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 NEWS  News  media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  TTY  202  /  418-  2555  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974). 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE:  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  March  11,  2004  Linda  L.  Haller,  202-  418-  1408, 
 Linda.  Haller@  fcc.  gov 


 FCC  AMENDS  INTERNATIONAL  TELECOMMUNICATIONS  POLICY  IN  STEP  WITH  MARKET  CHANGES 
 U.  S.  Carriers  and  Consumers  to  Benefit 


 Washington,  D.  C.  –  Today,  the  Commission  took  another  deregulatory  step  regarding  its  International  Settlement  policy  (ISP).  Recognizing  that  the  U.  S-international 
 telephone  market  has  become  more  competitive,  the  Commission  exempted  a  substantial  number  of  additional  routes  from  the  ISP.  This  action  provides  U.  S.  carriers 
 greater  commercial  flexibility  to  take  advantage  of  a  constantly  changing  global  telecommunications  market  and  will  lead  to  more  cost-  based  rates  for  consumers. 


 The  ISP  was  designed  to  ensure  nondiscriminatory  treatment  of  U.  S.  carriers  by  foreign  carriers  with  market  power  and  serves  as  a  framework  by  which  carriers  negotiate 
 commercial  agreements  to  exchange  traffic  between  the  United  States  and  other  countries.  Today’s  Report  and  Order  lifts  the  ISP  from  benchmark-  compliant  routes. 
 Since  the  FCC  adopted  its  benchmarks  policy  in  1997,  which  seeks  to  move  rates  more  toward  costs,  U.  S.-  international  calling  prices  have  dropped,  saving  U.  S.  consumers 
 billions  of  dollars.  In  addition,  since  the  FCC’s  1999  examination  of  ISP,  there  have  been  changes  in  the  global  telecommunications  market:  (1)  increased  participation  and 
 competition  in  the  U.  S.-  international  marketplace;  (2)  decreased  settlement  and  end-  user  rates;  and  (3)  greater  liberalization  and  privatization  in  foreign  markets. 


 These  steps  forward  permit  the  Commission  to  further  reform  its  existing  regulatory  framework  so  as  to  maximize  consumer  benefits  of  lower  calling  prices  and 
 greater  service  innovations.  The  Commission  also  maintained  competitive  safeguards  to  protect  U.  S.  customers  on  all  routes,  retained  its  current  benchmarks  policy  on  all  U.  S.  -foreign 
 routes  subject  to  future  evaluation  and  clarified  filing  requirements  with  respect  to  routes  exempt  from  the  ISP.  In  another  area,  the  Commission  also  announced  that  it 
 will  issue  a  Notice  of  Inquiry  to  evaluate  the  effect  of  high  foreign  mobile  termination  rates  on  U.  S.  consumers  and  competition. 
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 Action  by  the  Commission  March  11,  2004,  by  Report  and  Order  (FCC  04-  53).  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners,  Abernathy,  Copps,  Martin,  and  Adelstein,  with 
 separate  statements  issued  by  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners’  Copps  and  Adelstein. 
 Docket  No.  03-  324 


 -FCC- 
 International  Bureau  Contacts:  Alexandra  Field  (418-  2064)  or  Gardner  Foster  (202)  418-  1460. 
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