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If you need the complete document, download the WordPerfect version or Adobe Acrobat version, if available. ***************************************************************** Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION DA 98-268 Washington, D.C. 20554 In the Matter of) ) Part 68 Waiver Request of ) File Nos.: ) Ampac Telecom, Inc. ) NSD No. 98-06 Northern Telecom, Inc.) NSD No. 98-05 Unical Enterprises, Inc. ) NSD No. 98-08 ORDER Adopted: February 11, 1998 Released: February 12, 1998 By the Chief, Network Services Division, Common Carrier Bureau: 1. Ampac Telecom, Inc., Northern Telecom, Inc., and Unical Enterprises, Inc. (hereinafter "Petitioners") have filed requests for waiver of Section 68.312(k) of the Commission's Rules so that they may register, under Part 68 of the Commission's Rules, devices that detect the presence of a stutter dial tone. Stutter dial tone is a series of short separate tones produced by the telephone company's central switching office that alerts a voice mail subscriber that he or she has voice mail. The petitioners' devices automatically check for the presence of stutter dial tone and, if detected, cause a light to blink to alert the subscriber of the waiting voice mail message. For the reasons discussed below, we grant Petitioners' waiver requests. 2. All terminal equipment sold in the United States and connected to the public switched telephone network must be registered under Part 68 of the Commission's Rules. The Part 68 registration process requires rigorous testing of the device to demonstrate that it conforms to Part 68 requirements, to prevent harm to the public switched telephone network (PSTN). Once the equipment tests show that the applicant's device meets Part 68's requirements, a registration number is issued and the device may be sold in the United States. A waiver of one or more portions of Part 68 does not excuse an applicant from this testing process, and the waiver of Section 68.312(k) sought by the Petitioner would allow it to submit its stutter dial tone device for Part 68 testing, pursuant to the conditions that are contained in this Order. 3. On September 28, 1995, the Commission's Common Carrier Bureau released an order granting eight parties waivers of Section 68.312(k) of the Commission's rules to offer similar devices. The waivers were granted subject to eight conditions. In the Alameda Order, the Common Carrier Bureau invited other parties able to meet these conditions to file petitions for waiver of Section 68.312(k) for their stutter dial tone detection devices. Since the Alameda Order was released, we have granted waivers to twenty-one other parties. 4. The Commission may waive any provision of its rules if good cause for a waiver is shown. Judicial interpretation of applicant's burden to show good cause for a waiver is clear. "[A]n applicant [for a waiver] faces a high hurdle even at the starting gate." Nevertheless, an agency must take a "hard look" at meritorious applications for waiver,and consider all relevant factors. An agency must adhere strictly to its rules unless a party can show "reasons why in the public interest the rule should be waived." Finally, "[t]he agency must explain why deviation better serves the public interest and articulate the nature of the special circumstances to prevent discriminatory application and to put future parties on notice as to its operation." 5. We stated in the Alameda Order that the introduction of innovative customer premises equipment that increases choice for consumers and improves the value to the customer of a particular service serves the public interest. The Petitioners have certified that their devices will conform to the eight conditions specified in the Alameda Order, and we conclude the devices for which Petitioners seek waiver are similar to the devices manufactured by the parties granted waivers in the Alameda Order. Thus, we conclude that Petitioners have shown good cause, for the same reasons that were contained in the Alameda Order, for granting the waivers that the Petitioners have requested. Since Petitioners have certified that the devices they have designed using stutter dial tone detection will conform to the conditions specified in that order, we conclude that the devices should be submitted for Part 68 conformance testing to prove that they will pose no harm to the PSTN. 6. We note, however, that VoiceWaves, Inc. and Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. (SBC) filed petitions for reconsideration of the Alameda Order. Thus, while we grant the petitioners' waiver requests, we subject this authorization to any changes that may be required by the Commission's decision on reconsideration. Parties failing to comply with the Commission's reconsideration order may have their stutter dial tone registration revoked. ORDERING CLAUSES 7. Accordingly, pursuant to authority delegated in Section 0.291 of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.291, and pursuant to Section 1.3 of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R.  1.3, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, that the requests for waiver of Section 68.312(k) of the Commission's Rules, 47 C.F.R.  68.312(k), by Ampac Telecom, Inc., Northern Telecom, Inc., and Unical Enterprises, Inc. ARE GRANTED to the extent stated herein. 8. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, that the petitions for waiver ARE GRANTED SUBJECT TO THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: that the stutter dial tone detection devices (1) perform no periodic testing for stutter dial tone; (2) make an off-hook stutter dial tone check no more than once after a subscriber completes a call, and complete the check no earlier than 4 seconds and no later than 30 seconds after the subscriber hangs-up; (3) make an off-hook stutter dial tone check after an unanswered call no more than once and do so within 4 minutes after the call; (4) perform no off-hook stutter dial tone checks after an unanswered incoming call if the visual message indicator is already lit; (5) take the line off- hook for no more than 2.1 seconds per stutter dial tone check; (6) synchronize off-hook checks when multiple stutter dial tone detection and visual signalling devices are attached to the same line so that only one check is made per calling event for a single line; (7) do not block dial tone to a subscriber attempting to initiate a call as an off-hook stutter dial tone detection check is occurring; and (8) do not use more than 8 micro-amps of direct current (DC) from subscriber line loop, except that the devices may draw loop DC sufficient to make authorized off-hook checks. 9. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, that the petitions for waiver ARE GRANTED SUBJECT TO THE COMMISSION'S DECISION ON RECONSIDERATION of the Alameda Order, 10 FCC Rcd 12135 (Com. Car. Bur. 1995). FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Geraldine A. Matise Chief, Network Services Division Common Carrier Bureau