Subject: Ottawa Miscellaneous

From: Dan Eddleman <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 1 Apr 93 11:36:42 EST

Forwarded message:
>From [email-masked]  Thu Apr  1 10:28:39 1993
Date: Thu, 1 Apr 93 10:29:08 EST
From: [email-masked] (Christopher P. Tully)
Message-Id: <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Subject: Ottawa miscellaneous

===================================================================
1.8.5.4

Fact Sheet:

		    TELECOMMUNICATIONS - A STRATEGIC SECTOR
		    ---------------------------------------

The world is undergoing a technological revolution as profound as any
transformation in history.  One of the key technologies ushering in the
future is telecommunications - the electronic movement of information.

Telecommunications is rapidly converging with the computer.  These two
fields together are now referred to as information technology.  At the
same time, both areas are increasingly linked with the sectors that
provide information - such as libraries, broadcasting systems and
cultural industries like publishing and film.

The overall result is an emerging information society and
knowledge-based economy.  In this new era, telecommunications is an
"infrastructure" for the rest of society - a basic resource as
fundamental to the way we live and work as the electricity grid and the
highway system have been in the past.

Track Record
------------
Economists estimate that the information sector - including both the
creating and communicating of information of all types - now accounts
for more than 40 per cent of North America's gross national product.
In this new era, Ontario's telecommunications industry ranks as the
province's most successful and internationally competitive high-tech
sector.

Our telecommunications carriers, services and equipment manufacturers
generate revenues of $9 billion a year and employ 90,000 people.
Telecommunications is our leading industry for research and
development, investing $600 million a year in R&D, which represents a
full quarter of all Ontario R&D expenditures.

Adding Value
------------
The provincial government's Industrial Policy Framework stresses that
economic renewal depends on shifting emphasis from low-skill mass
production to high value-added activities.  The report calls on all
sectors to strengthen the "competitive fundamentals" - such as
innovation, skill levels, technological capabilities, home-base
functions (such as strategic decision-making) and export potential.

Ontario telecommunications is already strong in these fundamentals and
so offers one of our most immediate opportunities for economic renewal
and growth.  In the near future, it is expected to become the leading
source of well-paid, high value-added and environmentally sustainable
jobs.

Telecommunications also enables other industries to add value to their
activities.  Telecom networks and services are playing a major part in
the globalization of business and are dramatically redefining the
nature of products and services and the shape and size of markets.  All
businesses are coming to rely on access to the best possible
information of every kind almost instantly as a key competitive edge.

In addition, telecommunications is serving as an enabling tool for
public institutions ranging from hospitals and schools to government
offices and public libraries.  All organizations, large or small,
public or private, increasingly count on telecommunications networks in
order to perform their functions effectively and efficiently.

Finally, the telecommunications system serves residential users.
Ninety-nine per cent of Ontario households have telephones, one of the
highest access rates in the world.  New consumer services and options
are constantly being introduced - ranging from features like call
waiting and call forwarding to banking by phone and electronic bulletin
boards.

Responding to the needs of this array of users is a telecommunications
industry that is vast in scope.  The industry includes the carriers who
provide telecom services, the manufacturers who produce the equipment
that makes the services possible, the distributors and retailers who
bring products to market, and the researchers who develop new
communications technology.

Service Providers
-----------------
In Ontario, Bell Canada supplies local and long distance voice service
to 96 per cent of telephone subscribers.  Thirty independent systems
deliver local service to the remaining customers, mainly in northern
Ontario.  Most independents interconnect with Bell Canada to provide
long distance service.  The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission
provides long distance and other telecommunications services in
portions of northeastern Ontario.

Bell Canada, the independent systems and Ontario Northland have in the
past provided public telephone service on a monopoly basis.  However,
the CRTC has recently approved the entry of Unitel Communications Inc.
into the long distance market.

Telecom services are already provided by resellers and enhanced service
providers.   Resellers lease private line circuits from the major
carriers and resell the capacity to businesses and other
organizations.  Resellers are permitted to sell both voice and data
services and to combine traffic from different customers.  They provide
such services as customized billing, call detail recording and
dedicated access lines.

