FCC Shows Commitment to Universal Service for Rural America

 
Comtex
 

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ ----In a first step toward comprehensive reform of Universal Service, the Federal Communications Commission yesterday adopted an interim cap on payments to competitive eligible telecommunications carriers under the Universal Service Fund (USF). The following statement should be attributed to David Zesiger, Embarq's Senior Vice President for Regulatory Policy and External Affairs.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060516/EMBARQLOGO )

"EMBARQ applauds the Federal Communications Commission's leadership yesterday on Universal Service reform. By limiting support for multiple carriers in rural areas, as the Federal-State Joint Board recommended, the Commission showed its commitment to the long-term health of the Universal Service Fund, a commitment vital to rural America. The Universal Service Fund supports carriers in rural areas where it is costly to serve and often uneconomic to invest. The Commission's order caps support for multiple carriers in the same area -- places where the market cannot justify even a single carrier without USF support. By halting the fund's unsustainable growth, the order provides stability that enables comprehensive reform of the universal service system. Now, the Commission can focus on necessary changes to the USF program, including the need for geographically-targeted support. We encourage the Commission to continue yesterday's positive first step by adopting geographic targeting as the foundation for comprehensive USF reform for the benefit of rural America and all consumers."

About EMBARQ

Embarq Corporation (NYSE: EQ), headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas, offers a complete suite of communications services. The company has approximately 18,000 employees and operates in 18 states. EMBARQ is included in the S&P 500 and is in the Fortune 500(R) list of America's largest corporations. For consumers, EMBARQ offers an innovative portfolio of services that includes reliable local and long distance home phone service, high-speed Internet, wireless, and satellite TV from DISH Network(R) -- all on one monthly bill. For businesses, EMBARQ has a comprehensive range of flexible and integrated services designed to help businesses of all sizes be more productive and communicate with their customers. This service portfolio includes local voice and data services, long distance, Business Class High Speed Internet, wireless, satellite TV from DIRECTV(R), enhanced data network services, voice and data communication equipment and managed network services. For more information, visit embarq.com.

SOURCE Embarq Corporation

http://www.embarq.com
   
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Contango

No, it's not a dance craze. Contago is a condition of supply and demand, essentially a fancy word to say that prices for items, typically commodities, are cheaper now than they would be at some point down the line.

Anything that¿s sold in the futures market can be in a case of contango. Futures are exactly that: a contract to buy an item or asset at a price in the future. This is the case with oil, with traders buying and selling contracts to acquire a barrel of oil in months down the line. When a market is in contango, spot prices, or the price of a commodity if you were to buy it right now, are lower than forward prices.

Why is that important? Well, it usually tells you the supply of a given commodity is plentiful (since, according to Economics 101, a large supply usually leads to cheap prices).

Incidentally, if you think contango is a mouthful, its opposite condition is known by the equally tongue-tying term backwardation.