There are multiple types of agreements that are available to competitors.

Agreements:

• Interconnection Agreements are agreements offered to local service competitors as required by the Telecom Act of 1996 and that contain terms relating to CenturyTel’s obligations under 47 U.S.C. Section 251 (c).
• Traffic Exchange Agreements are offered to both facilities-based local competitors within CenturyTel territory and to companies with local service outside of CenturyTel territory, but within the local calling scope of a market that includes CenturyTel territory. Traffic Exchange Agreements do not contain Section 251 (c) obligations.
• CMRS Agreements are similar to Traffic Exchange Agreements but have terms specifically geared to the needs and capabilities of the wireless industry.
• Resale Agreements are available to a competitor who only wishes to resell CenturyTel's tariffed local services. Resale Agreements may include a 251 (c) discount where applicable or may be "at retail" (standard tariff rates) where 251 (c) is not applicable.

The first step for a wireline local service competitor is to determine what state(s) and what CenturyTel Operating Company(s) are overlapped in the company's planned service area. There are numerous legal entity CenturyTel Operating Companies (ILECs) in 21 states. A list of those entities is provided on this website by clicking here.

Competitors must take note of the fact that most CenturyTel Operating Companies are "rural telephone companies" as that term is defined in the Telecom Act, 47 U.S.C. 153. Pursuant to Section 251(f) of the Act, rural CenturyTel companies are exempt from Section 251 (c) of the Act and are therefore exempt from offering Interconnection agreements to competitors who wish to purchase resale at a discount, UNEs, collocation or other 251 (c) obligations.

As also noted above, wireline competitors who operate within the CenturyTel local calling area but do not overlap CenturyTel franchise territory should also request a Traffic Exchange Agreement. In most states, without this type of agreement, there can be no exchange of traffic that is rated on a local basis.

In states where there are non-rural CenturyTel Operating Companies, wireline competitors may request, negotiate or adopt a Section 251 Interconnection Agreement if desired. Interconnection Agreements are available for all CenturyTel companies in Alabama and Missouri and for identified non-rural CenturyTel companies only in Wisconsin and Arkansas.

CMRS Agreements are available in all states and with all CenturyTel Operating Companies. Such agreements, however, do not contain any 251 (c) terms in designated rural situations.

CenturyTel agreements are state specific. Multiple CenturyTel companies within a state, however, may be listed on and a party to an agreement except that in Wisconsin and Arkansas, rural CenturyTel companies may not be included on a non-rural Section 251(c) Interconnection Agreement.

To obtain an agreement of any type, the requester must first be a local exchange carrier or wireless carrier in the state in which the request is being made or, at a minimum, certify that it will have such status prior to implementation of any agreement. To obtain certificated status, the requester should contact the appropriate state commission(s) by clicking here.

After applying to the state commission(s) for certification, the requester should follow instructions included in "The Negotiations Process" available on CenturyTel's web site at http://business.centurytel.com /business /Wholesale/InterconnectionServices/QuickLinks/guides.jsp in order to enter into an agreement with CenturyTel.

If a requester chooses to negotiate, the process must abide by the terms of Section 252 as further clarified in Part 51 of U.S.C. 47.