Satellite facilities are used for television signals as well as for
voice and data transmission, mobile radio and video conferencing
services.  Telesat Canada operates all Canadian communications
satellites.  It leases satellite capacity to other companies and also
sells directly to retail customers.  Teleglobe is Canada's overseas
satellite carrier.

Mobile cellular telephones were introduced into Canada in 1985 and have
grown dramatically since.  Cellular services are supplied by national
carriers like Bell Cellular and Cantel Inc. as well as by some
independent systems.  Recently the federal government granted licences
to four providers of the new wireless technology -- digital cordless.

A variety of other telecommunications services are available in the
open market.  Business and institutional users can transfer masses of
information at high speed through data services offered by telephone
companies and other firms.  Further specialized options include private
line service, electronic mail, voice mail and paging.

Equipment Manufacturers
-----------------------
Ontario's telecommunications manufacturing industry includes several
distinct segments.  Ontario firms produce central telephone system
equipment and telephone terminals; cable and transmission equipment;
satellite communications facilities; and customer premises equipment
like private telephone exchanges and local area networks.

Ontario companies also make parts and electronic components - ranging
from fibre optic cable to printed circuit boards.  These products are
shipped to telecom manufacturers and users in both Canadian and world
markets.

Software is becoming an increasingly important element of
telecommunications systems.  Ontario firms develop software for central
switching systems, customer premises applications, computer networks
and stand-alone computers.

Breakthroughs in Technology
---------------------------
Research and development is the driving force behind innovation.  It is
in the laboratory that new technologies and applications originate.

In Ontario, R&D takes place in private industry, universities and
government facilities.  Two provincially funded centres of excellence,
the Telecommunications Research Institute of Ontario (TRIO) and the
Information Technology Research Centre (ITRC), encourage and support
collaborative research between universities and industry.

In the telecommunications field, worldwide new breakthroughs are
occurring continually.  Chip memory used in all telecom networks is
evolving at a breathtaking place - from about 20 million transistors on
a 16 megabit memory chip emerging from today's labs to a billion
transistors on a chip by the year 2001.

The ongoing push toward all-digital networks is making it possible to
send any kind of information - voice, image, data or full motion video
- the same way.  Fibre optics technology will provide expanded
transmission capacity so these multimedia signals can be carried over
the same "wire" - that is, a single glass strand.

New wireless technologies are extending the reach of
telecommunications.  In cellular phone systems, calls are relayed by
radio transmitters from one area or "cell" to another as the user
moves.  Digital cellular technology is being introduced in Canada,
making it possible to put more calls on each cell and improving signal
quality.

Soon, low-power digital wireless technology will eliminate the
interference found in today's home cordless phones.  This will pave the
way for pocket-size cordless phones that allow the consumer to place
and receive calls almost anywhere.

Satellite technology is developing rapidly in areas where fibre cannot
compete.  For example, very small aperture terminal networks transfer
video and data over vast distances.  The  receiving dishes involved are
less than two metres in diameter.

Government Role
---------------
Because telecommunications has an immense influence on the well-being
of society, government shapes the environment in which telecom services
are provided to the public.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
regulates Bell Canada and other national carriers, while the Ontario
Telephone Service Commission regulates the independent systems in the
province.  The Ontario Northland Transportation Commission oversees
telephone service in parts of northern Ontario.

The federal Department of Communications develops national
telecommunications policies and regulates the use of the radio
spectrum.  The Ontario Ministry of Culture and Communications
co-ordinates provincial policies and programs and represents Ontario's
interests before the federal government.

Time to Act
-----------
Telecommunications is making a profound impact in two ways - as an
industrial sector whose potential for creating wealth will surpass any
invention of the industrial age, and as an enabling tool that is
expanding horizons in all industries and all walks of life.

Ontario now faces a choice:  either we drift and fall behind other
nations in terms of economic strength and quality of life, or we take
decisive action now to realize the potential of telecommunications.

====================================================================
1.8.5.5

FACT SHEET:

		    A TELECOMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY FOR ONTARIO
		    -----------------------------------------

What is the Telecommunications Strategy for Ontario?

