NEWS
Federal Communications Commission
445 12
th
Street, S.W.
Washington, DC  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. Cir. 1974).
News Media Information 202-418-0500
Internet: http://www.fcc.gov
TTY: 1-888-835-5322
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
November 26, 2013 Matthew Berry, 202-418-2005
Email:  Matthew.Berry@fcc.gov
STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER AJIT PAI
ON THE RELEASE OF THE 2013 LOCAL TELEPHONE COMPETITION REPORT
There can be no doubt, if ever there was, that the IP Transition is upon us.  The FCC Wireline
Competition Bureau’s Local Telephone Competition Report, issued today, observes that Americans
continue to flee the copper networks of the 20th century.  About one in seven households with copper 
dropped their landline last year, and 33.6 million Americans dropped their copper landlines over the past
four years.  And competition is rampant:  99.6 percent of Americans can choose from at least three
wireline competitors, and 92 percent can choose from 10 or more.  The evidence also shows that
consumers are in fact exercising that choice:  Interconnected VoIP providers added 14.6 million
subscriptions over the last four years, and wireless providers added 43.6 million.
These changes underscore how dynamic the communications marketplace is.  And yet, the FCC’s
rules saddle one segment of the market with onerous, outdated burdens like tariffing and require the
continued investment in last-generation technology.  Now is the time to modernize our rules, to prepare
for the all-IP future, to follow the lead of several states and end tariffing in the residential market.  Now is
the time to embrace the IP Transition.