Local Exchange Carriers - (USA) When the divestiture of
AT&T occurred in 1984, the local bell operating companies were divided into the Regional Bell Operating Companies (
RBOCs), and were required to confine their operations to local exchange carrier (
LEC) functions.
Prior to divestiture, an exchnge area was the term used to describe a geographical area in the United States where a single, uniform set of service was provided by "Ma Bell". The Modification of Final Judgment (MFJ) established 160 areas based on the United States Government Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas. These areas are named local acess and trasport areas (
LATAs).
LATAs may span a metropolitan area or a state, since they are based on population density. The most important part of this aspect of deregulation was the restriction on both LECs and the now-called interexchange carriers (ICs or
IXCs). The LECs offered service within the LATA, and the ICs offered service between the LATAs.