Technology dictates regulation, not other way around. And the Federal Communications Commission has found many of its regulations have lost relevance in today’s America. Such useless regulations only create confusion.
Therefore, the FCC has, by far, filled its trashcan with more than 120 outdated regulations. A petition from the trade body, USTelecom, has prompted this belated housekeeping. Calling it “A Timid Step Toward Modernization” the petitioner has, however, urged further cleaning of old dirt:
Leaving these antiquated and burdensome rules in place is a missed opportunity, given how much the communications world has changed. Eliminating regulation that no longer serves a purpose should be the starting point for developing a new regulatory approach based on competitive and technological realities and consumer needs. Outmoded regulatory requirements, for example, to collect and maintain an entire set of purely regulatory books of data that the commission has not even looked at in five years, are a burden on the marketplace, on innovation and ultimately on consumers.
We recognize and appreciate that the commission is undertaking further review of these legacy rules. Given the fact that we have already gone through 15 months of study we would hope that this further review could be completed by the end of the year.
Modernizing networks has been business as usual across the telecoms industry. Why ‘modernizing the regulation’ should be any different, especially in Asia? After all – technology dictates regulation, it’s never other way around.
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