Letter
Our file: 8678-C12-11/01
and 8624-B20-01/00
Ottawa, 26 October 2001
To: Interested
Parties
Re: Public Notice CRTC 2001-37
– Price cap review and related issues – AT&T Canada request for
disclosure
This letter deals with a request by AT&T Canada Corp. and AT&T
Canada Telecom Services Company (collectively, AT&T Canada), by letter
dated 19 October 2001, for disclosure of information filed under claim of
confidence by TELUS Communications Inc. (TELUS) in TELUS Exhibit #19
provided during the above-noted proceeding.
TELUS provided a reply to this request by letter dated 22 October 2001.
Requests for disclosure of information for which confidentiality has
been claimed are assessed in light of sections 38 and 39 of the Telecommunications
Act and section 19 of the CRTC Telecommunications Rules of
Procedure (the Rules). In the case of each request, the public
interest in disclosure is weighed against the specific direct harm, if
any, likely to result from disclosure. In doing so, a number of factors
are taken into account, including the following.
The degree of competition that exists in a particular market is an
important consideration in assessing requests for disclosure. All things
being equal, the greater the degree of competition in a particular market,
the greater the specific harm that could be expected to result from
disclosure.
Another factor in assessing the extent of harm is the expected
usefulness of the information at issue to parties in furthering their
competitive position. In this regard, an important consideration is the
degree to which the information at issue is disaggregated. Generally
speaking, the more aggregated the information, the less the likelihood
that harm will flow from its disclosure.
The expectation that specific direct harm might result from disclosure
is not, by itself, sufficient to justify maintaining a claim of
confidentiality. In certain circumstances, substantial harm from
disclosure may still be outweighed by the public interest in disclosure.
Finally, the treatment of confidentiality requests should not be taken
as an indication of the manner in which such matters would be dealt with
in the future, in different circumstances.
Having regard to the considerations set out above, in the case of the
specific request dealt with in this letter, no disclosure will be
required.
Yours sincerely,
Shirley Soehn
Executive Director, Telecommunications
c.c.: Valerie Plaskacz, CRTC, (819) 997-4589
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