Only a few days remain to take advantage of savings for  The INCOMPAS Show, which is taking place April 3-5 at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. Special early bird registration rates end this Friday, February 3, for  the most valuable - and fun - networking event the communications industry.  

We'll be letting the good times roll in New Orleans with several networking events. We'll kick it off with an opening reception in the Expo Hall on Monday, April 3 at 5 p.m. Then each morning, jumpstart your day with a New Orleans-inspired Bloody Mary or coffee and beignet at breakfast to fuel up for what will be a day full of deal making and discovering new customers. On Tuesday evening, we'll conclude the day with our much-anticipated Beers with Peers reception and then on Wednesday cap-off the show with an exclusive members only pre-party from 4:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m., followed immediately by a closing party open to all attendees. 

Register now and save!  Please note: To qualify for member rates, all companies must have renewed their membership for 2017.  

Make Your Hotel Reservations Today!

By registering now, you also can secure your hotel reservation and benefit from the INCOMPAS preferred rate of $239 per night at our host hotel, the Hilton New Orleans Riverside (just 256 steps from the Morial Convention Center). Attendees will receive a link for housing reservations in their registration confirmation email.  Discounted rates are limited and only available to registered conference attendees, so book soon!

On January 23, INCOMPAS raised concerns about the proposed merger of CenturyLink and Level 3 Communications. In comments to the FCC, the association warned the merger could result in less competition, higher prices and a decline in new fiber infrastructure for business broadband.

"Level 3 is a shining example of how competition and interconnection policy bring more innovation and better customer service to market - it is a competitive provider that both builds and leases wholesale access to benefit the broadband ecosystem," said Karen Reidy, INCOMPAS vice president, Regulatory Affairs. "While we understand why an incumbent like CenturyLink would desire to acquire such an innovative network, the significant reduction in competitive choice at building locations across CenturyLink's footprint threatens to saddle business customers with less choice and higher prices and the transaction threatens to slow down the construction of new fiber infrastructure across the nation."

The INCOMPAS filing also points to inadequate information presented on dark fiber as a potential red flag for the important long-haul transmission market, which is essential to connecting networks both wired and wireless that are powering business transactions and streaming services.

"Level 3 is one of the strongest facilities-based providers offering a competitive alternative to the incumbent LECs general stronghold over facilities-based Ethernet services. The Commission must ensure that the competitive force - and the potential build out Level 3 offered- is not lost as a result of this merger," added Reidy.

President Donald Trump last week nominated Ajit Pai to serve as the new FCC Chairman. In response, INCOMPAS CEO Chip Pickering said:

"INCOMPAS wishes to congratulate Ajit Pai on the news that he will serve as Chairman of the FCC. This is a great honor for him and his family, and just reward for years of dedication and public service to our nation.

"As commissioner at the FCC, Ajit Pai has released a substantive plan for broadband network deployment that has the potential to empower communities around the nation. We look forward to working with him on these shared goals. INCOMPAS believes competition policy, inspired by President Ronald Reagan, is the fastest way to deploy new broadband infrastructure that is both fast and affordable.

"Whether urban or rural, the homes, office buildings and factories with more broadband competition have more connections to the future. We look forward to working with Chairman Pai toward this goal."

Chairman Pai also announced appointment of new bureau and office chiefs:

• Michelle Carey, acting chief of the Media Bureau
• Michael Carowitz, acting chief of the Enforcement Bureau
• Lisa Fowlkes, acting chief of the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau
• Nese Guendelsberger, acting chief of the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau
• Kris Monteith, acting chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau
• Tom Sullivan, acting chief of the International Bureau
• Wayne A. Leighton, acting director of the Office of Strategic Planning and Policy Analysis
• Timothy Strachan, acting director of the Office of Legislative Affairs

Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) and a number of other Senate Democrats sent a letter to the CEOs of ATT and Time Warner Inc. asking the companies to provide a public interest statement regarding the consumer benefits of the proposed merger. ATT has previously stated its intent to structure the merger to avoid FCC review.

Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Chris Coons (D-DE) introduced a bill last week to create a Select Committee on Cybersecurity. Gardner is a co-founder of the Senate Cybersecurity Caucus. The purpose of the narrowly-focused committee, according to a press release, is to oversee and strengthen U.S. data breach prevention strategy and cyber activities. Among its responsibilities similar to a standing committee, the Select Committee on Cybersecurity would be authorized to investigate issues within its jurisdiction, make recommendations and report legislation.

Last week, Sen. John Thune (R-SD), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, outlined the committee's tech agenda for the 115th Congress during a speech at the State of the Net internet policy conference. In addition, he discussed modernizing the Communications Act, infrastructure deployment and Internet of Things (IoT), as well as reiterating a desire to find a bipartisan legislative solution regarding the Open Internet. 

INCOMPAS is debuting its brown bag series, with a member exclusive webinar and product demonstration - " R.A.I.N. Cleansing. Necessary. Growth-Enabling" -  from  TXW Solutions. Presented by Kelly Williams, the TXW webinar will focus on R.A.I.N. - a unique software platform purpose-built to simplify network project management for today's telecommunications providers. From workflow to reporting, and from the advanced technology to legacy networks, R.A.I.N. is essential to enable the management and growth of any network.

The webinar will take place Thursday, February 2 at 1 p.m. EST.   Click here to register . 

TSI was founded in December 1986 as a long distance reseller, primarily distributing Qwest and Focal local, long distance and toll-free dedicated T-1 products. Today, TSI continues to provide the domestic U.S. call center and enterprise markets with high capacity and connectivity outbound long distance and inbound toll-free service, utilizing state of the art VoIP and SDN infrastructure, hosted within its data center space and multiple cloud environments.

Visit the INCOMPAS website to learn more about TSI.

For more information on submitting a member profile, or updating an existing one, email Natalie DeHart or call 202-296-6650.