AT&T wants big tech companies to pay into telecom and broadband subsidy fund

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – AT&T CEO John Stankey said on Monday that Congress should give the Federal Communications Commission the power to require big technology companies to contribute to a government fund that subsidizes access to telecommunications and broadband services.

Under current law, fees are charged to subscribers of fixed and wireless telephone services to support the Universal Service Fund.

“The seven largest and most profitable companies in the world have built their franchises on the Internet and the infrastructure we provide,” Stankey said in comments at a telecommunications industry forum in Utah.

“Why shouldn’t they participate in ensuring affordable and equitable access to today’s services that are as indispensable as the telephone lines of yesteryear?”

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese)