Note to Editors: Members of the press are welcome to attend without charge. FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy will be available for interviews immediately following her 5:45 p.m. keynote speech. To arrange interviews, call Travis Litman at (303) 735-5633 or email him at sftp@colorado.edu.
With consumers relying more and more on wireless connections and voice over Internet protocol to make phone calls, the framework for telecommunication regulation is starting to unravel, forcing policy-makers to review decades-old regulations governing "universal service" and access to emergency services.
The policy issues will be discussed Oct. 21 at a University of Colorado at Boulder School of Law conference on "Universal Service and E-911 Policy In An Age of Convergence."
The three-hour conference begins at 3:30 p.m. in the Fleming Law Building's Lindsley Memorial Courtroom and will feature keynote speaker Kathleen Abernathy, commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission. A reception will follow the proceedings.
Abernathy is the third of the five FCC commissioners to speak on a wireless policy topic at CU-Boulder.
The law school's Silicon Flatirons Telecommunications Program, established almost five years ago to examine cutting-edge issues involving telecommunications technology, business and policy, is sponsoring the conference.
"The array of questions related to setting universal service and E-911 policy in an age of convergence when consumers are relying more and more on wireless connections and the Internet to make phone calls instead of traditional land-line systems is forcing policy-makers to take a hard look at telecommunications policies to see what changes need to be made," said Professor Phil Weiser, Silicon Flatirons' executive director.
"During this conference, we'll focus on how the older policy goals of ensuring affordable telephone service and a reliable 911 system to all consumers can be protected in a changing technological and economic climate."
Taking a broad interdisciplinary look at these issues, the conference will feature speakers from a variety of backgrounds in academia, government and industry.
Because seating is limited, all attendees should register in advance at . A registration fee is required but Silicon Flatirons program supporters, CU students, faculty and staff will be admitted free of charge. Continuing legal education credit is available for attendees.
For more information contact Travis Litman at (303) 735-5633 or travis.litman@colorado.edu.