Telecom - Staff Letter addressed to All Canadian Carriers
Ottawa, 22 February 2023
Reference(s): 8000-C12-201909780
BY EMAIL
All Canadian Carriers
Subject: Service Outage Reporting Form– Interim Reporting Measure
In Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-39 Footnote1 , the Commission directed all Canadian carriers, as an interim measure pending the outcome of the proceeding, to report all major service outages Footnote2 to the Commission. Specifically, all carriers are required to report major service outages (including major outages affecting only 9-1-1 networks) to the Commission within 2 hours of when the carrier becomes aware of any such outage. In addition, carriers are to provide a comprehensive report to the Commission within 14 days following the outage detailing the causes of the outage; the steps taken to repair service; how emergency and accessibility services were specifically impacted; and the plan put in place to prevent similar outages in the future.
For the purpose of this interim reporting requirement, and pending the development of the definition of a major service outage, examples of a major service outage include an outage affecting: more than 100,000 subscribers or a material proportion of the carrier’s subscribers for more than one hour; subscribers that are in geographic areas served by only the affected carrier; critical infrastructure; major transport facilities, etc.
For initial reporting of a major service outage to the Commission, the Canadian carriers are to use the Service Outage Reporting Form, the confidential version of which is attached in Appendix 1 and the abridged version attached in Appendix 2. Carriers must update the Forms and resubmit to the Commission as soon as possible when new information becomes available.
The completed Service Outage Reporting Form and post outage report must be filed with the Commission by (1) emailing the confidential versions to outage-panne@crtc.gc.ca and (2) submitting the confidential and abridged versions using the My CRTC Account interface Footnote3 under file number 8000-C12-201909780.
The Commission intends to establish a dedicated webpage to provide information about major service outages, based on the information reported in the Service Outage Reporting Form. In order to ensure that information can be posted without delay, matters of confidentiality in respect of information filed in the Service Outage Reporting Form will be resolved in advance. To that end, Canadian carriers and interested parties may comment, in accordance with the process set out below, on the view that only the following information filed in the abridged version of the Service Outage Reporting Form is required to be published on the Commission’s website, and the remaining information contained in the Form may be filed in confidence:
- Name of the company (Canadian carrier)
- Services affected
- Service areas affected
- Service outage start date and time
- Expected service restoration date and time
- Link to carrier communications webpage and social media handles for updates and additional information about the outage
Canadian carriers and other interested parties may file comments by 3 March 2023, and all parties who filed comments may file reply comments by 8 March 2023.
All documents must be received, and not merely sent, by the dates indicated.
With regard to information filed in the post outage reports, any claims for confidentiality will be determined on a case by case basis. If a carrier wishes to claim confidentiality in respect of information contained in the post outage report, it must file its report, including an abridged version thereof, in compliance with the Commission’s rules for designating information as confidential set out in the CRTC Rules of Practice Footnote4 .
