6. Accuracy of Billed Amounts
AT&T billed GNAPs for terminating and transiting traffic delivered over the combined local/intraLATA toll trunks. AT&T billed the terminating traffic using the default PLU factor to apply the local versus intraLATA toll charges, and billed the transited traffic at the transiting rate. GNAPs does not challenge AT&T's calculation of the bills. Rather, GNAPs asserts that AT&T's bills are inherently inaccurate for being based upon a comparison of NXX codes,4 and for inappropriately imposing access charges and applying the PLU factor to IP-enabled traffic. We discuss these arguments below.
GNAPs argues that AT&T's invoices are inherently inaccurate because they are generated using Carrier Access Billing System (CABS) billing, which is premised upon a comparison of NXX codes. GNAPs points out that, for VoIP and IP-enabled traffic, the NXX codes do not necessarily reflect the end-user's physical location. Thus, for example, AT&T bills the traffic as local or intraLATA toll even if the end-user originating the call is physically located outside the geographic location pertaining to that particular NXX code. GNAPs argues that, therefore, the bills are inaccurate.
GNAPs is mistaken as to the billing procedure. AT&T did not use NXX codes to determine whether the traffic was local and/or intraLATA toll. Rather, the traffic at issue was deemed to be local and/or intraLATA toll based on its delivery over the combined local/intraLATA toll trunks. Nor did AT&T use NXX codes to distinguish between local and intraLATA toll traffic. Pursuant to the interconnection agreement, all of the traffic that is delivered to AT&T's own end-users is billed either as local or intraLATA toll based on the PLU factor provided by GNAPs. Because GNAPs did not provide a PLU factor, AT&T applied the default PLU. NXX codes did not factor into AT&T's billing.
GNAPs argues that the billed amounts are intrastate access charges, which cannot be applied to its VoIP or IP-enabled traffic. GNAPs' argument is without merit. The billed amounts are transiting and terminating charges for traffic exchanged over local/intraLATA toll trunks pursuant to the interconnection agreement. Irrespective of the scope of any purported FCC access charge exemption for "ESP" or VoIP traffic, GNAPs is bound by its interconnection agreement and must pay the charges due under it.
GNAPs maintains that it should not be penalized for AT&T's failure to provide an interconnection option that would allow GNAPs to deliver traffic that is jurisdictionally interstate without subjecting it to the charges at issue. If GNAPs believed that the terms of the interconnection agreement should not apply to particular types of traffic, it could have sought arbitration of the issue before entering into the agreement. Having agreed in the interconnection agreement to pay for transiting and termination of traffic delivered over local/intraLATA toll trunks, GNAPs is bound by it. (Pacific Bell v. Pac West Telecomm, Inc., 325 F.3d 1114, 1127 (9th Cir. 2003)(citing 47 U.S.C. § 252(a)(1).)
GNAPs asserts that the charges constitute access charges, which cannot be applied to GNAPs' IP-enabled traffic. As we discussed above, the charges are not regulatory charges. Rather, they are contractual charges arising out of the parties' interconnection agreement, which was approved by the Commission in the exercise of our authority under the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to arbitrate, interpret and enforce interconnection disputes.
GNAPs asserts that the PLU factor is inapplicable to its IP-enabled traffic. This argument reiterates GNAPs' position, which we reject, that IP-enabled traffic is exempt from charges under the interconnection agreement.
GNAPs notes that it provides no dial tone services like traditional carriers and that it only presents its traffic to AT&T in other than IP format because AT&T requires it to do so. These observations do not lead us to conclude that the billing calculation is inaccurate or that the traffic is not governed by the interconnection agreement.
We find that AT&T properly calculated $18,589,494.17 through the December 2007 bill, as the amount due and owed under the interconnection agreement.
4 NXX codes are the first three digits in a telephone number, and designate the central office or switch to which the number is assigned.
