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 Federal  Communications  Commission  DA  03-  406 
 Before  the  FEDERAL  COMMUNICATIONS  COMMISSION 
 Washington,  D.  C.  20554 


 APCC  Services,  Inc.,  )  Data  Net  Systems,  LLC  ) 
 Davel  Communications,  Inc.  )  Jaroth,  Inc.  dba  Pacific  Telemanagement  ) 
 Services,  and  )  Intera  Communications  Corp.,  ) 
 )  Complainants,  ) 
 )  v.  )  File  No.  EB-  02-  MDIC-  019 
 )  ATX  Telecommunications  Services,  ) 
 )  Defendant.  ) 


 ORDER 
 Adopted:  February  10,  2003  Released:  February  12  ,  2003 
 By  the  Deputy  Division  Chief,  Market  Disputes  Resolution  Division,  Enforcement  Bureau: 
 1.  On  March  29,  2002,  APCC  Services,  Inc.,  et  al.  (“  APCC”  or  “Complainants”)  filed  an  informal  complaint  alleging  that  ATX  Telecommunications  Services  (“  ATX”)  is 


 responsible  for  paying  dial  around  compensation  for  certain  types  of  completed  calls  carried  by  its  network  that  originated  from  APCC’s  payphones.  Pursuant  to  section  1.718  of  the 
 Commission’s  rules,  1  the  Complainants  are  required  to  convert  their  informal  complaints  into  formal  complaints  within  six  months  of  the  date  that  the  Defendant  replies  to  the  informal 
 complaints,  or  such  informal  complaints  will  be  deemed  to  be  abandoned.  In  this  case,  the  Complainants  were  required  to  convert  the  informal  complaint  into  a  formal  complaint  by 
 February  13,  2003.  2 


 1  47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.718. 
 2  See  Letter  from  Alan  C.  Hubbard,  Attorney  for  Complainants,  and  Kathleen  Greenan  Ramsey, 
 Attorney  for  ATX,  to  Warren  Firschein,  Attorney,  Market  Disputes  Resolution  Division,  Enforcement  Bureau,  FCC,  File  No.  EB-  02-  MDIC-  019  (January  31,  2003). 
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 2.  Since  March  29,  2002,  the  parties  have  engaged  in  negotiations  to  resolve  the  disputes  about  dial  around  compensation  issues.  3  On  January  31,  2003,  the  parties  filed  jointly  a 
 Request  for  Extension  of  Time  to  File  Complainants’  Formal  Complaint  in  this  matter  (“  Waiver  Request”).  The  parties  seek  a  waiver  of  section  1.718  of  the  Commission’s  rules,  and,  in 
 particular,  request  an  extension  of  the  deadline  for  filing  a  formal  complaint  from  February  13,  2002  to  April  14,  2003.  4  The  Waiver  Request  explains  that  the  parties  are  attempting  to  resolve 
 this  dispute  without  further  litigation,  and  that  an  extension  is  necessary  to  continue  negotiations  and  work  toward  settling  this  matter.  5 


 3.  We  are  satisfied  that  granting  the  parties’  Waiver  Request  will  serve  the  public  interest  by  promoting  the  private  resolution  of  disputes  and  by  postponing  the  need  for  further 
 litigation  and  expenditure  of  further  time  and  resources  of  the  parties  and  of  this  Commission  until  such  time  as  may  actually  be  necessary. 


 4.  Accordingly,  IT  IS  ORDERED,  pursuant  to  sections  4(  i),  4(  j),  and  208  of  the  Communications  Act  of  1934,  as  amended,  47  U.  S.  C.  §§  154(  i),  154(  j),  and  208,  and  sections  1.3 
 and  1.718  of  the  Commission’s  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §§  1.3,  1.718,  and  the  authority  delegated  in  sections  0.111  and  0.311  of  the  Commission’s  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §§  0.111,  0.311,  that  the  Request 
 for  Extension  of  Time  to  File  Complainants’  Formal  Complaint  IS  GRANTED. 
 5.  IT  IS  FURTHER  ORDERED  that,  unless  otherwise  extended  by  order,  the  deadlines  that  would  otherwise  apply  under  section  1.718  of  our  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.718,  are  hereby 


 waived,  and  the  date  that  APCC  Services,  Inc.,  et  al.  must  convert  their  informal  complaint  against  ATX  to  a  formal  complaint  pursuant  to  section  1.718  of  our  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.718,  is 
 extended  to  April  14,  2003. 


 FEDERAL  COMMUNICATIONS  COMMISSION 


 Radhika  V.  Karmarkar  Deputy  Chief,  Market  Disputes  Resolution  Division 
 Enforcement  Bureau 


 3  Id.  at  1-  2. 
 4  Id.  at  2. 
 5  Id.  at  2. 
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