensitive cost- are elements involving the end central office and the lines to the end user premises all of twich are used intermittently for local, intrastate,and interstated toll.