Dark History of Dark Fiber UNE

Reader claims the history of the war to obtain access to ILEC fiber dates back to 1997.

[Response to Telcos' Dark Fiber Lures ISPs from July 19, 2002.]

[July 23, 2002]

Dear Editors:

We started the dark fiber issue in Texas in 1997. The Texas Commission declared dark fiber to be a unbundled network element (UNE) in a 1997 arbitration.

A client of mine started the fiber hunt shortly thereafter and—after several huge fights—secured fiber (connected to collocated equipment) between every Southwestern Bell Telephone Central Office (CO) in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio. Later, we did the same thing in Houston. The company provided wholesale interoffice transport to CLECs and ISPs.

El Paso Global bought the company in 2000 and still provides the sameservices. They continue the fiber hunt. I've seen just about every ILEC trick around on hiding fiber.

By the way, the 25 percent rule that you cite in the article came from our case in Texas in our first arbitration and has been routinely used in other states. It too has been a source of several neat gambits by the ILECs.

Just thought you might want to have some more history on this subject.

Regards,

W. Scott McCollough
Stumpf, Craddock, Massey & Pulman