WPC 2B0T Z3|P  )Courier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Bold) (TT)HP LaserJet 5Si/5Si MXt RM 813AHPLA5SMX.WRSx  @,,,"XX@  2N0^M3|x  Courier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)5x  @\\G"[X@Courier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Bold) (TT)2- @BvGp07-24-96 03:03p RTFTEMP.TMP Judy Arenstein Judy Arenstein a8DocumentgDocument Style StyleXX` `  ` a4DocumentgDocument Style Style . 2P k_k5va6DocumentgDocument Style Style GX  a5DocumentgDocument Style Style }X(# a2DocumentgDocument Style Style<o   ?  A.  a7DocumentgDocument Style StyleyXX` ` (#` 2 t   3 BibliogrphyBibliography:X (# a1Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbers:`S@ I.  X(# a2Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbers C @` A. ` ` (#` a3DocumentgDocument Style Style B b  ?  1.  2   m ,a3Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbers L! ` ` @P 1. ` `  (# a4Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbers Uj` `  @ a. ` (# a5Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbers _o` `  @h(1)  hh#(#h a6Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph Numbersh` `  hh#@$(a) hh#((# 2&a7Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph NumberspfJ` `  hh#(@*i) (h-(# a8Right ParRight-Aligned Paragraph NumbersyW"3!` `  hh#(-@p/a) -pp2(#p Tech InitInitialize Technical Style. k I. A. 1. a.(1)(a) i) a) 1 .1 .1 .1 .1 .1 .1 .1 Technicala1DocumentgDocument Style Style\s0  zN8F I. ׃  24Xa5TechnicalTechnical Document Style)WD (1) . a6TechnicalTechnical Document Style)D (a) . a2TechnicalTechnical Document Style<6  ?  A.   a3TechnicalTechnical Document Style9Wg  2  1.   2f Ta4TechnicalTechnical Document Style8bv{ 2  a.   a1TechnicalTechnical Document StyleF!<  ?  I.   a7TechnicalTechnical Document Style(@D i) . a8TechnicalTechnical Document Style(D a) . 2(3 ?eCDoc InitInitialize Document Stylez   0*0*0*  I. A. 1. a.(1)(a) i) a) I. 1. A. a.(1)(a) i) a)DocumentgPleadingHeader for Numbered Pleading PaperE!n    X X` hp x (#%'0*,.8135@8:d<d<BBYYdBBddBYBdYzzzzBBBBqodYYYYYYYYYYY8888dddddddnddddddd?xxxX9Xxh/QXTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTd<d<BBoodBBddBoBddzzzzzzzzzzBBBBozdddddddYYYYY8888dddddddndddddYdCourier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Bold) (TT)Times New Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold) (TT)Courier New (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold Italic) (TT)Times New Roman (Bold Italic) (TT)"5^2Nodd8BBdr2B28ddddddddddBBrrrdNdzzozzzB8BrdBddYdYBdo88d8odddNN8oYdYNE,Er2BBBBPBdddddddYYYYYN8N8N8N8oddddoooozYddddzYdzddddYYYYYdddooPdNdNBNdddoNNF2ddNdddddd57pNAXp2p NQ2ݒ.Courier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Bold) (TT)Times New Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold) (TT)Courier New (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold Italic) (TT)Times New Roman (Bold Italic) (TT)Arial (TT)Arial (Bold) (TT)"5^ANoШ7NN[ANAANN㨨A¨ܜNANNNAAAЏ[Nu[A[ANNNN]NШAAAAAAAA]NNNANRANVUÂNNAAuuNNAuNNNN]ANoШ7NN[ANAANN㨨A¨ܜNANNNAAAЏ[Nu[A[Au邂NNAAuuRNNANANVN]NNNANNUÏ騜AAAAЂAAAACourier New (TT)WP MultinationalA Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Bold) (TT)Times New Roman (TT)Times New Roman (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold) (TT)Courier New (Italic) (TT)Courier New (Bold Italic) (TT)Times New Roman (Bold Italic) (TT)Arial (TT)Arial (Bold) (TT)Arial (Italic) (TT)"5^ )AAhN''-D ' AAAAAAAAAA DDDAvNNTTNG[T :NAaT[N[TNGTNnNNG 7A'AA:AA AA:aAAAA': A:T:::''D ''''/'@GNANANANANAuhT:NANANANA TA[A[A[A[ATATATATAN:NATA[G[AN:TANANANANAT:T:NANANA[A[A[ATATA/G'G'' G:[AunN:N) ?A'GAAAAA++aaA'VVAa'''Au''AAuu'u''N'@@D/CDAAC )AAhN''-D ' AAAAAAAAAA DDDAvNNTTNG[T :NAaT[N[TNGTNnNNG 7A'AA:AA AA:aAAAA': A:T:::''DSA'uAA'uN'u'')Au'u:'nN 'AAAAA'V+AD'V@/@'''C? ''+AaaaGNNNNNNuTNNNN TT[[[[[D[TTTTNNGAAAAAAh:AAAA AAAAAAA@GAAAA:A2d6r9R?xxxXbXx6X@DQX@ 8xCdX{dXx{2 PQXP.7UC2X0XU4  pQXV"H(<XhH{2 PQhPy.C8*XM/C\  P6QPI(!XM,(\  P6Q,P{,C8*XcVC*f9 xQX6?xxxXXx `NQXt?xxxXXXx6NhQXH ?xxxX9Xxh/QXR&HHHXhH6X@DQh@7PC2XMXP\  P6QXP 5PC2Xcf_XP*f9 xQXX l6RC2XXR9 xyQXW!0(XMh0\  P6QhP.y.G8*X0<G4  pQ.a$9,!X0894  pQ X3' Xrn^32PQ^P> 7pNAXp2p NQ X3' Xc^32x8Q^X>Y8' X^82p NQ^.7UC2X0XU4  pQX X' #!m #XP\  P6Q XP# #!m   @E-@UԊ APPENDIX E   X' Tariffed Components Price Methodology   W4\ I. Introduction In this Appendix, we describe the "tariffed components price" (TCP) methodology  X_4which we adopt in this Order as the basis for calculating international settlement rate benchmarks. Pursuant to this methodology, we develop prices for each of the three network elements that are used to provide international telephone service. We describe in this Appendix the structural framework we developed to calculate these prices, as well as the data collection procedures and tariff rate information we used as inputs in the model. We explain the estimation procedures we used to compute the network element prices, including the underlying assumptions for each element, and present several examples to demonstrate the estimation procedures. Finally, we provide a summary of each country's prices and append the underlying basic tariff rate information for each of the countries in the study. Pursuant to the TCP methodology, we calculate prices for the three network elements that are used to provide international message telephone service (IMTS) identified by the International Telecommunication Union's Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITUT)  X64in Recommendation D.140.6N {O'#X\  P6G;/P#эXSee ITUT Recommendation D.140, Charging and Accounting Rate Principles for International Telephone Service, Annex A, "Guidelines for the cost elements to be taken into account when  {MA'determining accounting rates and accounting rate shares for the international telephone service," Geneva (1992). ITUT Recommendation D.140 calls for transparent, costoriented, nondiscriminatory accounting rates.(# These three elements are: (1) international transmission facilities; (2) international switching facilities; and (3) national extension (domestic transport and termination). We use foreign carriers' unbundled tariff rates to calculate a price for two of these elements and information published by the ITU to calculate a price for the remaining element. The prices we calculate are based on cost components identified by the ITU for each element. We refer to these prices as the "tariffed component price" of each element, and the sum of these prices for each foreign carrier as the "tariffed components price" (TCP). Table 1 summarizes the TCPs for each country. More detailed results, which include each of the component elements described in this report, are presented in Tables 2 through 5. "9z0*((" Table 1. Tariffed Components Prices  X4b(per minute) Y ddx ! dd8t " "Y      aE# a4  p(AC<##I4  pG;8#Country" aER-TCP  aECountry" aETCP    X>u#^@2PG;rn^P#ArgentinaA"R 32.1A JordanA"23.0   Australia"R 18.7 Kenya"42.6A   Austria"R 31.4 Korea"12.8   Bahamas'"R 19.9' Kuwait'"/9.0   Barbados"R 12.0 Malaysia"22.4'   Belgiumk"S 14.1k Mexicok"16.8   Bermuda "SA9.9  Netherlands "/9.8k   Brazil"Q 27.8 New Zealand"23.8    ChileQ "R 18.6Q NicaraguaQ "12.3   Colombia "R 18.5 Norway "11.6Q    Costa Rica "R 10.3 P.R. of China "17.7    Czech Republic7 "R 19.07 Pakistan7 "26.7    Denmark "R 14.4 Panama "19.47    Dominican Rep.{ "R 14.5{ Peru{ "16.1    Ecuador "R 10.3 Philippines "23.9{    Egypt "R 17.2 Poland "24.6    El Salvadora"S 11.8a Portugala"23.9    France"R 17.5 Russia"35.4a   Germany"R 19.8 Singapore"/7.6   GreeceG"Q 23.0G South AfricaG"16.9   Guatemala"R 10.3 Spain"18.1G   Guyana"R 12.0 Sweden"10.0   Haiti-"Q 30.4- Switzerland-"20.6   Honduras"R 16.6 Taiwan"13.9-   Hong Kongq"SA7.0q Thailandq"17.1   Hungary"R 14.4 Trinidad"14.6q   India"R 31.2 Turkey"17.9   IndonesiaW"Q 35.5W U.A.E.W"/7.7   Ireland"R 18.0 United Kingdom"13.0W   Israel"SA8.5 Uruguay"22.3   Italy="R 18.2= Venezuela="23.8   Jamaica"SA8.7 Vietnam"24.7=   Japan"R 19.7 " ! X4#XP\  P6Q XP#  W4 II. Structural Framework # XP\  P6Q XP# The TCP methodology is based on the framework for calculating costoriented accounting rates set forth in ITUT Recommendation D140. Recommendation D.140 describes the guidelines for cost elements used by carriers to terminate international calls and identifies the three network elements that are used to provide international telephone service: (1) international transmission facilities, (2) international switching facilities, and (3) national extension. International transmission facilities consist of international terrestrial transmission or submarine cables, international satellite transmission, or a combination of these facilities. The facilities that comprise this network element include the links between the earth stations or cable landing stations and the international switching facilities. International switching facilities consist of international switching centers, including their associated transmission and signalling equipment. Finally, the national extension element includes that part of the national exchanges, national transmission facilities, and the local loop (if specified in the operating agreement between carriers) that is used to terminate international telephone service. "A'0*(($|"ԌIn the absence of information about foreign carriers' costs of terminating international traffic, we use foreign carriers' tariff rates that correspond to the network elements of the structural framework adopted by the ITUT in Recommendation D.140 and information published by the ITU to calculate benchmarks that more closely approximate costs than current settlement rates.  Wv4 III. Data Collection # XP\  P6Q XP# The data we use to calculate settlement rate benchmarks was obtained through a study of foreign carriers' tariffed rates undertaken by the International Bureau. The Bureau included seventyone countries in its original study sample. The Bureau selected sixty of the countries in the study because they represent the largest volumes of international service with the United States and the remaining eleven countries to ensure proper representation of all geographic regions. These countries accounted for 95 percent of the U.S. international  X 4telephone traffic in 1994. N yO7'#X\  P6G;/P#эXThe countries and their associated minutes of service for 1994 are listed in Attachment A.(# The Bureau sent a questionnaire to these seventy onecountries seeking tariff information for international dedicated (private line) services from each country to the United States and for local and long distance service within the countries. The Bureau received data for the study from published tariffs or directly from the carriers. The data collection period was the fourth quarter of 1995 through June 1996. During this time, the Bureau supplemented the original information with revisions and corrections. Responses from sixtyfive countries contained information that the Bureau deemed usable for the study. The Bureau excluded the other six countries from the study due to data deficiencies.  X4Data for the International Transmission Component: International telephone service between the United States and most countries included in the sample is transmitted over international telephone networks equipped with high speed digital circuits, either T1 (1.544 Mbps) or E1 (2.048 Mbps) circuits. Most carriers offer international dedicated service to their customers using the same type of high capacity circuit. Thus, we use foreign carriers' private line rates for dedicated circuits to calculate the TCP for the international transmission component. The Bureau sought in its questionnaire detailed information for all available rates for international dedicated services between the sample countries and the United States, such as the tariff rates for service offerings of all pertinent bandwidths, the transport media used to provide the service offerings, the availability of multiyear pricing plans, and any volume  X4discount options offered to users. Such tariff information is not available for all the countries in the Bureau's study. The carriers in Guyana and Haiti, for example, do not publish tariffs for international dedicated circuits, but they offer dedicated service to the United States under negotiated rates. For these two carriers, we use the highest tariff rate for dedicated service to the United States using a T1 or E1 circuit from another country in the same region as a proxy for the tariff rate for service from Guyana and Haiti. For Guyana, we use the price of an E1"j$X0*(("|" circuit available for international service in Brazil. For Haiti, we use the price for a T1 circuit in Barbados. For other carriers that do not offer international dedicated service with  X4either T1 or E1 circuits, we use the published tariff rate for the highest bandwidth circuit.