Here's the last interview of 2010 with Tom Gorey, Vice President Channel Strategy & Development at XO Communications. Gorey is an active member of TCA. He and I have had a few chats this year about educating the Channel and its importance for the future of Agents and VAR's.

1. What is one change that you have noticed in the Channel thus far in 2010?

Gorey: Everyone's looking at the VAR channel, yet no one knows how to engage the VARs effectively (outside the few that have mature business practices in telecom).

2. The Channel Partners are experiencing the shift from TDM to all-IP. Do you think that the Channel learns better peer-to-peer or from carrier training?

Gorey: The channel learns best with quality training from technical experts. The key issue is peer to peer is too often the semi informed leading people that may or may not have the prerequisites to absorb accurate information. You can't become an expert if your teacher is not technically accurate. [True but some corporate trainers aren't subject matter experts either].

3. How do you foresee TCA's certification program affecting (if at all) the Channel?

Gorey: In general, I am a proponent of any programs that generally raise the ability of channel members to provide higher quality experiences to clients. This step can be a piece of that puzzle. But in order to be effective, it needs to have a program benefit to those that invest. Happy clients stay with their suppliers, and make great references.

The TCA has already announced that five independent agents have become certified. Congratulations to Ben Henkels of Communication Management Partners; Dave Wallace of Aligned Communications; Evan M. Gillman of Transit Broker; Yvonne Fry of Lines of Communication; and Jeff Sumner of Corporate Technologies Group.

Sadly, I am still trying to finish my book, so I have not taken the test yet. Soon I tell you. Soon. Happy New Year!

This will be a far reaching rant but I think that it's time the FCC (and other F-Agencies) close their doors. Really. We have a huge deficit and really you just aren't honoring your duties or worth the expense any longer.

The Net Neutrality issue went on for months - and you had plenty of time to talk to the bazillion lobbyists, but couldn't find time to consider the consumer in all of this? 

Think about this for a minute? What drives consumers to buy gadgets and broadband (in its many forms)? The content. If we can't get the content we want in a timely fashion, why would we buy the broadband?

It's not about products any more. It's about the Customer Experience. And when that sucks, your company is done. Don't believe me? Look what Comcast, Qwest and AT&T are doing on twitter so that the technorati don't damage their brand by ranting how much they suck.

The FCC STILL has not fixed Inter-Carrier Compensation.  It has not tackled Special Access, which is very improtant for all over the communications infrastructure to work.

Then when it comes to mergers, it rubber stamps them. And there have been some doozies. Like the whole Fairpoint mess. How did you not see that coming? How?

We are in an economic stew, so you approve more mergers that result in more job losses. Smart. I'm not saying this is directly your fault, but the FCC is a contributing factor.

And as long as we are on mergers, let's talk about Comcast-NBC.

Apparently, the Commission has really had its head buried in paperwork not to notice the increasing number of carriage disputes in the last 2 years. Remember the Fox-Cablevision dispute? Consumers didn't get to see NFL and college football!!!

So now The FCC will okay the merger of the largest cable company, ISP, and content distribution system with one of the larger content creation companies. Let that sink in.

This same ISP is in a pissing contest -- err, peering dispute - with Level3, which may or may not be over Netflix.

This same cableco has had carriage disputes with many sports channels and already owns a few channels - like G4 and Versus.

This same ISP has been before the FCC before on blocking Vonage and blocking P2P traffic.

And even with some merger conditions, which it is doubtful that the FCC can or will enforce, this is bad for consumers. The FCC is charged with looking out for consumers. Not stockholders, Big Business, Corporate America, or anything else. First and foremost will this likely harm consumers? Inevitably, this will cause an increase in TV carriage rates, which already increase annually.

So to recap: The FCC is not looking out for the consumer. It seems to be making matters worse in some cases. So let's save the money.

The FCC oversees Spectrum, Broadband, Competition, Media, Public Safety and Homeland Security.

Spectrum? The FCC sold almost all of it. Now the companies resell it to the cellcos for huge profit. (See Qualcomm and Aloha). Don't know what they have left here to do but collect fees and forms.

Broadband. Done and done. NTIA and USDA have this covered now.

Competition? Don't make me laugh!

Media? Has it accomplished Diversity yet? Not really. Has it allowed consolidation to the point that Local is a joke? Yes.

Public Safety? Nine years after 9/11 and still not fully inter-operability in public safety communications. So failure.

I have no idea what the FCC can do for Homeland Security.

So all and all. Shut the lights on your way out, Julius.