*Pages 1--5 from Microsoft Word - 55571.doc* PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12 th Street, S. W. Washington, D. C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418- 0500 Fax- On- Demand 202 / 418- 2830 TTY 202 / 418- 2555 Internet: http:// www. fcc. gov ftp. fcc. gov DA 06- 555 Released: March 8, 2006 DOMESTIC SECTION 214 APPLICATION FILED FOR ACQUISITION OF CERTAIN ASSETS OF A. R. C. NETWORKS, INC. D/ B/ A INFOHIGHWAY COMMUNICATIONS TO FUTURE TELECOM, INC. STREAMLINED PLEADING CYCLE ESTABLISHED WC Docket No. 06- 42 Comments Due: March 22, 2006 Reply Comments Due: March 29, 2006 On February 2, 2006, A. R. C. Networks, Inc., d/ b/ a InfoHighway Communications (“ InfoHighway”), and Future Telecom, Inc. (“ Future”) (collectively “Applicants”) filed an application pursuant to section 63.04 of the Commission’s rules 1 to transfer certain assets of Future to InfoHighway. 2 Applicants assert that this transaction is entitled to presumptive streamlined treatment under sections 63.03( b)( 2)( i), of the Commission’s rules because (1) Applicants and their affiliates combined will hold less than a ten percent (10%) share of the interstate, interexchange market; (2) Applicants and their affiliates will provide local exchange service only in areas served by dominant local exchange carriers, none of which is a party to the proposed transaction; and (3) none of the Applicants or their Affiliates is dominant with respect to any service. 3 Future, a Delaware corporation, holds blanket domestic authority to provide interstate service, and is authorized provide international services. Future is authorized to provide local and interexchange services in California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Texas. 1 See 47 C. F. R. § 63.04. 2 Applicants have also filed an application for consent to transfer authorization for international services. Any action on this domestic 214 application is without prejudice to Commission action on other related pending applications. 3 See 47 C. F. R. § 63.03( b)( 2)( i). 1 2 InfoHighway, a New York corporation, offers local and long distance telephone services, point- to- point data services, high- speed Internet services, network design and wiring. InfoHighway holds blanket domestic authority to provide interstate service and global resale authority to provide international services. InfoHighway is authorized to provide competitive local exchange services in 16 states and the District of Columbia. 4 InfoHighway is also authorized as an interexchange carrier in 33 states and the District of Columbia. 5 InfoHighway is a wholly- owned subsidiary of Eureka Broadband Corporation (“ Eureka”), a U. S. entity. 6 The following entities own or control 10% or more of Eureka: AP EUREKAGGN LLC, a U. S. entity (27%); Trimaran Investments, II, L. L. C., a U. S. entity (24%); 7 Lazard Freres & Co., LLC, a U. S. entity (12%); and GigaLine, L. P., a U. S. entity (11%). GigaLine, L. P. is wholly- owned by Thru Line, Inc., a U. S. citizen, which, in turn, is wholly- owned by Edward P. Bass, a U. S. citizen. No other person or entities will directly or indirectly own 10% or more of the equity of InfoHighway. 8 InfoHighway and Future have entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement (“ Agreement”) dated January 12, 2006, under the terms of which InfoHighway will purchase for cash certain assets of Future, including customer accounts and accounts receivable. 9 Once the transaction has closed, following the receipt of all required regulatory approvals, customers who currently receive service from Future will receive service from InfoHighway, under the same rates, terms and conditions as those services are currently provided to them. 4 California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Vermont and Virginia. 5 Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Virginia. 6 Eureka also holds controlling interests in the following telecommunications companies: (1) Gillette Global Networks, d/ b/ a Eureka Networks, which provides service in New York and New Jersey; (2) Elink Telecommunications, Inc., which provides service in Maryland and the District of Columbia; and (3) Elink Telecommunications of VA, Inc., which provides service in Virginia. 7 Trimaran Investments II, L. L. C. holds its interests through five different entities, none of which individually hold more than 10% in Eureka. Those entities are Trimaran Fund II, L. L. C., CIBC MB Inc., CIBC Employee Private Equity Fund (Trimaran) Partners, Trimaran Parallel Fund II, L. P. and Trimaran Capital, L. L. C. 8 No other entities own or control a sufficient portion of any of Eureka’s owners to hold a 10% or greater direct or indirect interest in Eureka, and thus, InfoHighway. No entity owns more than 37% of AP EUREKAGGN LLC. No entity owns or controls more than 41% of Trimaran. No entity owns more than 50% of Lazard Freres & Co., LLC. 9 Pursuant to preexisting plans to migrate customers from InfoHighway to Eureka, which the Commission approved on July 25, 2005 (See DA 05- 2059, WC Docket No. 05- 214), Future’s customers may eventually be migrated to Eureka. While these customers will, of course, be provided notice in accordance with the Commission’s rules, Applicants InfoHighway and Eureka indicate that they do not intend to separately request authority from the Commission for this migration, as this would be redundant. 2 5 (3) Alex Johns, Competition Policy Division, Wireline Competition Bureau, 445 12th Street, S. W., Room 5- C317, Washington, D. C. 20554; e- mail: alexis. johns@ fcc. gov; (4) Susan O’Connell, Policy Division, International Bureau, 445 12th Street, S. W., Room 7- B544, Washington, D. C. 20554; email: susan. o’connell@ fcc. gov; and (5) James Bird, Office of General Counsel, 445 12th Street, S. W., Room 8- C824, Washington, D. C. 20554; e- mail: james. bird@ fcc. gov. Filings and comments are also available for public inspection and copying during regular business hours at the FCC Reference Information Center, Portals II, 445 12th Street, S. W., Room CY- A257, Washington, D. C. 20554. They may also be purchased from the Commission’s duplicating contractor, Best Copy and Printing, Inc., Portals II, 445 12th Street, S. W., Room CYB402, Washington, D. C. 20554, telephone: (202) 488- 5300, fax: (202) 488- 5563, or via e-mail www. bcpiweb. com. For further information, please contact Tracey Wilson- Parker at (202) 418- 1394, or Alex Johns at (202) 418- 1167. - FCC - 5