ARCHIVED -  Telecom Public Notice CRTC 1988-46

Telecom Public Notice

Ottawa, 15 November 1988

Telecom Public Notice CRTC 1988-46

BELL CANADA - PROVISION OF TELEPHONE DIRECTORY DATA BASE IN MACHINE- READABLE FORM

On 13 April 1988, the Commission received an application from Bell Canada (Bell), under Tariff Notice 2727, for approval of tariff revisions providing for a market trial of a new enhanced videotex service called ALEX. The service is described as a network-based gateway service which, through a Bell-provided videotex terminal or suitably equipped personal computer, allows customers to access various electronic information and transaction services. As part of the service, Bell proposed to offer electronic White Pages and certain Yellow Pages services.

In Bell Canada - ALEX Market Trial, Telecom Decision CRTC 88-16, 30 September 1988 (Decision 88-16), the Commission concluded that provision of electronic Yellow Pages service by Bell may violate the Bell Canada Act and would be inconsistent with Enhanced Services, Telecom Decision CRTC 84-18, 12 July 1984. Accordingly, Bell was precluded from offering this service. The Commission noted that the entire telephone directory data base is presently made available only to Bell's subsidiary, Tele-Direct (Publications) Inc. (Tele-Direct), and that the provisioning of directory services by other parties may be facilitated by the development of a General Tariff offering making the data base available in machine-readable form. However, the Commission was of the view that the record of the proceeding was not sufficient to permit a determination with respect to the issues related to such an offering. The purpose of this public notice is to initiate a proceeding to deal with these and related issues.

The Commission considers it appropriate at this time to examine the contractual and other arrangements between Bell and Tele-Direct, and Tele-Direct's role in providing telephone directory information. Accordingly, in assessing the development of a General Tariff for the provision of directory data base information in machine-readable form, the Commission considers it appropriate to examine the arrangements whereby such information could be made available to parties other than Bell and Tele-Direct.

The disclosure and subsequent use of customer specific information is governed by Article 11 of the Terms of Service. While Article 11 does not categorize a customer's name, address and listed telephone number as confidential information, the provision of this information in machine-readable form may heighten concerns related to customer privacy. The Commission notes further that Article 11 allows Bell to provide confidential customer information to companies involved in supplying the customer with telephone or telephone directory related services. The provision by Bell of the entire telephone directory data base in machine-readable form to such companies might raise additional concerns with respect to the protection of customer confidential information that the Commission sought to ensure through Article 11.

The Commission is particularly interested in receiving comments on the following issues:

1. customer privacy and confidentiality, and the applicability of Article 11 in the context of the provision of telephone directory database information in machine-readable form; and

2. whether Bell should be required to provide non-confidential telephone directory data base information in machine-readable form on a general tariff basis;

3. whether, to the extent permitted by Article 11, Bell should be required to provide confidential telephone directory data base information in machine-readable form on a general tariff basis;

4. whether the present contractual and other arrangements between Bell and Tele-Direct confer an undue preference on Tele-Direct; and

5. possible amendments to Article 11 or to other Articles of the Terms of Service that may be required as a result of the provision of telephone directory data base information in machine-readable form.

Parties may, of course, comment on any other issues relevant to the proceeding.

PROCEDURE

The procedures to be followed in connection with this proceeding are noted below.

(1) Parties wishing to participate in this proceeding (interveners) must notify the Commission of their intention to do so by writing to the Secretary General, CRTC, Ottawa, Ontario, K1A 0N2, by 5 December 1988. The Commission will distribute a complete list of parties and their mailing addresses.

(2) Bell is directed to file with the Commission and serve on the interveners, by 15 December 1988, the following documentation:

(a) a complete list and description of all telephone directory data bases maintained by Bell and Tele-Direct;

(b) an identification and description of all data elements included in its telephone directory data bases;

(c) an identification of the data elements provided to Tele-Direct and the form in which they
are provided;

(d) a copy of any contracts or other documents relating to the arrangements under which telephone directory information is provided by Bell to Tele-Direct or telephone directory services are provided by Tele-Direct to Bell;

(e) a complete description of all activities performed by Bell in association with the maintenance of the telephone directory databases, including data collection, storage and processing activities, as well as all activities related to the provision of telephone directory information to Tele-Direct;

(f) its policies and practices concerning the provision of telephone directory data base information to Tele-Direct and to parties other than Tele-Direct;

(g) Tele-Direct's policies and practices concerning the uses to which telephone directory data base information provided by Bell is put;

(h) Bell's policies and practices concerning the uses to which the company puts its telephone directory data base information;

(i) a complete list and technical description of each of the proposed ALEX directory systems that either Bell or Tele-Direct plans to offer, including a description of how directory information is stored and updated.

(3) Interveners may address interrogatories to Bell. Any such interrogatories must be filed with the Commission and served on the company by 16 January 1989.

(4) Responses to interveners' interrogatories must be filed with the Commission and served on interveners by 6 February 1989.

(5) Interveners may file comments with the Commission, serving a copy on Bell, by 27 February 1989.

(6) Bell may file a reply to any comments by 9 March 1989.

(7) Where a document is to be filed or served by a specific date, the document must be actually received, not merely mailed, by that date.

Related documents may be examined at any of Bell's business offices or at the offices of the CRTC, Room 201, Central Building, Les Terrasses de la Chaudière, 1 Promenade du Portage, Hull, Québec, or Complex Guy Favreau, East Tower, 200 Dorchester Blvd. West, 6th floor, Montréal, Québec.

Fernand Bélisle
Secretary General