OTTAWA – The CRTC is requesting information surrounding the status of negotiations for access to the incumbents’ wireless networks by regional service providers.
In a letter dated June 1, the CRTC said it wants Rogers, Bell, Telus, and SaskTel and the regional players to provide it with status updates on June 8, July 7, and August 7 about access to the incumbent networks by mobile virtual network operators run by the regional providers.
It is requesting that the incumbents provide a list of agreements that are currently in place, a list of regional providers that have made requests to begin negotiations and when, a list of those they denied and why, the status of ongoing negotiations, and “an indication of whether seamless handoff functionality will be in place by August 7 for each regional carrier who has requested it.”
Last month, when it came to finalize the terms and conditions for MVNO access, the CRTC set a deadline of August 7 for regional carriers to have access to the incumbents’ wireless networks. It also set a deadline of June 8 for the MVNO service to be ready.
As such, the commission is also asking the providers to confirm by June 8 that their MVNO access services are ready to go.
The CRTC also wants feedback on the experience of the incumbents negotiating with each other for the same network access.
On the flip side, the CRTC is asking the regional carriers – Eastlink, Cogeco, Iristel and Videotron – to provide the commission with a status report on access negotiations with the incumbents by June 8. That information should include a list of incumbents from which access was requested, incumbents with which they are currently negotiating, which incumbents denied them and why, a summary of their negotiation experiences, and an indication of whether they expect to have access by August 7.
Updated status reports from the regional providers will similarly be requested on July 7 and August 7.
Last month, the CRTC said it would determine rates for access by Videotron to the wireless facilities of Rogers and Videotron after the two said they could not negotiate a mutually-acceptable access rate.
