Reply #5: There is a great reason why the telecom incumbents would do this: [View All]

Take AT&T for example: They wanted to reconstitute "Ma Bell", rebuild to a size commensurate to pre-breakup. They knew that to do so, they would have to curry favor with the maladministration. To do that, they just throw customer records and accesss to their network control points right on the table, even give things without being asked.

Bingo. Ma Bell. The customer privacy and constitutional rights is just a commodity. Something to be brokered in negotiations. The law be damned.

You can be sure that the maladministration also played funny with defense and government telecommunications contracts, and access to new ones. That's where no-bids are so effective. Easy and immediate rewards for "good behavior".