ARCHIVED - Telecom Commission Letter - 8640-R4-01/02
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LetterOttawa, 16 August 2005 BY FAX & EMAIL File no.: 8640-R4-01/02
Mr. Ken Engelhart
Email: ken.engelhart@rci.rogers.com Dear Mr. Engelhart, Re: Part VII Application by Rogers Cable Inc. for forbearance in relation to third party Internet access services Rogers provides in business locations On 5 July 2002, Rogers Cable Inc. (Rogers) filed an application (the application) requesting that the Commission make a determination, pursuant to section 34 of the Telecommunications Act (the Act), to refrain from exercising its powers and performing its duties under sections 24, 25, 27, 29 and 31 of the Act with respect to third party Internet access (TPIA) services it provides in business locations. In its application, Rogers stated that it does not possess market power in either the wholesale higher speed access market or the retail high-speed Internet market for business customers. Rogers argued, among other things, that TPIA service is not an essential input for Internet service providers (ISPs) and a number of carriers provide facilities and services for these ISPs. In Rogers ' view, the competition is vigorous between the various carriers to supply services and facilities to ISPs serving the business market. In Terms and rates approved for large cable carriers' higher speed access service , Order CRTC 2000-789, 21 August 2000 and Order CRTC 2000-789-1, 31 January 2001 (Order 2000-789), the Commission approved terms and rates for the provision of higher speed access services to ISPs by Cogeco Cable Canada inc., Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Communications Inc., and Vid éotron ltée . The Commission was of the view that higher speed access service is expected to foster increased competition by permitting other ISPs to use the cable carriers' facilities to provide higher speed retail Internet services. In Order 2000-789, the Commission also confirmed that Regulation under the Telecommunications Act of certain telecommunications services offered by "broadcast carriers" , Telecom Decision CRTC 98-9, 9 July 1998 and Regulation under the Telecommunications Act of cable carriers' access services , Telecom Decision CRTC 99-8, 6 July 1999 , required a cable carrier to make higher speed access service available to permit companies other than the cable companies to offer high-speed retail Internet service. For this purpose, the Commission stated that high-speed retail Internet service (IS) did not include Internet protocol (IP)-based voice telephony service, multi-casting, virtual private networks or local area networks. Recently, in Regulatory framework for voice communication services using Internet Protocol , Telecom Decision CRTC 2005-28, 12 May 2005, the Commission considered that allowing ISPs to offer voice services over cable would further facilitate competition in the local exchange services market (which, Commission staff notes, includes both residential and business markets) and determined that the TPIA restriction in Order 2000-789 should be removed in order to allow cable companies' TPIA customers to provide VoIP services, in addition to retail IS. In light of the above, Commission staff is of the view that the Commission has recently confirmed its position regarding access to the cable carriers' facilities by ISPs to allow them to provide higher speed retail Internet services and VoIP services. Commission staff is of the view that it would be premature for the Commission to consider the forbearance of TPIA services by cable carriers at this time. Accordingly, Commission staff is closing its file. Yours sincerely, Original signed by P. Godin for
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Mr. Thomas Copeland
Mr. Willie Grieve
Mr. François Ménard
Ms. Suzanne Blackwell
Mr. David E. Palmer |
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