Telecom - Commission Letter adressed to W.N. (Bill) Beckman (SaskTel)
Ottawa, 21 December 2021
Our reference: 8740-S22-202107739
BY EMAIL
W.N. (Bill) Beckman
Senior Director, Regulatory Affairs
SaskTel
2121 Saskatchewan Drive
Regina, SK, S4P 3Y2
document.control@sasktel.com
RE: Tariff Notice (TN) 374 – Public Telephone Service
Bill Beckman:
On 9 November 2021, the Commission received an application from Saskatchewan Telecommunications (SaskTel) under TN 374 proposing changes to General Tariff – Basic Services (CRTC 21411) Public Telephone Service to reflect the intention to migrate its Millennium pay telephones to a new Guardian Telecom pay telephone. SaskTel is proposing to provide free local calling and free in-province long distance calling from the new Guardian pay telephone once installed. Calls made to other provinces or internationally would still be charged toll rates, either through collect calls, third-party billing, or calling card methods of payment.
Commission staff is of the view that, as this application raises issues in relation to, among other things, accessibility and existing pay telephone policies, it would be more appropriate to process this request through a Part 1 application as set out in the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Rules of Practice and Procedure.
In light of the above, the tariff application filed under SaskTel TN 374 will now be closed.
Should SaskTel refile its proposal as a Part 1 application, in addition to the information provided in TN 374, SaskTel should among other things also address the following issues:
- Availability of voice prompts to assist in placing calls or using features;
- Additional support and details on the proposed $150 credit available to Teletypewriter users, including justification for the amount and how it will be made available to customers, and details on what products and services the credit could be applied against;
- Timeframes for i) resolving any remaining technical problems (e.g. tension of the latch springs) and ii) completing the migration to the new payphones;
- Whether the new payphones will support Next Generation 9-1-1 and other three-digit phone numbers; and
- The impact of the company’s proposal on the competitive pay telephone market and the availability of pay telephones in smaller communities.
Sincerely,
Original signed by
Michel Murray
Director, Dispute Resolution & Regulatory Implementation
Telecommunications Sector
c.c: Julie Boisvert, CRTC, 819-953-2421, julie.boisvert@crtc.gc.ca
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