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Telecom Public Notice
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Ottawa, 11 June 1990
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Telecom Public Notice CRTC 1990-57
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UNITEL COMMUNICATIONS INC. - APPLICATION TO PROVIDE PUBLIC LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE SERVICE: SCOPE OF PROCEEDING
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On 16 May 1990, Unitel Communications Inc. (Unitel) applied to the Commission for the interconnection of its network with the public switched telephone networks of Bell Canada (Bell), British Columbia Telephone Company (B.C. Tel), The Island Telephone Company Limited, Maritime Telegraph and Telephone Company, Limited, The New Brunswick Telephone Company, Limited, and Newfoundland Telephone Company Limited (referred to collectively as the respondents), for the purposes of providing public long distance telephone services, i.e., Message Toll Service (MTS) and Wide Area Telephone Service (WATS).
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In a letter to Unitel and the respondents dated 23 May 1990, the Commission set out procedures governing any requests for particulars that the respondents might wish to address to Unitel with respect to its application. The deadline for such requests is 13 June 1990. Any objections that Unitel may have to such requests must be filed by 18 June 1990. The respondents' replies to those objections must be filed by 21 June 1990. Should the Commission determine that particulars are to be provided, Unitel will be required to file them by 10 July 1990. The procedures established in the Commission's letter also require that the respondents' answers to the application be filed by 20 July 1990. Unitel's reply must be filed by 30 July 1990.
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On 4 June 1990, Bell and B.C. Tel wrote to the Commission concerning, amongst other things, the scope of the proceeding to deal with Unitel's application. B.C. Tel stated that the proceeding should include consideration of the issues set out at pages 7 and 8 of CRTC Telecom Public Notice 1984-6, 11 January 1984 (Public Notice 1984-6), by which the Commission initiated the proceeding that led to Interexchange Competition and Related Issues, Telecom Decision CRTC 85-19, 29 August 1985. In particular, B.C. Tel suggested that a consideration of future changes to local and long distance rates, including rate rebalancing, be included in the proceeding.
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In Public Notice 1984-6, interested parties were requested to indicate the advantages and disadvantages associated with various types of competitive entry, including resale and sharing, in terms of their impact on the following:
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(1) the revenues of the regulated common carriers;
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(2) rates for MTS and WATS, including the practice of rate averaging;
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(3) rates for other interexchange telecommunications services;
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(4) the relationship among rates for different interexchange services;
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(5) rates for local telephone service and the resultant implications for local service accessibility;
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(6) service quality and choice, supplier responsiveness, innovation, research and development, and supplier efficiency;
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(7) the efficiency of telecommunications network planning and design; and
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(8) the long run costs of supplying telecommunications services.
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In addition, interested parties were requested to indicate what regulatory terms and conditions might be adopted in order to maximize the advantages and reduce the disadvantages identified in their comments on the above issues, including:
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(1) alternative types of interconnection that could be furnished to competitors and the implications of each upon network costs and the ability of competitors to compete on an equal footing with existing suppliers;
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(2) the basis upon which rates paid by competitors for interconnection should be established including their relationship to (a) costs, (b) existing tariffs, and (c) the quality of interconnection;
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(3) the extent, if any, to which competitors or others should contribute to the support of local service and the manner in which any such contribution should be determined;
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(4) the extent, if any, to which distinctions should be made among the types of services and facilities for which resale and sharing should be permitted; and
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(5) the nature of the regulatory treatment to be accorded to existing suppliers of telecommunications services and to new entrants.
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In its letter, Bell stated that, in addition to the issues identified in Public Notice 1984-6 (modified to take into account the fact that some entry scenarios addressed in that Public Notice, particularly some of those related to resale and sharing, are not directly applicable today), the proceeding should address:
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(1) the impact of competition on the extent and manner in which the benefits of greater efficiencies in the telephone network, such as the availability of funds to reduce toll rates, should accrue to customers of the respondents as opposed to financing competitive entry or serving other purposes;
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(2) mechanisms to recover revenue shortfalls causal to the introduction of competition, over and above market share erosion, for example, those resulting from modifications for equal access, contribution discounts and contribution avoidance;
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(3) changes to local and toll rates both with and in the absence of competition; and
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(4) differences that may be warranted as between different regions of Canada and as between telephone companies operating in a region.
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In Telecom Letter Decision CRTC 89-28, 21 December 1989, the Commission denied an application by Marathon Telecommunications Corp to initiate an issue proceeding regarding interexchange competition and related matters. The Commission stated that it considered such a proceeding premature. However, the Commission also stated that any proceeding to consider MTS/WATS competition should afford interested parties an opportunity to deal with a wide range of issues, such as the extent of entry and the appropriate degree of regulation in the MTS/WATS market.
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The Commission hereby seeks comments and proposals from interested persons regarding the appropriate scope of the proceeding initiated in response to Unitel's application, including comments on Bell's and B.C. Tel's submissions of 4 June 1990.The Commission intends to make a determination with respect to the scope of the proceeding in the subsequent public notice referred to in the Commission's letter of 23 May 1990.
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Procedure
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1. Anyone wishing to submit comments or proposals on the appropriate scope of the proceeding (interested persons) may do so by filing them with the Commission at the address noted in paragraph 6 by 9 July 1990. Copies of those submissions must be served on Unitel and on each of the respondents, also by 9 July 1990.
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2. The respondents may file submissions regarding the scope of the proceeding, including answers to any comments or proposals, serving copies on all interested persons, on Unitel, and on each other, by 16 July 1990.
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3. Unitel may file a reply to any submissions, serving copies on all interested persons and on each of the respondents, by 23 July 1990.
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4. 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.
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5. Unitel's application and the other documents referred to in this public notice may be examined at any of Unitel's business offices or at the offices of the CRTC in the following locations:
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Room 201
Central Building
Les Terrasses de la Chaudière
1 Promenade du Portage
Hull, Quebec
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Suite 1007
Bank of Commerce Building
1809 Barrington Street
Halifax, Nova Scotia
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Complex Guy-Favreau
East Tower
200 René-Lévesque Blvd. West
6th Floor
Montréal, Quebec
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275 Portage Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba
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Suite 1500
800 Burrard Street
Vancouver, British Columbia
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6. The mailing addresses to be used in connection with this public notice are:
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Rosemary Chisholm
Acting Secretary General
CRTC
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N2
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Mr. Michael Ryan
Vice-President Law & General Counsel
Unitel Communications Inc.
3300 Bloor Street West
Toronto, Ontario
M8X 2W9
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Mr. Peter J. Knowlton
Assistant General Counsel
Bell Canada
25 Eddy Street
4th Floor
Hull, Quebec
J8X 4B5
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Ms. Dorothy E. Byrne
Vice-President
Regulatory Matters and Corporate Secretary
British Columbia Telephone Company
3777 Kingsway
Burnaby, British Columbia
V5H 3Z7
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Mr. D.W. McLane
Vice-President
Customer Services
The Island Telephone Company Limited
P.O. Box 820
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
C1A 7M1
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Mr. C.D. Dexter
Regulatory Affairs Manager
Maritime Telegraph and Telephone Company, Limited
P.O. Box 800
Halifax, Nova Scotia
B3J 2W3
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Mr. H.S. Mercer
Director
Business Planning and Regulatory Matters
The New Brunswick Telephone Company, Limited
One Brunswick Square (BS8-A1)
P.O. Box 1430
Saint John, New Brunswick
E2L 4K2
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Mr. Donald R. Tarrant
General Manager
Rates and Regulatory Matters
Newfoundland Telephone Company Limited
Fort William Building
P.O. Box 2110
St. John's, Newfoundland
A1C 5H6
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Rosemary Chisholm
Acting Secretary General
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