  The Telecommunications Strategy for Ontario is a long-term vision and
  action plan for telecommunications in the province over the next
  decade.  It deals with telecommunications both as a critical
  infrastructure for economic growth and social and cultural activity
  and as a key sector of the economy.  The strategy is a blueprint for
  action not only by government but by all stakeholders in
  telecommunications.

How was the strategy prepared?

  The Telecommunications Strategy responds to the goals, priorities and
  recommendations contained in the August 1992 report of the Advisory
  Committee on a Telecommunications Strategy for the Province of
  Ontario, entitled Telecommunications: Enabling Ontario's Future.

  The advisory committee was created by the former Minister of Culture
  and Communications to gain broadly based advice on
  telecommunications-related issues and opportunities facing Ontario's
  businesses and the public at large.  More than 100 knowledgeable and
  dedicated individuals drawn from industry, labour, government, and
  community-based interests contributed their time and effort to the
  committee's work over a period of five months.

What is Ontario's vision for telecommunications?

  The provincial government has adopted the vision statement proposed
  by the advisory committee:

  Enabled by telecommunications, Ontario and Canada will be the best
  place in the world to live, work, learn and do business.

What are the goals of the Telecommunications Strategy?

  The strategy has four goals, again reflecting the recommendations of
  the advisory committee.  They are:

     - a telecommunications infrastructure which enables economic
       growth

     - a dynamic, growing telecommunications sector

     - enhanced quality of life through telecommunications

     - strategic application of telecommunications by the Ontario
       government.

  What are the priorities under the strategy? The government has
  adopted the six strategic priorities recommended by the advisory
  committee.  They are:

     - accelerating growth in applications development and use

     - creating a positive environment for information technology
       industry growth

     - investing in people through education and training for
       telecommunications

     - helping communities develop

     - government as a model user

     - ensuring that technology serves people.

What role will the government play under the Telecommunications
Strategy?

  The provincial commitment to the strategy is government-wide.  Many
  ministries will contribute to achieving the goals and priorities.

  The Ministry of Education and Training will take the lead in a
  telecommunications education and training strategy.  The aim will be
  to meet the training needs of the telecom industry and users and also
  to capitalize on telecommunications as a learning tool for Ontario
  residents.

  Management Board Secretariat will spearhead a government-wide
  information technology strategy to make the provincial government a
  model telecommunications user.

  At the national level, Ontario will advocate new policies before
  federal regulatory agencies.  The province will urge the CRTC to
  adopt a broader definition of basic telecommunications service to
  ensure wide access to the latest telecommunications services.
  Ontario will also call for more effective regulatory processes which
  encourage innovation and new service introduction and for an open,
  competitive information technology marketplace - except where there
  is a compelling public interest to the contrary.

What action will the government take now to implement the
Telecommunications Strategy?

  The government will immediately provide funding for the
  Telecommunications Strategy and appoint the Council for an Ontario
  Information Infrastructure.

How will the strategy be funded?

  Initially, there will be two sources of funding for the strategy -
  the Sector Partnership Fund and JobsOntario, both announced in the
  1992 Ontario Budget.

  The Sector Partnership Fund will immediately begin accepting
  applications to assist telecommunications projects.  Over three years
  the fund is designed to provide $150 million to help various sectors
  improve their competitiveness.

  Telecommunications has completed the industry consultations and
  strategic framework necessary to access these dollars.

  In addition, the jobsOntario initiative will channel $100 million
  over four years to a new Ontario Network Infrastructure Program
  (ONIP).  The government's leadership through ONIP will stimulate the
  private sector to develop user-based and user-driven telecom
  networks.  The first three projects to receive ONIP funding have been
  approved in principle:

     - a feasibility study of a community economic development strategy
       enabled by telecommunications in northwestern Ontario

     - support to the National Capital FreeNet in the Ottawa-Carleton
       area to put 500 social service agencies and community groups
       online to the public

     - expansion and upgrading of ONet, Ontario's existing research and
       education network linking universities, colleges, government and
       industry facilities.

