Telecom - Staff Letter addressed to the Distribution List
Ottawa, 11 March 2024
Our reference: 1011-NOC2023-0056
Distribution List
Subject: Procedural Letter - Tariff Notices filed pursuant to Telecom Notice of Consultation CRTC 2023-56, Notice of hearing – Review of the wholesale high-speed access service framework
On 8 March 2023, the Commission initiated the proceeding Notice of hearing – Review of the wholesale high-speed access service framework, Telecom Notice of Consultation 2023-56 (NoC 2023-56). In NoC 2023-56, the Commission directed wholesale high-speed access (HSA) service providers to file proposed tariffs and associated cost studies using the Phase II costing methodology, with supporting rationale, for fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) facilities over aggregated wholesale HSA services. The Commission also required those service providers to file new Phase II cost studies to establish rates for aggregated wholesale HSA services. The deadlines to file these proposals have passed.
Nevertheless, some providers did not meet the deadlines. Others indicated a desire to revise, update, or supplement their filings. Therefore, in an effort to support an efficient process, Commission staff issued a letter on 15 November 2023 indicating that new filings would only be considered when the Commission or Commission staff determined that such information is necessary and appropriate.
On 1 February 2024, Cogeco Communications Inc. (Cogeco) submitted a letter to the Commission stating that it had found errors in its costing submissionsFootnote1. Cogeco proposed to re-file its proposed rates and associated cost models by 15 March 2024.
On 9 February 2024, Bragg Communications Incorporated, carrying on business as Eastlink (Eastlink), submitted a letter to the Commission stating that it had discovered issues that, in its view, may require adjustments to its costing submissionsFootnote2. Eastlink requested to re-file its proposed rates and associated cost models by 30 April 2024.
By letters dated 9 and 16 February 2024, the Competitive Network Operators of Canada (CNOC) opposed both Cogeco and Eastlink’s requests. CNOC advocated for adherence to the approach set out in the 15 November 2023 staff letter and submitted that the Commission should not consider any revised filings until after setting interim rates on the basis of the previously submitted materials.
On 20 February 2024, Bell Canada submitted a letter to the Commission requesting to file additional information by 15 March 2024. This information includes:
- proposed rates and associated cost studies for its FTTP facilities in its Atlantic Canada and Manitoba serving territories,
- the introduction of capacity-based billing (CBB) in Atlantic Canada,
- an update of the Bell MTS VDAS Network Capacity Charge, and
- certain related service charges.
None of this information had been filed to date.
To support expeditious decision-making in this proceeding, Bell Canada requested that the Commission put off consideration of its proposed filings for Atlantic Canada and Manitoba until a later date. Instead, Bell Canada requested that, should the Commission mandate FTTP HSA access, the Commission should use Bell Canada’s Ontario and Quebec FTTP rates as interim rates in Atlantic Canada and Manitoba until such time that the Commission can set final rates for those areas.
Commission staff has assessed the requests made by Cogeco, Eastlink, and Bell Canada in light of the objective of reaching a timely resolution to the proceeding.
Commission staff believes that, in the case of Cogeco and Eastlink, allowing for updated proposed rates and costing information would be in the public interest. The requests were made by two of the smallest carriers subject to wholesale HSA obligations and the rates proposed by both Cogeco and Eastlink are considerably higher than the proposed rate submissions by every other cable carrier for corresponding speeds. As such, Commission staff expects that any new submissions will result in a decrease in proposed rates, and will allow for a more fulsome review of the cost inputs and models. This will help ensure that the Commission has better information for setting just and reasonable rates.
In the case of the request by Bell Canada, Commission staff considers that Bell Canada’s proposal strikes a balance between achieving a timely decision while also allowing for the analysis of company specific information in the proceeding.
Commission staff, therefore, requests updated submissions in accordance with the following:
- Cogeco and Bell Canada are to file its proposed rates and associated cost models by 15 March 2024;
- Eastlink is to file its proposed rates and associated cost models by 30 April 2024;
- The filing of information in the context of the tariff applications, including in the associated cost studies, should be consistent with the confidentiality guidelines set out in Telecom Regulatory Policy CRTC 2012-592 and the 13 September 2013 Commission staff letter; and
- Companies are to adhere to the recent findings of disclosure and deficiency in the staff letters from 22 November 2023 and 12 January 2024.
Once Cogeco and Eastlink have filed their proposed rates and associated cost models, Commission staff will send a letter to parties advising them of further process. For Bell Canada, further process will be established at a future date, should the Commission decide to mandate an FTTP HSA service on Bell Canada’s networks in Atlantic Canada and Manitoba.
Notwithstanding the above, Commission staff continues to consider the strong public interest in the issuance of a timely decision in this proceeding. As such, the considerations made in the 15 November 2023 staff letter remain in effect. Revisions or amendments to tariff filings may be requested by the Commission or Commission staff if deemed necessary and appropriate.
Sincerely,
Original signed by Ian Baggley for
Leila Wright
Executive Director,
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC)
Telecommunications Sector
Distribution list
Bell Canada, bell.regulatory@bell.ca;
Cogeco, telecom.regulatory@cogeco.com;
Eastlink, regulatory.matters@corp.eastlink.ca;
RCCI, regulatory@rci.rogers.com;
SaskTel, document.control@sasktel.com;
Shaw, Regulatory@sjrb.ca;
TCI, regulatory.affairs@telus.com;
Videotron, regaffairs@quebecor.com;
CNOC, regulatory@cnoc.ca;
Community Fibre, ben@communityfibre.ca;
Comwave, legal@comwave.net;
Public Interest Advocacy Centre, jlawford@piac.ca;
TekSavvy, regulatory@teksavvy.ca;
Vaxination Informatique, jfmezei@vaxination.ca;
John Roman, johnphiliproman@gmail.com;
WaveDirect Telecommunications Limited, joanne@wavedirect.org;
Vaxxine Computer Systems Inc., president@vaxxine.com;
Truespeed Internet Services Inc., adam@truespeed.ca;
SkyChoice Communications, serge@skychoice.ca;
Securenet, info@securenet.net;
Secure by Design, kirk@secure-by-design.com;
OpenMedia, erin@openmedia.org;
Netrevolution inc., drouleau@gtvr.com;
National Capital FreeNet, execdir@ncf.ca;
IGS Hawkesbury Inc., jbogue@hawkmail.ca;
First Mile Connectivity Consortium, info@firstmile.ca;
Devtel Communications Inc., devin@devtelcommunications.ca;
CPC, campbell@campbellpatterson.com;
Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project (CAMP), keldon@antimonopoly.ca;
Beanfield, todd@beanfield.com;
Marc Nanni, mn_crtc@proton.me;
Competition Bureau, Conor.Parson@cb-bc.gc.ca;
Competition Bureau, crtc2023-56@cb-bc.gc.ca;
Coextro, skhandor@coextro.com;
Carry Telecom, frankw@carrytel.ca;
Execulink, yasmin.charania@execulinktelecom.ca;
Frontier Networks, cgooey@frontiernetworks.ca;
Citywide, david@yourcitywide.com;
CIK Telecom, jordan.d@ciktel.com;
British Columbia Broadband Association (BCBA), regulatory@bcba.ca
- Date modified: