According to data on leased lines sent on a quarterly basis by PTC, there are two OSP that use PTC's backhaul service for access to submarine cables supporting international lines.
One of the OSP, with around ten high capacity lines, was provided in 2010 with a degree of availability significantly lower than the objective, having the number of hours of non-availability of the set of backhaul lines for that operator exceeded 200 hours on a given month.
In fact, in their response to the DD on the "market analysis", APRITEL and OniTelecom maintained that, as these lines are under an effective monopoly, it is fundamental that they are submitted to specific regulatory measures so as to overcome current limitations.
Optimus asserted, in the same scope, that it was necessary to impose an "obligation to provide access to specific network resources, namely the inclusion of Submarine Cable Stations in the scope of the collocation service, with the necessary technological adjustments", to enable a direct access to submarine cables and an actual alternative to the backhaul service (under a "monopoly situation"), having reported several difficulties in the requests presented to PTC on this matter.
More recently, Optimus reiterated its request that ICP-ANACOM took action so as to ensure the provision to other operators of access to Submarine Cable Stations (SCE) of the Grupo PT, in order to allow OSP to use their own resources to offer alternative solutions to the International Access Component of the backhaul service provided by the Grupo PT. In this scope, Optimus believes that the possibility of OSP providing connections between SCE of the Grupo PT (Carcavelos and Sesimbra), through the collocation service, should be included, in order to ensure a "level playing field in the market".
Optimus further claims that the lack of competition in the backhaul capacity market, stemming from an absence of alternatives to PTC's offer, from excessive prices practised by PTC and from alleged discriminatory practices, is wasting Portugal's geographic location - which makes it the ideal "gateway" in Europe for international connectivity (from the African, American and Asian continents). According to Optimus, operators holding rights on submarine cables with landing points in the Portuguese coast are using maritime routes in different cables connecting the Portuguese coast to the Spanish, French or English coast, to guarantee the delivery of their traffic. Optimus supports that situation leads, in practise, to a loss of wealth for Portugal and of the opportunity to develop national electronic communications networks, as natural links to other European networks.
In the prior hearing report in the DD concerning the "market analysis", this Authority referred that as regarded the "backhaul service (access to submarine cables that end in PTC's termination stations) which remains subject to regulation, ICP-ANACOM acknowledges that there is room for the improvement of access conditions [...] and, inclusively, for the expansion of the collocation service for access to submarine cables at termination stations themselves, this obligation being dependant on a separate analysis. This matter was assessed in a previous market analysis, having been decided to impose access to these stations through the leased lines service. This Authority relied at the time on differences between these stations and a local exchange (with collocation in the scope of LLU, LLRO or RIO), as well as on the absence of effective extensive experience in the scope of collocation for these offers. Given the further experience gained with collocation in the scope of RUO, LLRO and RIO, and taking into account that access at the level of backhaul must be as broken down as possible so that operators do not pay for services they do not require, the suitability and proportionality of imposing collocation in SCE will be duly analysed".
In fact, the imposition of collocation in PTC's exchanges is a measure that promotes the development of infrastructures by operators competing with the Grupo PT and thus, that most appropriately ensures conditions for the development of a sustained competition.
Collocation in PTC's exchanges is now a widely used and "mature" service, and there seem to be no apparent technical restrictions at first thought that prevent its provision in SCE for the purpose of access to submarine cables of other bodies, insofar as there are no legal impediments related to the ownership of SCE or with contracts concluded between consortium partners.
As such, PTC must provide collocation and associated services in SCE as currently determined for other exchanges of its network, namely in the scope of LLRO and RELLO, unless there is a technical constrain or otherwise, duly substantiated by PTC and accepted by this Authority, that prevents the provision in these terms of any of the services concerned in any of the SCE.
Moreover, OSP that use the collocation service and associated services in SCE have some room for installing the necessary optical interfaces for installing the capacity lines they require, provided that the technical and safety conditions are duly safeguarded. OSP may also resort to collocation in SCE for accessing CAM lines, and prices of CAM lines that may be accessed through collocation in SCE shall be reviewed so as to cleanse backhaul costs.
In the absence of these constrains, services associated to collocation must also be made available, such as transport of the signal and connection between OSP equipment in the collocation space and PTC and/or consortium's equipment, and the possibility of extending fibre-optic of OSP from the manhole to the collocation space shall also be provided for.
D 10. PTC must provide the collocation service and associated services in SCE as currently determined for other exchanges of its network, namely in the scope of LLRO and RELLO, unless there is a technical constrain or otherwise, duly substantiated by PTC and accepted by this Authority, that prevents the provision in these terms of any of the services concerned in any of the SCE. OSP that use the collocation service have access to submarine cables of any operator making landfall in SCE and have room for installing the necessary optical interfaces for installing the capacity lines they require, provided that the technical and safety conditions are duly safeguarded.
D 11. PTC must break down prices of the underwater and not underwater (backhaul) segments of CAM lines, and OSP may opt or not for using PTC's backhaul, for access to this type of lines.
D 12. In the absence of constrains referred in the preceding point, PTC shall make available services associated to collocation, such as transport of the signal and connection between OSP equipment in the collocation space and PTC and/or consortium's equipment, and the possibility of extending fibre-optic of OSP from the manhole to the collocation space shall also be provided for.
