[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 63 (Monday, April 3, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16901-16902]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-8091]



-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-35543; File No. S7-27-93]


Consolidated Tape Association; Notice of Filing of Seventeenth 
Substantive Amendment to the Restated Consolidated Tape Association 
Plan and Twenty-First Substantive Amendment to the Consolidated 
Quotation Plan

March 28, 1995.
    Pursuant to Rule 11Aa3-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''), notice is hereby given that on March 9, 1995, the 
Consolidated Tape Association (``CTA'') and Consolidated Quotation 
(``CQ'') Plan Participants filed with the Securities and Exchange 
Commission (``Commission'' or ``SEC'') amendments to the Restated CTA 
Plan and CQ Plan. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit 
comments from interested persons on the amendments.

I. Description and Purpose of the Amendments

    The amendments seek to change a procedure for allocating high speed 
line access fee revenues between ``Network A'' and ``Network B'' under 
each plan. The participants propose to apply ``relative message usage 
percentages'' to the allocation of high speed line revenues between 
networks retroactively, beginning with the period commencing January 1, 
1994.
    The amendments would also eliminate the requirements that the 
participants set the high speed line access fee at a level designed to 
recover the costs of making the high speed line available, and set 
indirect high speed line access fees at a level that equals one-half of 
the direct access fees. The actual fees, however, would not be changed 
at this time.

A. Allocation of High Speed Line Revenue

    Currently, under each plan, the participants impose on subscribers, 
vendors, computer input users and others one combined high speed line 
access fee for access to both Network A and Network B market data. 
Under the proposed amendments, the participants wish to change the 
current methods set forth in the plans for allocating each plan's high 
speed line access revenues between the two networks. The participants 
feel that a more appropriate and equitable way to achieve that 
allocation would be to apply a measure that reflects each network's 
relative usage of the plans' systems.
    To that end, the participants have selected each network's 
``relative message usage percentage''. These percentages, in the 
participants' view, reflect a network's relative portion of the total 
number of messages\1\ that the participants disseminate over the high 
speed line for a given period. Under the proposed amendments, a 
``relative message usage percentage'' would equal the number of a 
network's messages reported over the high speed line divided by the sum 
of the numbers of both networks' messages that both networks report 
over the high speed line.\2\ The participants have proposed to 
retroactively apply the ``relative message usage percentage'' to the 
allocation of high speed line revenues between networks commencing 
January 1, 1994.

    \1\For purposes of such calculations, a message includes any 
message that a participant disseminates over the Consolidated Tape 
System, including, but not limited to, prices relating to Eligible 
Securities or concurrent use securities, administrative messages, 
index messages, corrections, cancellations, and error messages.
    \2\For example, a month's relative message usage for CTA network 
a would be calculated as follows:
    Where:
    ``A'' represents the number of messages that CTA Network A 
participants disseminate over the CTA network A pursuant to the CTA 
plan during that month; and
    ``B'' represents the number of messages that CTA Network B 
participants disseminate over the CTA Network B pursuant to the CTA 
plan during the month.
    To determine a month's relative message usage for CQ Network A, 
substitute ``CQ'' where ``CTA'' appears in this footnote.

                                                                        
                                                         A              
     CTA Network A Relative Message      -------------------------------
                                                       A+B,             
                                                                        

    If the instant amendments are approved, the participants will 
direct the Processor to calculate the allocation percentages on a 
monthly basis. Under the proposed amendments, the New York Stock 
Exchange (``NYSE'') shall distribute to the Network B
[[Page 16902]] administrator under each plan, a calendar quarter's high 
speed line revenues allocated to Network B under the plan as soon as 
the calculation becomes available for that quarter.
B. Determination of High Speed Line Access Fees

    Both plans currently require participants: (a) to set high speed 
line access fees at levels that allow the participants to recover the 
operating expenses that the Processor incurs in making the high speed 
line available, and (b) to set indirect high speed line access fees at 
a level that equals one-half of the direct access fees. The proposed 
amendments would eliminate these two requirements and thereby alter the 
manner in which participants determine high speed line access fees.\3\ 
The participants, however, are not proposing to amend the actual fees 
at this time.

    \3\The participants' reasons for requesting this amendment is 
that the above requirements were established over twenty years ago. 
Today's digital data feed and other technologies make high speed 
lines cheaper and easier to access.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

II. Solicitation of Comments

    Rule 11Aa3-2(c)(2) under the Act provides that the proposed 
amendment shall be approved by the Commission with such changes or 
subject to such conditions as the Commission may deem necessary or 
appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of investors and 
maintenance of fair and orderly markets, to remove impediments to and 
perfect the mechanisms of a National Market System, or otherwise in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act within 120 days of the date of 
publication of notice of filing, or within such longer period as the 
Commission may designate up to 180 days of such date pursuant to Rule 
11Aa3-2(c)(2).
    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing. Persons making written submissions 
should file six copies thereof with the Secretary, Securities and 
Exchange Commission, 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549. 
Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all written 
statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are filed with 
the Commission, and all written communications relating to the proposed 
rule change between the Commission and any person, other than those 
that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the provisions 
of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for inspection and copying in the 
Commission's Public Reference Room. Copies of such filing will also be 
available for inspection and copying at the principal office of the 
CTA/CQ. All submissions should refer to the file number in the caption 
above and should be submitted by April 24, 1995.

    For the Commission by the Division of Market Regulation, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\4\

    \4\17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(27) (1989).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 95-8091 Filed 3-31-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-M