Before the

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20554

In the Matter of )

)

Part 68 Waiver Requests of ) File Nos.:

)

Vtech Communications Limited ) NSD-L-00-196

Kyushu Matsushita Electric Co., Ltd. ) NSD-L-00-200

ATLINKS USA, Inc. ) NSD-L-00-201

> **ORDER**
>
> Adopted: September 22, 2000 Released: September 25, 2000

By the Chief, Network Services Division, Common Carrier Bureau:

1\. The Commission has received petitions for waiver of 47 C.F.R.
section 68.312(i) of its rules from the following parties who wish to
register, under Part 68 of the rules, devices that detect the presence
of a stutter dial tone:[^1]

> Vtech Communications Limited on September 1, 2000 for its SBC Model
> 1733, GTE Model 1733, and Cincinnati Bell Model 1733; Kyushu
> Matsushita Electric Co., Ltd. on September 11, 2000 for its Model
> KX-TG2650(xx);
>
> ATLINKS USA, Inc. on September 20, 2000 for its Models Ameritech
> 26963AXX-C, Bell Atlantic 26963BXX-C, SBC 26963EXX-C, Frontier
> 26963FXX-C, GE 26963GXX-C, Sprint 26963KXX-C, MCI 26963MXX-C, Southern
> New England Telephone 26963NXX-C, Pacific Bell 26963PXX-C, RCA
> 26963RXX-C, Southwest Bell 26963SXX-C, GTE 26963TXX-C, US West
> 26963UXX-C, Walgreens 26963WXX-C, Ameritech 26936AXX-C, Bell Atlantic
> 26936BXX-C, SBC 26936BXX-C, Frontier 26936FXX-C, GE 26936GXX-C, Sprint
> 26936KXX-C, MCI 26936MXX-C, Southern New England Telephone 26936NXX-C,
> Pacific Bell 26936PXX-C, RCA 26936RXX-C, Southwest Bell 26936SXX-C,
> GTE 26936TXX-C, US West 26936UXX-C, Walgreens 26936WXX-C.

For the reasons discussed below, we grant these petitions, subject to
the conditions in this Order.

######### 

2\. [Part 68 Registration Process.]{.underline} All terminal equipment
sold in the United States and connected to the public switched telephone
network (PSTN) must be registered under Part 68 of the Commission\'s
rules.[^2] The Part 68 registration process requires testing of a device
to demonstrate that it conforms to specifications designed to prevent
harm to the PSTN.[^3] If tests show that an applicant\'s device meets
these Part 68 requirements, the Commission issues a registration number
for it, thereby permitting its sale and connection to the PSTN in the
United States. A waiver of Section 68.312(i), as requested by the
above-mentioned Petitioners, would allow them to submit their stutter
tone devices for Part 68 registration despite the fact that the devices
do not meet the limitations of section 68.312(i). A waiver of one or
more requirements of Part 68 does not, however, excuse an applicant from
this testing process.

3\. [Waiver Standard.]{.underline} The Commission will not waive any
provision of its rules unless good cause is shown.[^4] Under the
relevant case law, the applicant has the burden of showing good cause
for a waiver: \"\[a\]n applicant \[for a waiver\] faces a high hurdle
even at the starting gate.\"[^5] Nevertheless, an agency must take a
\"hard look\" at applications for waiver[^6] and must consider all
relevant factors.[^7] An agency must adhere strictly to its rules unless
a party can show \"reasons why in the public interest the rule should be
waived.\"[^8] 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.\"[^9]

4\. [Streamlined Stutter Dial Tone Waiver Process]{.underline}. On
September 28, 1995, the Commission\'s Common Carrier Bureau released an
order granting eight parties waivers of Section 68.312(i) of the
Commission\'s rules to offer similar devices.[^10] The waivers were
granted subject to eight conditions (Alameda conditions).[^11]