What will the Council for an Ontario Information Infrastructure do?

  The new council will raise public awareness, bring partners together,
  advise the government on industry trends, review and advise on
  applications and priorities under ONIP and the Sector Partnership
  Fund, assess progress under the provincial strategy and recommend any
  further actions needed.  It will champion the campaign for an Ontario
  information infrastructure.

  The council will include a chair, two vice-chairs and members from
  diverse telecommunications stakeholders.

====================================================================
1.8.5.6

FACT SHEET:

       TELECOMMUNICATIONS SECTOR FRAMEWORK UNDER SECTOR PARTNERSHIP
       FUND
       -----------------------------------------------------------------

What is the Telecommunications Sector Framework?

  The Telecommunications Sector Framework is a sectoral strategy
  approved by the Ontario government under the Sector Partnership Fund
  (SPF).  Telecommunications initiatives which meet the objectives of
  the Sector Framework can be considered for financial assistance from
  the SPF.

  The major objective of the Sector Framework is to improve the
  competitive position of Ontario's telecommunications industry by
  encouraging co-operation and a move to higher value-added activities
  within the sector.

  The framework responds to the report of the Advisory Committee on a
  Telecommunications Strategy for the Province of Ontario.  The
  committee strongly recommended that the provincial government support
  projects that stimulate wealth and job creation in the telecom
  industry.

What is the Sector Partnership Fund?

  The Sector Partnership Fund is a three-year, $150 million funding
  program under the Ontario government's Industrial Policy Framework.
  It is designed to strengthen sectors or "clusters" of the Ontario
  economy by shifting companies and industries to higher value-added
  activities.  This program was announced in the Ontario Budget in the
  spring of 1992.

What is the purpose of the SPF?

  The focus of the SPF is on strengthening the competitive fundamentals
  of the Ontario economy through:

     - continuous innovation
     - raising skill levels
     - increasing technological capabilities
     - developing linkages and networks
     - building international capabilities and
     - establishing companies' home-based activities in Ontario.

What are the priority areas in the Telecom Sector Framework?

  The Telecom Sector Framework highlights four priority areas:

  - It encourages the development of new telecom applications that
    benefit groups of companies or particular sectors and advance
    Ontario's leadership in network development and management.

  - It fosters innovative business enterprises by promoting strategic
    alliances, particularly between Ontario's large and small telecom
    companies.  Ontario telecom suppliers are also urged to pool their
    resources, talents and skills with those of other information
    technology companies and with firms in related industries.

  The framework calls for specialized sectoral infrastructure that
  strengthens the underlying foundations of the telecom industry,
  provides benefits to the sector as a whole and directly raises the
  competitiveness of Ontario's telecom product and service providers.

  A final direction is market development and promotion.  The framework
  supports activities that increase export sales or expand the domestic
  market for products and services supplied by small and mid-sized
  firms.

Will certain types of projects be emphasized?

Priority will be given to initiatives which:

     - involve consortia of Ontario-based companies that combine their
       technical capabilities to develop new telecommunications
       products or services

     - enhance the competitiveness of each allied organization and
       reduce the risk incurred by individual firms in innovative
       product or market development

     - lower the overall cost to firms of capturing global markets

     - offer opportunities for skills upgrading in the sector

     - provide information on global standards, on initiatives within
       the sector or on leading edge scientific and technical
       developments from global sources

     - increase the amount or timeliness of critical information
       available to smaller firms

     - create vehicles for sharing information and fostering the
       development of product consortia.

=======================================================================
1.8.5.7

	       GLOSSARY of SELECTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS TERMS
	       ---------------------------------------------

ACCESS: In telephony, a point of entry into a circuit or a network.  In
	computing, the manner in which files or data are referred to by
	a
	computer.

ANALOG: A process which models information in the form of a
continuously
	varying parameter i.e. current or voltage.

BAND: A unit of signalling speed which describes the number of signal
changes
      in one second.  Not interchangeable with bits-per-second(bps)
      because
      more than one bit may be transmitted in one change in signal
      state.