>N yOK'#X\  P6G;/P#эXThe countries that fall into this category are Argentina, Kenya, Nicaragua, and Uruguay. For Argentina, we use the tariff rate for a 512 Kbps circuit. For the others, we use tariff rates for a 128 Kbps circuit.(#> We list the tariffs for international dedicated service used in the study in Attachment C.   X4Data for the National Extension Component: For the national extension component, the Bureau solicited detailed information in its questionnaire on the prices charged to the carriers' customers in each country for domestic direct dialed telephone service. For each country in the sample, the Bureau collected information on the tariff rates for all available rate periods and rate bands, primarily from public telephone directories. This information includes the hours of the day and days of the week when the rates are in effect, and the distances for the rate bands. The Bureau also collected information on volume pricing plans for domestic telephone service, network configuration for international telephone traffic, domestic numbering plan, and other related information. The tariffs for domestic telephone service used in the study are characterized by substantial structural variations. The number of rate periods, for example, varies from one to five, and the number of mileage rate bands ranges from one to fourteen. Several carriers have tariffs with different rate periods for local service and long distance service. In three of the countries in the study, Barbados, Hong Kong, and Kuwait, consumers are not charged on a per minute basis for domestic calls.  XM4Some carriers offer volume discounts, e.g., Germany, Japan and Norway. These discounts are factored into the study. We provide a detailed summary of the tariff rates for domestic public switched telephone service used in the study in Attachment D.  X4Data for the International Switching Component: We use data published by the  X4ITUT to calculate a TCP for the international switching facilities rate component.W\ N {O'#X\  P6G;/P#эXSee ITUT Recommendation D.300R, Recommendations for Regional Application, "Determination of accounting rate shares in telephone relations between countries in Europe and the Mediterranean  {O*'Basin," Geneva (1995).(#W  W4 IV. Estimation Procedures We use the information collected from the Bureau's study, along with ITUT data, to estimate a price per minute to terminate switched message telephone service from the United States. As noted above, we refer to the composite of the prices for each network element as the tariffed components price (TCP) of a country. Again, the three network elements are: (1) international transmission facilities; (2) international switching facilities; and (3) costs associated with the local distribution (or national extension) of calls within the country. The methods we use to compute the price for each element are discussed below. #!m " D0*((U|"Ԍ W4 A. International Transmission Facility Tariffed Component Prices Many carriers offer international private line service to their customers using high capacity circuits. Typically, these are 1.5 or 2.0 Mbps circuits. These circuits are functionally equivalent to the dedicated circuits used by carriers to provide IMTS. For  X4international telephony, carriers use high capacity circuits (e.g., 1.5 or 2.0 Mbps facilities) to interconnect with U.S. facilitiesbased carriers. We therefore use the rates charged by carriers for dedicated private line service to calculate a TCP for the international transmission  XJ4component.JN yO'#X\  P6G;/P#эXAs noted, the carriers in Guyana and Haiti do not publish their tariffs for international dedicated service. They do, however, offer the service at rates that are negotiated but not disclosed. In order to include these countries in the study, we used the highest available tariff for comparable service in the respective region as a proxy for these countries' unpublished data. For service with Guyana, we used the tariff for 2.048 Mbps service in Brazil. For service with Haiti, we used the tariff for 1.544 Mbps service in Barbados.