Consumer Benefits of Competition in the Telecommunications Industry

Principal David Sosa, Ph.D., was retained by Mayer Brown LLP on behalf of AT&T to comment on the potential harm to consumers from delaying the company’s entry into a market that, at the time, was served by only one provider of video services. Petitioners had objected to the phone company’s plans to upgrade its network infrastructure within a region of the United States in order to provide video and improved high-speed data services, as well as voice services. Dr. Sosa opined on the pricing and service effects of delaying the proposed upgrades to AT&T’s network infrastructure, as well as the benefits to consumers when multiple competitors are vying to provide voice, video, and high-speed Internet service. Dr. Sosa concluded that AT&T’s entry into the video market would likely benefit consumers in the form of lower prices, improved service quality, and greater customer satisfaction. He also concluded that the network construction project would generate benefits to the local economy—for instance, increasing employment and local revenues.