5\. On August 9, 1999, the Common Carrier Bureau released an Order on
Reconsideration (*Reconsideration Order*) in response to petitions filed
by VoiceWaves, Inc. and Southwestern Bell Telephone Company (SBC).[^12]
In the *Reconsideration Order*, the Commission granted VoiceWaves\'
request and eliminated the requirement that the stutter dial tone check
occur no later than 30-seconds after a voice mail subscriber terminates
a call. The second performance condition now reads: \"(2) makes 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 after
the subscriber hangs-up.\"[^13] We also applied the same logic to the
third performance condition and eliminated the four-minute maximum
following the termination of a subscriber\'s call, so that it now reads:
\"(3) makes an off-hook stutter dial tone check after an unanswered
incoming call no more than once.\"[^14] We denied the rest of
VoiceWaives and SBC\'s Petitions.[^15] Finally, we ordered that all
parties already in receipt of stutter dial tone waivers issued pursuant
to the *Alameda Order* are not required to file a new Part 68
Registration for equipment covered by those waivers as a consequence of
the *Reconsideration Order*.[^16]

6\. The *Alameda Order* established a streamlined process for Part 68
waivers of stutter dial tone devices, eliminating the usual public
notice and comment procedures if a petitioner certifies that the eight
conditions, as amended, are met. The Commission determined that we could
rely on these conditions in establishing a streamlined waiver process
that provides manufacturers and carriers the stability afforded by our
Part 68 rules without the expense and delay associated with the rule
making process.

7\. The Commission invited other parties able to meet the Alameda
conditions to file petitions for waiver of Section 68.312(i) in order to
register stutter dial tone devices. [^17] Further waivers, we
determined, would facilitate the market availability of such equipment,
thus serving the public interest through increased innovation, consumer
choice, and value. By serving the public interest, stutter dial tone
waiver applications satisfy part one of the two-part analysis that the
Commission has used in evaluating Part 68 waiver requests. By not
harming the PSTN in accordance with the Alameda conditions, they also
satisfy the second part.

8\. [Discussion.]{.underline} All Petitioners cited above have certified
that their devices are stutter dial tone devices that comply with the
eight conditions specified in the *Reconsideration Order*. Thus, we
conclude, for the same reasons as in that order, that Petitioners have
shown good cause for granting the requested waivers. Applications to
register these devices under Part 68 of our rules may be submitted with
this waiver.

**ORDERING CLAUSES**

9\. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to authority delegated in
Sections 0.91 and 0.291 of the Commission\'s rules, 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.91,
0.291, and Section 1.3 of the Commission\'s Rules, 47 C.F.R. § 1.3, that
the requests for waiver of Section 68.312(i) of the rules, 47 C.F.R. §
68.312(i), by Vtech Communications Limited, Kyushu Matsushita Electric
Co., Ltd., and ATLINKS USA, Inc. ARE GRANTED to the extent stated
herein.

10\. 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 terminates a call, and complete the check no earlier than 4
seconds after the subscriber hangs up; (3) make an off-hook stutter dial
tone check after an unanswered incoming call no more than once; (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.

> FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Staci L. Pies

Deputy Division Chief, Network Services Division

#########  Common Carrier Bureau 

#########  

[^1]: 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.

[^2]: 47 C.F.R. § 68.2.

[^3]: *See* FCC Form 730, Application Guide, Revision C - 273 (March
    1997).

[^4]: 47 C.F.R. § 1.3.

[^5]: *WAIT Radio v. FCC,* 418 F.2d 1153, 1157 (D.C. Cir. 1969).

[^6]: *Id.*

[^7]: *Citizens to Preserve Overton Park, Inc. v. Volpe,* 401 U.S. 402,
    416 (1971).

[^8]: *FPC v. Texaco Inc*., 377 U.S. 33, 39 (1964).

[^9]: *Northeast Cellular Telephone Company, L.P. v. FCC*, 897 F.2d
    1164, 1166 (D.C. Cir. 1990).

[^10]: Part 68 Waiver Request of Alameda Engineering, Inc., *Order,* 10
    FCC Rcd 12135 (Com. Car. Bur. 1995) (*Alameda Order*).

[^11]: Stutter dial tone detection devices must: (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) 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) 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. *Id.* at
    12141.

[^12]: Part 68 Waiver Request of Alameda Engineering, et al., *Order on
    Reconsideration,* NSD-L-98-154, DA 99-1542 (rel. August 9, 1999).

[^13]: *Id.* at ¶ 22.

[^14]: *Id.* at ¶ 23.

[^15]: *Id.* at ¶ 2.

[^16]: *Id.* at ¶ 24.

[^17]: *Id*. at 12141 n.73.