(#ƃ If a carrier offers private line service to its customers using highspeed digital facilities, we use the rate charged for that service. If a carrier offers private line service using slower speed facilities, we use the tariff rate charge for that service to calculate the TCP for the international transmission component. Some carriers offer multiyear service options at reduced rates to their customers. Others offer reductions from their tariff rates to customers with large billings. We reflect these options where applicable in our calculations. The tariff rates we use to calculate the international transmission component, including the service bandwidth and time period, are shown in Attachment C. To calculate a TCP for the international transmission component of a carrier's settlement rate, we must convert the monthly private line rates to a charge per minute. We do this by first calculating the number of voice grade circuits that are derived from a private line  X64halfchannel. A 2.048 Mbps halfchannel is comprised of thirty 64 Kbps circuits.36WN yO>'#X\  P6G;/P#эXA 1.544 Mbps halfchannel is comprised of twentyfour 64 Kbps circuits, a 512 Kbps halfchannel is comprised of eight 64 Kbps circuits, and a 128 Kbps halfchannel is comprised of two 64 Kbps circuits.(#3 Each 64 Kbps circuit can be multiplexed to produce voice grade circuits capable of completing switched international calls. Digitalization capabilities enable carriers to derive a range of voice grade circuits from a 64 Kbps halfchannel. Typically, U.S. facilitiesbased carriers derive about four voice grade circuits from a 64 Kbps halfchannel for IMTS, although  X4substantially more circuits are possible.xN yO# '#X\  P6G;/P#эXMany multiplication factors are used to provide IMTS with the advent of digitalization of international circuits in the late 1980s. In the reseller market, for example, 5:1 or 6:1 multiplication factors are common, and figures of 8:1 or 10:1 have been reported. U.S. facilitiesbased carriers generally derive about four voice grade circuits from a half channel for IMTS with foreign carriers. Other things being equal, the cost per minute for the international transmission component is inversely related to the multiplexing ratio that is used. In other words, as the number of circuit per half channel increases, the cost per minute decreases.(# Because the general practice among U.S. carriers is to derive four voice grade circuits from a 64 Kbps halfchannel, we use a multiplication factor of 4:1 to calculate the number of voice grade circuits derived from a private line halfchannel. " 0*((|" Using a multiplication factor of 4:1, we find that 120 equivalent voice grade circuits can be derived from a 2.048 Mbps halfchannel. We next estimate the rate per minute for the voice grade circuits using monthly minutes transmitted over a circuit. Monthly minutes transmitted over international circuits vary from country to country, from carrier to carrier, and from month to month. Recent operating experience of U.S. facilitiesbased carriers suggests that about 8,000 minutes of voice traffic per circuit per month represents a reliable and reasonable usage level for the countries included in the study. This figure represents a usage level of less than twenty percent and, therefore, may be a bit conservative. It suggests that significantly higher levels of usage can be transmitted over international circuits. Nonetheless, to be conservative in our estimates, we use a usage level of 8,000 minutes per month to convert the private line rates to a per minute charge. We present here two examples to demonstrate how we use carriers' private line tariffs to calculate the TCP for the international transmission component.  