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 NEWS  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).  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  TTY:  1-  888-  835-  5322 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE:  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  July  8,  2004  Diane  L.  Griffin  at  (202)  418-  7294 
 Email:  Diane.  Griffin@  fcc.  gov 


 FCC  ADOPTS  ALL-  OR-  NOTHING  RULE  TO  REPLACE  PICK-  AND-  CHOOSE  RULE 
 Action  Permits  Competitors  to  Obtain  Mutually  Beneficial  Concessions  to  Better  Serve  End-  User  Customers 
 Washington,  DC  –  The  Federal  Communications  Commission  (FCC)  today  adopted  an  all-  or-  nothing  rule  that  requires  a  requesting  telecommunications  carrier 
 seeking  to  adopt  terms  in  another  carrier’s  interconnection  agreement  to  adopt  the  agreement  in  its  entirety,  taking  all  rates,  terms,  and  conditions  from  the  adopted 
 agreement. 
 The  Commission  based  its  decision  on  two  key  determinations.  First,  the  Order  concludes  that  the  current  pick-  and-  choose  rule  is  not  compelled  by  the  language  of 
 section  252(  i)  of  the  Communications  Act.  Second,  the  Order  finds  that  the  new  all-  or-nothing  rule  will  promote  more  give  and  take  in  negotiations,  which  will  produce 
 mutually  beneficial  agreements  that  will  be  better  tailored  to  meet  carriers’  individual  needs.  In  addition,  the  new  rule  is  expected  to  reduce  negotiation  time,  expenses,  and 
 possible  areas  of  dispute,  while  at  the  same  time  providing  adequate  protection  against  potential  discrimination.  Based  on  these  determinations,  the  Order  concludes  that  the 
 benefits  of  adopting  the  all-  or-  nothing  rule  outweigh  the  burdens,  and  therefore  replaces  the  pick-  and-  choose  rule. 


 -  FCC  -  Docket  No.:  CC  01-  338 
 Action  by  the  Commission,  July  8,  2004,  by  Second  Report  and  Order  (FCC  04-  164).  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners  Abernathy  and  Martin;  with  Commissioner  Copps 
 dissenting  and  Commissioner  Adelstein  approving  in  part  and  dissenting  in  part.  Chairman  Powell  and  Commissioners  Abernathy,  Copps  and  Adelstein  issuing  separate 
 statements. 
 Wireline  Competition  Bureau  Staff  Contact:  Christi  Shewman  at  202-  418-  1686. 
 News  about  the  Federal  Communications  Commission  can  also  be  found  on  the  Commission’s  web  site  www.  fcc.  gov. 
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