Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2016-192-1

PDF version

Reference : 2016-192, 2016-192-2

Ottawa, 3 June 2016

File number: 1011-NOC-2016-0192

Notice of hearing

31 October 2016
Gatineau, Quebec

Examination of differential pricing practices related to Internet data plans

Revised deadline for submission of interventions: 28 June 2016

[Submit an intervention or view related documents]

Changes to procedure

1. With this notice, the Commission revises one of the procedural dates established in Examination of differential pricing practices related to Internet data plans, Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2016-192, 18 May 2016 (Telecom Notice of Consultation 2016-192).
2. By letter dated 24 May 2016, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) requested that the 17 June 2016 deadline for filing initial interventions be extended to 4 July 2016, and that the 22 July 2016 deadline for Commission interrogatories be extended to 8 August 2016. PIAC also requested that the Commission allow parties to submit requests for information to one another.
3. PIAC submitted that parties have less than a month to prepare their interventions, while a significant number of other Commission proceedings that they need to prepare for are also ongoing. PIAC argued that its proposed revisions to the timeline would enable it and other interveners to contribute to a better understanding of the matters to be considered by the Commission.
4. The Commission received comments regarding PIAC’s request from Bell Canada; the Canadian Network Operators Consortium Inc. (CNOC); Cogeco Communications Inc. (Cogeco); OpenMedia Engagement Network (OpenMedia); TELUS Communications Company (TCC); and Quebecor Media Inc., on behalf of Videotron G.P. (Videotron).
5. Bell Canada, CNOC, Cogeco, OpenMedia, and Videotron supported PIAC’s request to extend the deadline for initial interventions.
6. OpenMedia and TCC supported PIAC’s request for the Commission to allow parties to submit requests for information to one another, while Bell Canada and Videotron opposed it, arguing that the process outlined in Telecom Notice of Consultation 2016-192 would provide sufficient evidence for the Commission to make its determinations.
7. The Commission considers that the process outlined in Telecom Notice of Consultation 2016-192 will enable parties to participate in this proceeding in a meaningful way. In particular, the process allows for parties to file three rounds of submissions, at a minimum. The Commission considers that the process will provide a full record and sufficient evidence on which to base its decision making. Accordingly, the Commission denies PIAC’s requests (i) for parties to submit requests for information to one another, and consequently, (ii) to extend the deadline for Commission interrogatories. However, as part of their initial interventions, parties may propose questions to be included in the Commission’s requests for information to parties.
8. Regarding PIAC’s request to extend the deadline for initial interventions, the Commission considers it reasonable to allow parties and interested persons some additional time to prepare these interventions. Accordingly, the Commission revises the deadline for filing initial interventions set out in Telecom Notice of Consultation 2016-192. For ease of reference, the relevant paragraph of the notice is reproduced below, with the change highlighted in bold italics.

   31. Interested persons who wish to become parties to this proceeding must file an intervention with the Commission regarding the above-noted issues by 28 June 2016. The intervention must be filed in accordance with section 26 of the Rules of Procedure, must clearly put forward the party’s positions with respect to the issues set out in this notice, and must include one of the following statements in either the first or the last paragraph:

   1. I request to appear at the public hearing.
   2. I do not want to appear at the public hearing.

Clarifications regarding 20 and 24 May 2016 Commission letters

9. The deadline of 17 June 2016 for responses to an initial round of Commission interrogatories addressed to certain parties^{Footnote 1} remains unchanged. In addition, parties may file requests for the disclosure of information that has been designated as confidential, serving a copy on the applicable party, by 30 June 2016. Parties may file responses to any such requests, serving a copy on the requesting party, by 8 July 2016.

Secretary General

Date modified:

2016-06-03