Xy4Example 1. France. International private line service offered by France Telecom provides an example involving an E1 circuit (2.048 Mbps). France Telecoms monthly tariff rate for an E1 circuit with a lease period of five years for service to the United States is 167,300 French Francs (FF). France Telecom offers a 15 percent discount to customers with a monthly billing of more than 300,000 FF. Because U.S. facilitiesbased carriers generate monthly bills that exceed 300,000 FF, they are entitled to the discount. Allowing for the 15 percent discount in France Telecom's tariff rate reduces the monthly charge to 142,205 FF per circuit, at an exchange rate of US$ 1.00=5.16 FF. With thirty 64 Kbps circuits to an E1 halfchannel, a multiplication factor of 4:1, and a usage level of 8,000 minutes per circuit per month, 960,000 minutes are transmitted over an E1 halfchannel in an average month. Thus, France Telecom's monthly tariff rate, after the discount, is equal to an average charge of $0.029 per minute for the international transmission facility component for service from the United States to France.  X74Example 2. Uruguay. Uruguay provides an example of the procedure used in the study to estimate the international transmission facility component for flat rate private line  X 4service transmitted over a circuit with lower bandwidth than an E1 halfchannel (i.e., there is no reduction from the tariff rate for a multiyear lease and no discount for large volume customers). Service is offered with a 128 Kbps halfchannel. ANTEL's tariff rate for this service, at an exchange rate of US$ 1.00=New Pesos 7.53, is $8,131 per month. There are no adjustments in this rate. With two 64 Kbps circuits to a halfchannel, a multiplication factor of 4:1, and a usage level of 8,000 minutes per circuit per month, 64,000 minutes are transmitted over a halfchannel in an average month. Thus, ANTEL's monthly tariff rate is equivalent to an average charge of $0.127 per minute for the international transmission facility component for service between the United States and Uruguay. "<&0*((B$|"ԌA summary of the international transmission TCP is presented in Table 2 and included in Attachment B. Table 2. International Transmission Tariffed Component Prices  X4b(per minute) ^ ! dd8t " " A ddx88 " "^     aE3#!m # a4  p(AC<#3# I4  pG;8#CountryZ" aEUKTCPZ  aECountryZ" aETCPx    X>`u#^@2PG;rn^P#Argentina" X>`uV_6.7 Jordan"15.9Z Australia" X>uV_4.8 Kenya"25.5 Austria@" X>uW_8.1@ Korea@"/5.1 Bahamas" X>FuV_5.2 Kuwait"/7.1@ Barbados "V_8.6 Malaysia "/6.6 Belgium& " X> uV_3.0& Mexico& "/0.9  Bermuda "V_4.5 Netherlands "/2.6&  Brazilj "V_6.6j New Zealandj "/5.7  Chile " X>p uV_2.9 Nicaragua "/3.8j  Colombia "W_5.1 Norway "/3.2  Costa RicaP "V_3.3P P.R. of ChinaP "/8.7  Czech Republic "W_8.1 Pakistan "14.7P  Denmark" X> uV_5.9 Panama"/4.7  Dominican Rep.6"V_3.66 Peru6"/5.8 Ecuador"V_2.9 Philippines"/6.56 Egyptz"U>10.4z Polandz"/4.7 El Salvador"V_5.9 Portugal"/4.6z France" X>"uV_2.9 Russia"/5.4 Germany`"V_4.3` Singapore`"/5.0 Greece"V_5.2 South Africa"/5.2` Guatemala"W_3.1 Spain"/4.8 GuyanaF"V_6.6F SwedenF"/3.6 Haiti"V_8.6 Switzerland"/4.4F Honduras"W_3.1 Taiwan"/5.7 Hong Kong,"W_5.1, Thailand,"/4.0 Hungary"W_6.1 Trinidad"/3.6, Indiap"W_8.1p Turkeyp"/5.4 Indonesia"V_6.8 U.A.E."/3.3p Ireland"V_2.7 United Kingdom"/2.4 IsraelV"V_4.2V UruguayV"12.7 Italy"V_4.8 Venezuela"/3.7V Jamaica"V_2.9 Vietnam"/9.3   Japanl"V_6.5l l" ! Xl4#o\  PC XP## Xj\  P6G; XP#  WU4 B. International Switching Facility Tariffed Component Prices There is little information in the public domain concerning the international switching facility component. Carriers in Sweden and the United Kingdom have termination tariffs which could serve as a reference point for international switching costs incurred by a correspondent but these arrangements may not be representative of other countries in the  X!4study.)