Zeus Keravala breaks down why the FCC's bold new ruling is less of a compliance headache and more of a long-overdue wake-up call for enterprise CX. In this discussion, Associate Editor Rhys Fisher sits down with Zeus Keravala, Principal Analyst at ZK Research, to unpack the FCC's proposed rules targeting offshore call center operations. The new regulation would require companies to disclose when calls are handled offshore, mandate domestic agent transfer options upon request, and introduce tighter data accountability standards.
With 8x8 CEO Sam Wilson already weighing in publicly, the industry is paying close attention — and Keravala doesn't hold back on what it really means for CX leaders, IT teams, and the global BPO economy. The FCC's new offshore call center proposal isa labor, data security, national security, and customer experience story all rolled into one.
Zeus Keravala rates its significance an 8 or 9 out of 10, and here's why:
- AI as the great equalizer: Re-onshoring raises costs, but AI-powered tools — from real-time language translation to virtual agents handling high-volume, low-complexity calls — could offset those costs significantly, potentially making domestic operations economically viable.
- Compliance belongs to IT now: Keravala argues that IT pros, not legal teams, are best positioned to own compliance here — using AI-driven PII redaction, automated call volume tracking, and smart routing to hit regulatory caps without the manual overhead.
- Unified stacks get a tailwind: Vendors like 8x8 have been pitching integrated UCaaS/CCaaS platforms as the cleaner architectural answer, and this regulation could accelerate that consolidation — particularly for mid-market contact centers.
- Global economic ripple effects: Countries that rely heavily on BPO contracts as a primary economic driver stand to feel the impact, though Keravala notes that the rise of AI-handled interactions may have been shifting that landscape regardless.