Telecom - Staff Letter addressed to Barry Choi (Rogers Communications Canada Inc.)
Ottawa, 20 December 2023
Our reference: 8000-C12-202306860
BY EMAIL
Barry Choi
Director Regulatory Economics
Rogers Communications Canada Inc.
333 Bloor St E,
Toronto, ON, M4W 1G9
Subject: Visible Test Alert – 15 November, 2023
Commission staff have been informed by New Brunswick Emergency Measures Organization (NBEMO) staff that on Wednesday, 15 November 2023 at approximately 10:55 am ADT, the NBEMO issued a visible test alert for the province of New Brunswick through the National Public Alerting System (NPAS) as part of its participation in bi-annual public alerting tests.Footnote1 During testing, NBEMO staff found that the test alert was not observed on the television sets at the Operations Center in Fredericton, NB.
Further, NBEMO Operations Center usesthe Rogers Communications Canada Inc. broadcasting distribution undertaking (BDU) service, and the affected set top box units were Arris DCX3510-M, DCX700-M, and DCX-700-M (Dolby digital plus).
Commission staff notes that the Commission’s regulatory framework, in regards to alerting requires that, among other things, licensed and certain exempt BDUs distribute alerts to subscribers or other premised located in an area targeted by the alerts.Footnote2
Given the information provided above, Commission staff requests that Rogers Communications Canada Inc. (Rogers) respond to the following requests for information, as well as any other comments you may have on the facts and situation identified in this letter:
- Are you aware of any other reports from NBEMO or any other subscriber to Rogers’ BDU services (in Canada) of persons not receiving visible test alerts or receiving alerts with incomplete information, within November 2023? If so, please provide details (for instance, location of BDU serving area, licensed or exempt BDU, date of test alert, and number of reports of premises affected).
- Explain the cause (technical or otherwise) for why alerts were not received and distributed correctly at the premises of the NBEMO or for any other subscriber identified in response to question 1?
- What actions, if any, has Rogers taken or plans to take to address the problem(s) identified in response to question 1 to ensure this problem does not reoccur?
Province- and territory -wide NPAS testing is important as it enables alerting stakeholders, including wireless service providers, broadcasting undertakings, EMOs, and the National Alert Aggregation and Dissemination System Operator to assess whether their systems are fully functional. Thank you, in advance, for your cooperation in ensuring the effectiveness of the NPAS.
A copy of this letter and all related correspondence will be added to the public file of the licensee. Please repeat the question before responding.
Please submit your response no later than Friday, 26 January 2024 by 5:00 p.m., Vancouver time. If you have any questions or require additional time, please contact Mr. Amjad Iqbal at (819) 360-2891 or via email at amjad.iqbal@crtc.gc.ca
Sincerely,
Michael Crupi
Manager, Network Technology
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
c.c. regulatory@rci.rogers.com
cable.regulatory@rci.rogers.com
Samantha.grant@gnb.ca
- Date modified: