DE 97-171
BELL ATLANTIC
Petition for Approval of Statement of Generally
Available Terms
Order Granting AT&T's Motion for Proprietary Treatment
O R D E R N O. 22,913
April 30, 1998
On March 25, 1998, AT&T Communications of New
Hampshire, Inc. (AT&T) filed with the Commission a Motion
for Protective Treatment of certain information regarding
Primary Interexchange Carrier (PIC) change data. AT&T
specifically requests protective treatment of pages 21 and
22 of AT&T Witness Sandra Kale's testimony; and of Exhibit 2
attached to that testimony (hereinafter collectively the
Information). AT&T requests that the Information receive
proprietary treatment by the Commission, restricting access
to the Commission, the Staff, and the Parties for use in
this docket only. AT&T has sought concurrence from all
parties and the Commission Staff. Freedom Ring concurs in
the motion. Sprint and Vanguard Cellular do not object.
Other parties and Staff had not responded to AT&T at the
time of the filing.
AT&T asserts that the Information is exempt from
public disclosure under RSA 91-A:5,IV, in that it pertains
to confidential commercial or financial information which
warrants confidential treatment pursuant to Puc 204.05 and
06. The Information, according to AT&T, reveals the number
of AT&T interexchange customers gained and lost by month and
by state in the Bell Atlantic Northeast Region for January
through June 1997. These numbers would allow competing
carriers to identify AT&T's vulnerability in particular
geographic areas, giving them a competitive advantage by
providing a focus for marketing efforts. The Information is
competitively sensitive commercial information in the nature
of a trade secret, according to AT&T, which is not general
public knowledge and has not been published elsewhere.
Within AT&T, the Information is marked Proprietary;
employees and outside consultants are subject to
restrictions regarding its use in order to prevent
dissemination.
Based on the characteristics of the Information
described above, the Information warrants protection under
RSA 91-A:5,IV and the Commission's standards for granting
confidential treatment in Re New England Telephone Co., DR
95-069, Order 21,731 dated July 10, 1995 and codified at Puc
204.06. AT&T has demonstrated that release of the
Information would provide competitors with an unfair
competitive advantage in developing marketing strategies.
Under the balancing test we have applied in prior
cases, Re New England Telephone & Telegraph Company
(Auditel), 80 NH PUC 437 (1995); Re Bell Atlantic, Order
No. 22,851 (February 17, 1998); Re EnergyNorth Natural Gas,
Inc., Order No. 22,859 (February 24, 1998), the benefits of
non-disclosure to AT&T appear to outweigh the benefits of
disclosure to the public. Puc 204.06(d) provides us with
latitude to prescribe the manner in which information shall
be protected from disclosure. Therefore, we shall order
that the Parties and Staff give AT&T prior notice of the
identity and affiliation of independent consultants,
experts, or any other person, to whom the Parties and Staff
intend to provide access to the Information. AT&T may
refuse such access to any person who is an officer,
director, stockholder, partner, owner, consultant or
employee of a competitor or competitor's affiliate.
Based upon the foregoing, it is hereby
ORDERED, that AT&T's Motion for Proprietary
Treatment of the Information is GRANTED, pursuant to the
requirements discussed above, and it is
FURTHER ORDERED, that this order is subject to the
Commission's on-going rights in light of RSA 91-A, should
circumstances so warrant.
By Order of the Public Utilities Commission of New
Hampshire this thirtieth day of April, 1998.
Douglas L. Patch Bruce B. Ellsworth Susan S.
Geiger
Chairman Commissioner Commissioner
Attested by:
Claire D. DiCicco
Assistant Secretary