ARCHIVED - Telecom Commission Letter Addressed to Russ Friesen (MTS Allstream)
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Ottawa, 21 January 2015
File No: 8638-M59-201410795
BY EMAIL
TO: Mr. Russ Friesen
Vice President Regulatory
MTS Allstream
iworkstation@mtsallstream.com
RE: MTS Inc. and Allstream Inc. – Further proposals for the use of deferral account funds to improve access to telecommunications services for persons with disabilities
Dear Mr. Friesen:
This letter is further to MTS’ Part I application filed 16 September 2014 for the approval of further proposals for the use of deferral account funds to improve access to telecommunications services for persons with disabilities. In its application, MTS requested to drawdown $56,000 of its remaining $85,000 deferral account funds for a voicemail to e-mail (V2E) service, and stated that it “intends on hosting another forum by the end of 2014 to provide further details of this initiative as well as gain the support and approval of the forum members”. Additionally, MTS stated that it would “seek input on further initiatives from the forum to spend the remaining $29,000 in the deferral fund”.
While MTS has stated that it will report on the progress of the remaining initiatives in its annual report on deferral account initiatives in 2015, Commission staff requests that MTS submit any progress made in allocating the remaining funds as a result of the Accessibility Forum hosted in 2014 on the record of the current proceeding.
In light of the information above, please provide the Commission with the following information:
- Feedback MTS received from advocacy organizations regarding the V2E initiative. Include the names of the advocacy groups involved, as well as the dates that the consultations took place.
- A proposal for the allocation of the remaining $29,000 of deferral account funds. The proposal should include:
- Details of how the proposal will improve accessibility to telecommunications services for persons with disabilities.
- Details of the consultation with advocacy groups for persons with disabilities that took place during the development of this proposal. Include the names of the advocacy groups involved, the dates that the consultations took place, and the feedback received from the groups.
- A breakdown of all costs associated with the proposal.
Please provide your response by no later than 4 February 2015 by using the secured service “My CRTC Account” (Partner Log In or GCKey).
In light of the above, Commission staff modifies the procedure for the above noted application as follows:
- Interventions relating to MTS’ response may be submitted by 4 March 2015
- MTS may submit its reply comments by 16 March 2015
A copy of this letter and all related correspondence will be added to the public record associated with your application.
Should you have any questions concerning any of the above, please contact Meghan Flood by telephone at 819-953-8975 or by e-mail at meghan.flood@crtc.gc.ca
Sincerely,
Nanao Kachi
Director, Social & Consumer Policy
Consumer Affairs and Strategic Planning
c.c.: Dana Jacobson, MTS, iworkstation@mtsallstream.com
Meghan Flood, CRTC, Meghan.flood@crtc.gc.ca
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