IP: Two back-to-back major decions of the CRTC to increase competition in high-speed Internet access.

[Dave Farber <farber@cis.upenn.edu>]

 > Permission granted to distribute worldwide.
 >
 > -=Francois=-
 > Two back-to-back major decions of the CRTC to increase competition in
 > high-speed Internet access.
 >
 > Montreal, August 21st 2000 @ 15:38PM,
 > by Francois D. Menard, Consultant, fmenard@fmmo.ca
 >
 > On friday August 18th 2000 and today, August 21st 2000, the Canadian
 > Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) has released two
 > decisions which may have a significant impact on the outcome of open access
 > in the U.S.
 >
 > The first order is entitled:
 >
 > Order CRTC 2000-788: CRTC orders Videotron to offer resellers lower rates
 > for high-speed Internet services. Available at the following URL:
 > http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/Orders/2000/O2000-788.htm
 >
 > The second order is entitled:
 >
 > Order CRTC 2000-789: Terms and rates approved for large cable carriers'
 > higher speed access service. Available at the following URL:
 > http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/Orders/2000/O2000-789.htm
 >
 > With respect to CRTC order 2000-788, the seven page document explains that
 > Videotron has to immediately provide the resale of its cable modem services
 > at the fixed price of 22.46 Canadian dollars per month to anybody who
 > registers with the CRTC as a reseller of high-speed Internet access
 > services. The registration process is as simple as sending an email to the
 > CRTC saying that one considers itself as a reseller. There are no fees or
 > other conditions. There are no foreign ownership restrictions that apply to
 > resellers.
 >
 > The price has been set at 22.46$, which is 25% below the lowest retail 
rates
 > of Videotron of 29.95$ as required by the CRTC. Previously to this order,
 > Videotron would only make services available for resale at the price of
 > 29.95$ which was the reason for a complicated dispute between the Canadian
 > Association of Internet Providers (CAIP, www.caip.ca) and Videotron. The
 > CRTC was asked by CAIP to statute on the non-compliance with CRTC Decision
 > 99-11 (http://www.crtc.gc.ca/INTERNET/1999/8045/02/d99-11.htm).
 >
 > The availability of services sold under resale agreements is expected to 
last
 > until mid-2001 until rates based on interconnection rather than resale are
 > implemented in the marketplace.
 >
 > With respect to CRTC order 2000-789, the 47 page document explains the term
 > and rates approved for large cable carrier's higher speed access services.
 > In this decision, the CRTC orders Canadian cable carriers to provide 
service
 > to ISP's at rates ranging from 19.00 to 21.50 Canadian dollars per month,
 > excluding the costs of the point of interconnection. Those costs will be
 > approved in another process to be launched imminently by the CRTC. In order
 > 2000-789, the CRTC makes many references to the effect that industry will
 > need to participate in a CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee (CISC,
 > http://www.crtc.gc.ca/cisc_e.htm) working group to negotiate the technical
 > underpinnings of the interconnection between ISPs and incumbent cable
 > carriers. The CRTC Interconnection Steering Committee (CISC) is an
 > organization established by the CRTC to assist in developing information,
 > procedures and guidelines as may be required in various aspects of the
 > CRTC's regulatory activities. CISC is the same formal body which is
 > addressing the nature of interconnections between local exchange carriers,
 > wireless service providers and competitive local exchange carriers. The
 > technology which has been agreed upon to provide equal access for the
 > Canadian market is source-address routing rather than so-called
 > "open-access" technologies based on the non-standardized Point to Point
 > protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE) protocol used in several proprietary access
 > concentration routers.
 >
 > By way of requiring that issues be debated as part of a CISC working group,
 > the CRTC is creating the very first public forum mandated to look at the
 > architecture of public points of interconnection between ISPs and incumbent
 > carriers. The attendance of CISC meetings is open to all parties interested
 > and the consensus that will be developed in this new working group will be
 > of great importance for further developments on network-layer
 > interconnections between ISPs and facilities-based carriers.
 >
 > In conclusion, the immediate availability of high-speed access services for
 > resale across Canada and the expected availability of cable modem-based
 > last-mile links under approved facilities-based carrier rates will
 > undoubtebly dramatically change the landscape of telecommunications over
 > the next few months. Competitors will be allowed to innovate and
 > end-users will be presented with better services at lower costs.
 >
 > END
 >
 > -=Francois=-
 >