ARCHIVED -  Telecom Order CRTC 97-1581

Telecom Order

Ottawa, 31 October 1997

Telecom Order CRTC 97-1581

On 22 July 1997, Bell Canada (Bell) filed Tariff Notice (TN) 6066 requesting approval under General Tariff Items 2025 and 2165 for an October 1997 Bargain Days promotional campaign to stimulate rental of Integrated Voice Messaging Service (IVMS) or Calling Features and/or options.

File No.: Tariff Notice 6066

1. In TN 6066, Bell proposed to waive the service charges associated with a visit to the premises of single line customers in Ontario and Quebec to install a jack when the work is done as the result of the customer converting to Touch-Tone and/or to install an initial set in order that the customer subscribes to a new IVMS feature and/or option during the 1 October to 31 October promotional period.

2. In addition, the company proposed to waive the first month's rental charge for up to two new features and any new options.

3. The company indicated that the offer was available to non-moving single-line customers only, and that it was restricted to customers registered with Bell as their Primary Interexchange Carrier (PIC) for the provision of their message toll service.

4. By letter dated 1 August 1997, InfoInterActive Inc. (IIA) opposed Bell's application and requested that the Commission deny TN 6066.

5. Among other things, IIA argued: (i) Call Forwarding arrangements such as Call Forward Busy and Call Forward Don't Answer are underlying bottleneck services needed by network voice mailbox competitors and can only be provided by Bell; (ii) by making such services available free of charge to its own customers, but charging customers of competitive mailbox providers, Bell is subsidizing its competitive services through a subsidy provided by its underlying services; and (iii) given Bell's and the other Stentor members' monopoly over switch based calling features, the requirement that customers select Bell as their PIC is anti-competitive.

6. In Telecom Order CRTC 97-1345 dated 22 September 1997 (Order 97-1345), the Commission stated that until interconnection agreements are in place to permit facilities-based local competition in accordance with Telecom Decision CRTC 97-8, 1 May 1997, Local Competition, prior to approving future applications by Bell or the other Stentor owner companies that involve the bundling of optional local and toll services, the companies should be required to make the optional local services available for resale at residential rates on a stand-alone basis. In addition, the Commission stated in the case of any such future applications, the companies would be required to address whether the resale of the local service being bundled is available such that the resale of the primary exchange line is not required.

7. The Commission is of the view that in the circumstances of the promotion proposed under TN 6066, the making of the promotional offer contingent, among other things, upon subscribers having registered with Bell as their PIC, constitutes the bundling of optional local services with toll service.

8. On the basis of the foregoing, and in particular, of Bell's failure to comply with the above-noted requirements prescribed in Order 97-1345, the Commission orders that approval of the proposed tariff revisions is denied.

Laura M. Talbot-Allan
Secretary General

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