ARCHIVED - Telecom Commission Letter addressed to Ms. Nathalie MacDonald (Eastlink) and Mr. William Sandiford (Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc.)

Ottawa, 21 December 2015

Our reference:  8740-E17-201511064

BY EMAIL

Ms. Nathalie MacDonald
Vice President Regulatory Matters
Eastlink
8th Floor, 6080 Young Street
Halifax, NS B3K 5M3
regulatory.matters@corp.eastlink.ca

Mr. William Sandiford
Chair of the Board and President
Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc.
107-85 Curlew Drive
Toronto, ON, M3A 2P8
regulatory@cnoc.ca

RE:   Eastlink TPIA Tariff Notice 35 – Requests for Information

Dear Madam, Sir:

Commission staff is seeking additional information pertaining to this tariff notice application in order to clarify responses that have been filed by the parties.
Parties are to file their responses to the attached request for information with the Commission, serving a copy on all other parties, by 14 January 2016.

Any party may file interventions on the responses to the requests for information with the Commission, and serve copies on all other parties by 21 January, 2016. Any party may file reply comments with the Commission, and serve copies on all other parties by 28 January 2016.

As set out in section 39 of the Telecommunications Act and in Broadcasting and Telecom Information Bulletin CRTC 2010-961, Procedures for filing confidential information and requesting its disclosure in Commission proceedings, persons may designate certain information as confidential.  A person designating information as confidential must provide a detailed explanation on why the designated information is confidential and why its disclosure would not be in the public interest, including why the specific direct harm that would be likely to result from the disclosure would outweigh the public interest in disclosure. Furthermore, a person designating information as confidential must either file an abridged version of the document omitting only the information designated as confidential or provide reasons why an abridged version cannot be filed. In Confidentiality of information used to establish wholesale service rates - Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2012-592, dated 26 October 2012, the Commission established additional disclosure guidelines for cost information filed in support of wholesale services.

Where a document is to be filed or served by a specific date, the document must be actually received, not merely sent, by that date.
Sincerely,

Original signed by

Lyne Renaud
Director, Competitor Services & Costing Implementation
Telecommunications sector
c.c.   Marc Pilon, CRTC, 819-997-4535, marc.pilon@crtc.gc.ca
Daniel A. Mullen, President, ISN Inc. daniel.mullen@eidos.ca
George Rae, Navnet Communications webmaster@navnet.net
Lori MacLean, Regulatory Coordinator, Eastlink lori.maclean@corp.eastlink.ca

Attach.(1)
Requests for Information to CNOC

1. Refer to the 6 October 2015 letter titled Eastlink Telephone – Tariff Notice 35 – Additional Comments of Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc. (CRTC File No. 8740-E17-201511064) in which CNOC stated in paragraph 6:

  “By placing the POI at the location proposed by Eastlink, TPIA customers will be required to bear transport costs that they would not otherwise have to bear and which Eastlink itself does not have to bear given that its own CMTS are located near downtown Halifax. This proposed arrangement would also disrupt the existing co-location choices already made by some competitors by forcing them to terminate existing arrangements they have in the downtown Halifax area in order to relocate to the data centre in which Eastlink is proposing to deploy its TPIA POI in order to avoid the additional transport costs that would result from maintaining their existing colocation arrangements. This would force TPIA customers to bear unnecessary transport, termination, relocation and colocation costs.”

1. Confirm whether there are any Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc. (CNOC) members currently co-located within an Eastlink facility in downtown Halifax. If so, identify those members and the associated services provided by Eastlink,
2. Confirm whether there are any CNOC members currently co-located in Eastlink Pennant Point complex. If so, identify those members and the associated services provided by Eastlink.

Request for Information to Eastlink

1. Commission staff is requesting that Eastlink provide a copy of the TPIA Service agreement associated with TN 35.

2. Indicate whether there are any competitors currently co-located in an Eastlink facility in downtown Halifax or in its data center at Pennant Point. If there are, identify the company and the services provided by Eastlink to the competitor.
3. In Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2011-703, Billing practices for wholesale residential high-speed access services, dated 15 November 201, the Commission determined that the flat rate billing model is one in which independent service providers pay a flat fee per month regardless of usage.  In Eastlink’s proposed tariff pages, at Item 103, Section 1.3.ii, it states “Volume Charge: A charge will be applied when an End-User’s monthly traffic volume exceeds a specified threshold.” Indicate whether the proposed tariff page regarding the Volume Charge is correct.
   
1. If correct, provide the dollar amount of the Volume Charge as well as a definition of the “specified threshold” at which this additional charge would apply, along with rationale supporting the appropriateness of this charge in a flat rate billing model.
2. If not correct, please submit revised tariff pages omitting this sub-item from the proposed tariff page.
4. In Telecom Decision CRTC 2013-73, Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc. – Application to review and vary Telecom Regulatory Policies 2011-703 and 2011-704, dated 21 February 2013, the Commission determined that “...that residential and business wholesale HSA services are essentially the same, the rates for business wholesale HSA services approved herein are the same as those for equivalent residential wholesale HSA services.”  In Eastlink’s proposed tariff page (Item 102, Section 8.4) it states “TPIA service is configured and designed for the residential marketplace.”
1. Confirm that the TPIA service is available to both residential and business end-users.
2. If this is the case, then provide supporting rationale for retaining the above wording in the tariff or please submit revised tariff pages omitting this sub-item from the proposed tariff page.
5. Please submit revised tariff pages that include Eastlink’s second-level modem testing terms and conditions and the associated rate.
6. Refer to Item 103 Section 3(ii), a) and Section 3 (iii) of Eastlink TPIA Proposed tariff:
   
   ‘3 ii. a) Standard Connection Charge: A one-time charge to install and provision cable modem functionality at End-User.’
   
   ‘3 iii. Installation Charge: One-time charges to install and provision cable modem functionality at an End-User.’

Staff notes that there are no charges associated with clause 3 (iii) in the TPIA Rates and Charges table in Eastlink’s proposed tariff.

1. Confirm whether these clauses are duplicative.  If so, please submit revised tariff pages omitting Clause 3 (iii).

Date modified:

2015-12-21