CLEC
- This article should be merged with competitive local exchange carrier (including page history).
A competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC), is a telecommunications provider company (sometimes called a "carrier") that competes with other, already established carriers (specially the incumbent).
The local exchange carrier is further divided into Incumbent (ILECs) and Competitive (CLECs) (their concurrence) based on their local market share, and receive different regulatory treatments.
Made possible by the Telecommunications Act of 1996, CLEC's currently face a bleak future. Most CLEC's operate using the unbundled network element port (UNE-P), in which they lease the underlying copper and port space on the local switch. UNE-P as it exists now, is being called into question by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). With the recent Triennial Review in February of 2004, a large portion of rules setforth by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 are currently being rewritten. The alternative to UNE-P is unbundled network element loop (UNE-L), in which the CLEC has access to or operates their own local switch. The underlying copper (loop) that runs to your house is then leased by the CLEC, and cross-connected to the CLEC's switch. Both UNE-P and UNE-L have their own unique advantages and disadvantages.
See : liberalization, desoligopolization, deregulation, Regional Bell operating company
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