Yours Sincerely,
Original signed by
Fiona Gilfillan
Executive Director, Telecommunications Sector
c.c.: Noah Moser, CRTC, noah.moser@crtc.gc.ca
Michel Murray, CRTC, michel.murray@crtc.gc.ca
Salahuddin Rafiquddin, CRTC, salahuddin.rafiquddin@crtc.gc.ca
Étienne Robelin, CRTC, etienne.robelin@crtc.gc.ca
Simon Levasseur, CRTC, simon.levasseur@crtc.gc.ca
Wen Kwan, ISED, wen.kwan@ised-isde.gc.ca
Appendix (2)
APPENDIX 1
Confidential
| # | Required Information | Details | Instructions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Name of company (Canadian carrier) |
Name of the company reporting the service outage. | |
| 2 | Contact person | Primary Contact Person Name: Email: Phone: Secondary Contact Person Name: Email: Phone: |
Provide the contact information for the company’s representatives reporting the service outage. |
| 3 | Outage description | A short description of the outage and its impact. | |
| 4 | Networks affected | Mobile Wireless Network: Fixed Wireless Network Wireline Network: 9-1-1 Network: |
Enter “Yes” next to the network affected. For 9-1-1 network, indicate type of network (Basic, Enhanced, NG9-1-1) |
| 5 | Services affected | Voice Calls: Text (SMS or MMS): 9-1-1 Voice calls: Text with 9-1-1: Wireless Public Alerting: Broadband Internet Access: Transport Network: |
Enter “Yes” next to the service affected and “No” next to the ones that are not affected. Indicate “N/A” next to the services that are not offered. |
| 6 | Other service providers affected | List other telecom service providers whose provision of services rely on your network and as a result are affected by the outage. | |
| 7 | Service areas affected | Provinces / Territories: Municipalities / Region: |
Specify the affected service area by province/territory and municipality/region, etc. |
| 8 | Service outage start date and time | Date: Time: Time Zone: |
Provide the time when the outage is detected. Use “yyyy-mm-dd” and “hh:mm:ss”, with the “hh” being 24-hour format. |
| 9 | Number of subscribers affected by the outage | Wireless: Wireline: 9-1-1 Network: |
Provide the estimated number of subscribers affected by the outage. If unknown, indicate “Unknown at this time” and submit an updated notification form when the estimated number of subscribers is known. For Wireless, include both the estimated number of mobility subscribers and the estimated number of fixed wireless broadband internet access subscribers impacted. For 9-1-1, if more than one network type is affected (Basic, Enhanced, NG9-1-1), provide numbers per affected network |
| 10 | Communication with Subscribers and Stakeholders | Subscribers: Stakeholders: |
Provide a brief description as to the information about the outage provided to date to the subscribers of the affected services and stakeholders. Provide a link to your communications web page where outage information and update to the public is being provided. The stakeholders will include key customers of the service in private and public sector, relevant local and provincial authorities. |
| 11 | Cause of the outage | Provide a short description of the cause of the outage. If unknown, indicate “Unknown at this time” and submit an updated notification form when the cause is known. | |
| 12 | Steps taken to restore the services | Provide a short description of the initial steps taken to restore the services. | |
| 13 | Expected service restoration date and time | Date: Time: Time Zone: |
Indicate the time when services are expected to be fully restored. If unknown, indicate “Unknown at this time” and submit an updated notification form when the expected service restoration date and time is known or changes. If services have already been restored, include the time when that occurred. Use “yyyy-mm-dd” and “hh:mm:ss”, with the “hh” being 24-hour format. |
APPENDIX 2
Abridged
| # | Required Information | Details | Instructions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Name of company (Canadian carrier) |
Name of the company reporting the service outage. | |
| 2 | Services affected | Voice Calls: Text (SMS or MMS): 9-1-1 Voice calls: Text with 9-1-1: Wireless Public Alerting: Broadband Internet Access: Transport Network: |
Enter “Yes” next to the service affected and “No” next to the ones that are not affected. Indicate “N/A” next to the services that are not offered. |
| 3 | Service areas affected | Provinces / Territories: Municipalities / Region: |
Specify the affected service area by province/territory and municipality/region, etc. |
| 4 | Service outage start date and time | Date: Time: Time Zone: |
Provide the time when the outage is detected. Use “yyyy-mm-dd” and “hh:mm:ss”, with the “hh” being 24-hour format. |
| 5 | Expected service restoration date and time | Date: Time: Time Zone: |
Indicate the time when services are expected to be fully restored. If unknown, indicate “Unknown at this time” and submit an updated notification form when the expected service restoration date and time is known or changes. If services have already been restored, include the time when that occurred. Use “yyyy-mm-dd” and “hh:mm:ss”, with the “hh” being 24-hour format. |
| 6 | Communication with Subscribers and Stakeholders | Provide a link to your communications web page where outage information and update to the public is being provided. |
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