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Telecom Order CRTC 2005-397
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Ottawa, 2 December 2005
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Bell Canada
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Reference: Tariff Notice 6897
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Bell Digital Voice Lite service
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1.
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The Commission received an application by Bell Canada, dated 1 September 2005, proposing revisions to General Tariff item 7020, Bell Digital Voice, to remove the condition that customers can migrate their current telephone number, provided by any local exchange carrier (LEC), to use as a secondary telephone number for Bell Digital Voice service and vice versa.
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2.
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In its application, Bell Canada stated that it has identified system constraints, which were inadvertently not identified at product launch, that preclude the support of this number portability option at this time. Bell Canada identified that no customers had, as of the date of its application, requested this option.
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3.
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The Commission notes that subsequent to Bell Canada's application the name of its service was changed from Bell Digital Voice to Bell Digital Voice Lite.
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4.
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The Commission notes that Bell Canada's Digital Voice Lite service includes provisions whereby telephone numbers associated with locations both inside and outside of its operating territory can be used by subscribers to this service.
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5.
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The Commission addressed interrogatories to Bell Canada on 6 and 26 September 2005.
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6.
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In response to the Commission's interrogatories, Bell Canada identified that constraints related to its internal processes and procedures prevented it from supporting local number portability (LNP) for all telephone numbers associated with all Canadian numbering plan areas. Bell Canada identified that:
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a. it supported the porting of in-territory telephone numbers used as primary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service;
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b. at this time, it does not support the porting of in-territory telephone numbers used as secondary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service; and
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c. at this time, it does not support the porting of out-of-territory telephone numbers used either as primary or secondary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service.
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7.
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Bell Canada indicated that it planned to implement a manual solution for LNP for out-of-territory primary numbers within four months, but that it was reluctant to undertake system modifications for LNP for secondary numbers.
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Commission's analysis and determinations
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8.
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In paragraph 213 of Regulatory framework for voice communication services using Internet Protocol, Telecom Decision CRTC 2005-28, 12 May 2005 (Decision 2005-28), the Commission stated that, in Local competition, Telecom Decision CRTC 97-8, 1 May 1997, it accorded certain rights, along with accompanying obligations, to LECs, and that included among these obligations was the requirement that all LECs implement LNP. The Commission further stated that it considers that this ruling applied to LECs providing local Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services.
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9.
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The Commission considers that Bell Canada's application is not compliant with the Commission's determination in Decision 2005-28, which requires that all LECs providing local VoIP services support LNP.
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10.
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As noted above, Bell Canada does not, at this time, support the porting of out-of-territory telephone numbers that are used as primary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service, and it does not support the porting of either in-territory or out-of-territory telephone numbers that are used as secondary numbers in conjunction with the service.
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11.
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The Commission considers that Bell Digital Voice Lite service must include provisions to support LNP for all telephone numbers used as primary telephone numbers, whether they are in-territory or out-of-territory telephone numbers.
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12.
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The Commission considers that Bell Digital Voice Lite service must also include provisions to support LNP for all telephone numbers used as secondary numbers, whether they are in-territory or out-of-territory telephone numbers.
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13.
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The Commission further considers that a six-month period is reasonable for Bell Canada to implement the necessary solution(s) with regard to fully supporting LNP for both primary and secondary numbers used in conjunction with its Bell Digital Voice Lite service.
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14.
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Finally, the Commission considers that Bell Canada's Digital Voice Lite service tariff should accurately describe its current capabilities with regard to the porting of telephone numbers, and that the tariff should be modified accordingly.
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15.
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In light of the above, the Commission denies Bell Canada's application.
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16.
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The Commission directs Bell Canada to, within six months of the date of this Order:
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a. implement a solution for LNP for out-of-territory telephone numbers used as primary numbers and to file revised tariff pages to include provisions for complete LNP for primary telephone numbers within Bell Digital Voice Lite service; and
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b. implement a solution for LNP for in-territory and out-of-territory telephone numbers used as secondary numbers and to file revised tariff pages to include provisions for complete LNP for secondary telephone numbers within Bell Digital Voice Lite service.
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17.
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The Commission directs Bell Canada to, within 10 days of the date of this Order, file revised tariff pages to clarify that:
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a. the porting of in-territory telephone numbers that are used as primary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service is supported;
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b. the porting of out-of-territory telephone numbers that are used as primary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service is not supported; and
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c. the porting of in-territory and out-of-territory telephone numbers that are used as secondary numbers in conjunction with Bell Digital Voice Lite service is not supported.
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Secretary General
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This document is available in alternative format upon request, and may also be examined in PDF format or in HTML at the following Internet site: www.crtc.gc.ca
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Date Modified: 2005-12-02