BANDWIDTH: The range of frequencies available for signalling i.e. the
	   difference between the high and low frequencies of a
	   transmission
	   band normally expressed in cycles per second (hertz).

BROADBAND: Also known as wideband, this term refers to a communication
channel
	   having a bandwidth greater than a voice-grade channel.

BYPASS: The action of hooking up to a long distance or local network
without
	using local telephone company facilities.  Bypass technologies
	include
	cellular radio, two-way cable television, short haul microwave
	and
	direct satellite to rooftop antennas.

CARRIER: A high frequency radio signal which is modulated to carry
information
	 long distances through space or via cable.

CENTREX: A PBX type of service where incoming calls may be dialled
direct to
	 extensions without operator assistance.  Outgoing and intercom
	 calls
	 may be dialled by extension users.  Currently, this service is
	 usually provided by the local telephone company through the
	 local
	 central office.

CIRCUIT: A physical transmission path between two or more points.

CIRCUIT SWITCHING: A method of communications where an electrical
connection
		   between calling and called stations is established
		   on
		   demand for exclusive use of the circuit until the
		   connection is released.

COMMON CHANNEL SIGNALLING: A technique in which signalling information
			   relating to a number of circuits, and other
			   information such as that used for Network
			   Management, is conveyed by addressed
			   messages
			   over a single channel dedicated to
			   signalling.

DIGITAL: Characteristic of a discontinuous electrical signal which
carries
	 information by means of discrete changes in its duration or
	 amplitude.  Digital communications has come into wide use as a
	 system for transmitting voice or data information due to its
	 economy and accuracy.

ELECTRONIC MAIL: Electronic transmission of a written message to one or
more
		 destinations delivered via voice, text, or video
		 form.

FACSIMILE: A system for the transmission of images (pictures, maps,
diagrams,
	   correspondence etc).  The image is scanned at the
	   transmitter,
	   reconstructed at the receiving station, and duplicated on
	   coated
	   paper or film.

FIBRE OPTICS: This modern transmission form uses laser technology to
produce a
	      beam of light which can be modulated to carry large
	      amounts of
	      information through fine glass fibres.  These modulated
	      signals
	      are detected by light-sensitive semi-conductor devices.

LOCAL AREA NETWORK (LAN): A term applied to a communications system
which
			  allows a number of different kinds of
			  electronic
			  products, including computers, terminals,
			  facsimile
			  devices and printers, to communicate.  Such
			  systems
			  usually employ coaxial cable, fibre optics,
			  or
			  traditional twisted pair cable, and extend
			  for at
			  most a few kilometres.

NETWORK: A system designed to connect devices for the purpose of
transmitting
	 information.  Networks are either common to all users or
	 privately
	 leased by customers for their own use.

PBX (PRIVATE BRANCH EXCHANGE): A computer which coordinates voice and
often,
			       data traffic, and takes the form of
			       either a
			       small switching system installed on a
			       business
			       subscriber's premises or can be as large
			       as
			       Northern Telecom's DMD-250 used in the
			       telephone
			       company's central office.  PBXs are also
			       referred to as PABXs (private automatic
			       branch
			       exchanges) or EPABXs (electronic private
			       branch
			       exchanges).

PUBLIC SWITCHED NETWORK: The network of more than 3500 Canadian
switching
			 centres which are available for public use.

SATELLITE (COMMUNICATIONS): An object or vehicle orbiting, or intended
to
			    orbit, the earth, moon, or other celestial
			    body.

TERMINAL: Any device capable of sending and/or receiving information
over a
	  communications channel and also a point at which information
	  can
	  enter or leave a communication network.

VERY SMALL APERTURE TERMINAL SERVICE (VSAT): A satellite-based service
			 providing full duplex digital data
			 transmission
			 between satellite earth stations and broadcast
			 video
			 transmission.  Used by businesses requiring
			 low
			 cost high performance branch office to
			 headquarters
			 broadcast video and data transmission.

WIDE AREA TELEPHONE SERVICE (WATS): A service enabling a customer to
direct
				    dial long distance calls to
				    subscribed
				    zones on a measured bulk rate,
				    rather
				    than for each individual call.