Aliant reduces trial for unified message service in reaction to CRTC ruling

After being rebuffed by the CRTC in its attempt to test a new unified communications (u/c) system, a regional ILEC is scaling back its plans. Aliant Telecom Inc. hopes the modified proposal meets with regulatory approval. The east coast telco had announced back in the spring that it was interested in deploying the service from Voice Mobility International Inc. (see the June 24/02 edition of affiliate publication Report on Wireless). VMI’s system permits subscribers to retrieve voice and fax messages from one mailbox with one number. It filed the appropriate tariff notice with the CRTC in May. Aliant wanted to start the one-year trial in Halifax, rolling out to the rest of its serving area within a few months. The commission rejected the request in Telecom Order 2002-290, stating, "he scope of the VMI market trial is too broad as it proposes to launch the market trial throughout its entire operating territory." Late last month, the telco submitted a revised plan with the CRTC. It now intends to roll out limited service this month, for a one-year test."The proposed trial will be available in Halifax and Sydney, Nova Scotia and in St. John, Fredericton, and Moncton, New Brunswick," Lourdes Clancy, Aliant’s manager of regulatory affairs, wrote on July 24. "The proposed trial will not be available in Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island." Aliant conducted an internal trial of the VMI system last fall to determine the technical capabilities of the product. The company hopes this consumer test will gauge client reaction and price point response. (Aliant wants to offer the service for $25 a month, with the first month free for new customers.) VMI’s director of marketing is surprised by the delay. "It’s kind of funny they would get denied on this," Rob Collins tells Network Letter. "The commission seems to be rubberstamping a lot of stuff lately." Collins adds that the rejection of the original trial does not affect the three-year, $7-million contract. He concedes the rejigged trial may result in changing the order of deployment of the u/c system, which he labels "one number, ‘find me, follow me’ stuff." Despite the reduced trial, VMI platforms will be used for other Aliant services."They are migrating voice mail customers and the second thing is they’ve got an existing platform there where they’re doing fax to email," Collins notes. "And they’re going to migrate that on to the platform too, the new platform that we’re providing to them. So those other two things will probably get advanced."

Aliant reduces trial for unified message service in reaction to CRTC ruling

News | 08/13/2002 4:00 am EDT

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