!N yOD$'#X\  P6G;/P#эXTelia, the domestic carrier in Sweden, has an interconnect tariff which allows competing international carriers to interconnect with its domestic network. The tariff has two components: a monthly connection point charge of approximately $6,000, and fixed monthly charge of approximately $73 per facility, e.g., 2.048 Mbps circuit. These fixed charges are equivalent to a monthly rate of $0.003 per minute for usage of 8,000 minutes per circuit. (#) In other cases, developing a reasonable estimate is a complex procedure because a"!x0*((" correspondents switch is often used for domestic service, both local and long distance calls, and for international service, both originating and terminating calls. Thus, even if relevant information is available, potentially complex cost allocation and relative usage problems would need to be addressed in order to develop separate estimates for the international switching facility component. Fortunately, the ITUT has published information used by TEUREM member  X_4countries# _N {O'#X\  P6G;/P#эXITUT Recommendation D.300R. See supra, n.4#]\  PC/P#. An exchange rate 1.0 SDR = $1.48 is used to convert the TEUREM figures to U.S. dollar figures.(## for telephone settlements among them. x_"N yO2 '#X\  P6G;/P#эXThe TEUREM results are based on analyses of operating results conducted by a range of member carriers that provide service in industrialized and developing countries. The TEUREM group are: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Gibraltar, Germany, Greece, Greenland, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, San Marino, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, United Kingdom, Russia, Vatican City State, and Yugoslavia.(# These countries base settlements on accounting rate shares for each of the three network elements identified in ITUT Recommendation D.140: international transmission, international exchange, and national extension. The accounting rate shares for each network element, which are denominated in SDRs, vary with the proportion of plant capacity composed of digital equipment relative to total plant capacity. The accounting rate share declines as the digitalization capability rises to reflect the greater efficiency of digital equipment. The digitalization categories are: (1) 030%, (2) 3160%, and (3) 61100%. To determine settlements for the international exchange component, TEUREM countries use an accounting rate share of 0.0324 SDR (about $0.048) for the first category, 0.0228 SDR (about $0.034) for the second category, and 0.129 SDR (about $0.019) for the third category. Using these digitalization categories, TEUREM countries calculate accounting rate share figures from data filed by the member countries. We use the accounting rate share information published in ITUT Recommendation D.300R to calculate the TCP for the international transmission component. However, we must devise a basis for assigning digitalization categories to countries, as the results presented in ITUT Recommendation D.300R do not list the countries that fall into each digitalization category. Generally, telecommunications networks in developing countries are less technologically advanced and, therefore, have lower levels of digital equipment than those in industrialized countries. We therefore use TEUREM's highest accounting rate share figure for the international exchange component, 0.0324 SDR, to estimate the TCP for the international switching component for the least developed countries in the study. We use the lowest figure, 0.0129 SDR, for the most developed countries, and the middle figure, 0.0228, for other countries. "7b 0*(("ԌFor purposes of assigning digitalization categories to countries, we classify countries#!m  according to their level of economic development. We use the World Bank's classification  X4scheme, N {OK'#X\  P6G;/P#эXSee Social Indicators of Development, World Bank, Washington, D.C. (1996).(#ƺ which is also used by the ITU. ZN {O'#X\  P6G;/P#эXSee World Telecommunication Indicators 1994/1995, International Telecommunication Union, Geneva (1995).(# This classification scheme has four categories:  X4MBullet ListXX` ` low income, GNP per capita of $726 or less;" 0Bullet List"(#`  X4MBullet ListXX` ` lower middle income, GNP per capita between $726 and $2,895;"–0Bullet List"(#`  Xv4MBullet ListXX` ` upper middle income, GNP per capita between $2,896 and 8,955; and"0Bullet List"(#`  X_4MBullet ListXX` ` high income, GNP per capita greater than $8,955."Y0Bullet List"(#`  Table 3 lists the countries in the study by their level of economic development. ` Table 3. Economic Development Classification ^ A ddx88 " " a dd 88 ^     aE # a4  p(AC<##I4  pG;8#Low  aE Lower Middle   aE Upper Middle  aE High     X> u#^@2PG;rn^P#EgyptY ColombiaY ArgentinaY Australia  Guyana Costa Rica Barbados AustriaY  Haiti Dominican Rep. Brazil Bahamas    Honduras? Ecuador? Chile? Belgium   India El Salvador Czech Republic Bermuda?   Kenya Guatemala Greece Denmark   Nicaragua% Indonesia% Hungary% France   P.R. China Jamaica Korea, Rep. Germany%   Pakistani Jordani Malaysiai Hong Kong   Vietnam  Panama  Mexico  Irelandi    Peru South Africa Israel    O PhilippinesO Trinidad & TobagoO Italy  Poland Uruguay JapanO    Russian Fed.  Kuwait   5 Thailand5 5 Netherlands  Turkey  New Zealand5   y Venezuelay y Norway8       Portugal Singapore8y    S S S Spain      SwedenS      Switzerland   9 9 9 Taiwan      U.A.E.h9 G     United KingdomhG XC4#XP\  P6Q XP# ",  0*((" A summary of the international switched facilities TCP is presented in Table 4 and included in Attachment B.  X>u# ^32PQrn^P# Table 4. International Switched Facilities Tariffed Component Prices  X>uo(per minute)  X>u ^ a dd 88   dd* 88 " "^ h    aE`#a4  p(AC<##I4  pG;8#Country " aE`UKTCP   aE`Country " aE`TCP*    X>u#^@2PG;rn^P#Argentina"V_3.4 Jordan"/4.8  AustraliaP"W_1.9P KenyaP"/4.8 Austria"W_1.9 Korea"/3.4P Bahamas"W_1.9 Kuwait"/1.9 Barbados6"V_3.46 Malaysia6"/3.4 Belgium"W_1.9 Mexico"/3.46 Bermudaz "W_1.9z Netherlandsz "/1.9 Brazil "V_3.4 New Zealand "/1.9z  Chile "V_3.4 Nicaragua "/4.8  Colombia` "V_4.8` Norway` "/1.9  Costa Rica "V_4.8 P.R. of China "/4.8`  Czech Republic "V_3.4 Pakistan "/4.8  DenmarkF "W_1.9F PanamaF "/4.8  Dominican Rep. "V_4.8 Peru "/4.8F  Ecuador"V_4.8 Philippines"/4.8  Egypt,"V_4.8, Poland,"/4.8 El Salvador"V_4.8 Portugal"/1.9, Francep"W_1.9p Russian Fed.p"/4.8 Germany"W_1.9 Singapore"/1.9p Greece"V_3.4 South Africa"/3.4 GuatemalaV"V_4.8V SpainV"/1.9 Guyana"V_4.8 Sweden"/1.9V Haiti"V_4.8 Switzerland"/1.9 Honduras<"V_4.8< Taiwan<"/1.9 Hong Kong"W_1.9 Thailand"/4.8< Hungary"V_3.4 Trinidad"/3.4 India""V_4.8" Turkey""/4.8 Indonesia"V_4.8 U.A.E."/1.9" Irelandf"W_1.9f United Kingdomf"/1.9 Israel"W_1.9 Uruguay"/3.4f Italy"W_1.9 Venezuela"/4.8 JamaicaL"V_4.8L VietnamL"/4.8   Japan"W_1.9 " !L X4#o\  PC XP#  W4# Xj\  P6G; XP# C. National Extension Tariffed Component Prices X` hp x (#%'0*,.8135@8:`u#^@2PG;rn^P#Argentina"T>22.0 Jordan"/2.3Z Australia"U>12.0 Kenya"12.3 Austria@"U>21.4@ Korea@"/4.3 Bahamas"U>12.8 Kuwait"(Zero@ Barbados "UXZero Malaysia "12.4 Belgium& "V_9.2& Mexico& "12.5  Bermuda "V_3.5 Netherlands "/5.3&  Brazilj "U>17.8j New Zealandj "16.2  Chile "U>12.3 Nicaragua "/3.7j  Colombia "V_8.6 Norway "/6.5  Costa RicaP "V_2.2P P.R. of ChinaP "/4.2  Czech Republic "V_7.5 Pakistan "/7.2P  Denmark"V_6.6 Panama"/9.9  Dominican Rep.6"W_6.16 Peru6"/5.5 Ecuador"V_2.6 Philippines"12.66 Egyptz"V_2.0z Polandz"15.1 El Salvador"X_1.1 Portugal"17.4z France"U>12.7 Russia"25.2 Germany`"U>13.6` Singapore`"$0.7 Greece"U>14.4 South Africa"/8.3` Guatemala"V_2.4 Spain"11.4 GuyanaF"V_0.6F SwedenF"/4.5 Haiti"U>17.0 Switzerland"14.3F Honduras"V_8.7 Taiwan"/6.3 Hong Kong,"UXZero, Thailand,"/8.3 Hungary"V_4.9 Trinidad"/7.6, Indiap"U>18.3p Turkeyp"/7.7 Indonesia"T>23.9 U.A.E."/2.5p Ireland"U>13.4 United Kingdom"/8.7 IsraelV"V_2.4V UruguayV"/6.2 Italy"V>11.5 Venezuela"15.3V Jamaica"W_1.0 Vietnam"10.6   Japanl"V>11.3l l" ! Xl4#o\  PC XP#  WU4 V. Summary # Xj\  P6G; XP#In the absence of information about foreign carriers' costs of terminating international traffic, we must look to alternative sources of information to calculate settlement rate  X4benchmarks. In this Order, we adopt the tariffed components price, or TCP methodology, to calculate settlement rate benchmarks. As described in detail in this Appendix, the TCP methodology uses foreign carriers' tariff rates that correspond to the network elements of the structural framework adopted by the ITUT in Recommendation D.140 and information published by the ITU to calculate benchmarks.