[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 31 (Wednesday, February 14, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5827-5828]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-3217]



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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-36817; File No. SR-OPRA-96-1]


Options Price Reporting Authority; Notice of Filing and Immediate 
Effectiveness of Amendment to OPRA Fee Schedule Revising the 
Information Fees Payable by Professional Subscribers to Last Sale and 
Quotation Information

February 7, 1996.
    Pursuant to rule 11Aa3-2 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Exchange Act''), notice is hereby given that on January 22, 1996, 
the Options Price Reporting Authority (``OPRA'') \1\ submitted to the 
Securities and Exchange Commission (``SEC'' or ``Commission'') an 
amendment to the Plan for Reporting of Consolidated Options Last Sale 
Reports and Quotation Information (``Plan''). The amendment revises the 
information fees payable by professional subscribers to last sale and 
quotation information.\2\ OPRA has designated this proposal as 
establishing or changing a fee or other charge collected on behalf of 
all of the OPRA participants in connection with access to or use of 
OPRA facilities, permitting the proposal to become effective upon 
filing pursuant to Rule 11Aa3-2(c)(3)(i) under the Exchange Act. The 
Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments from 
interested persons on the amendment.

    \1\ OPRA is a National Market System Plan approved by the 
Commission pursuant to Section 11A of the Exchange Act and Rule 
11Aa3-2 thereunder. Securities Exchange Act Release No. 17638 (Mar. 
18, 1981).
    The Plan provides for the collection and dissemination of last 
sale and quotation information on options that are traded on the 
five member exchanges. The five exchanges which agreed to the OPRA 
Plan are the American Stock Exchange (``AMEX''); the Chicago Board 
Options Exchange (``CBOE''); the New York Stock Exchange (``NYSE''); 
the Pacific Stock Exchange (``PSE''); and the Philadelphia Stock 
Exchange (``PHLX'').
    \2\ In September 1995, OPRA previously filed an amendment to 
revise the fees payable by professional subscribers. See Securities 
Exchange Act Release No. 36364 (October 12, 1995), 60 FR 54093 
(October 19, 1995). OPRA subsequently withdrew the proposed 
amendment on November 22, 1995. See Letter from Janet Angstadt, 
Schiff Hardin & Waite, Attorney for OPRA, to David Oestreicher, 
Attorney, Division of Market Regulation, SEC (November 22, 1995).
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I. Description and Purpose of the Amendment

    The purpose of the amendment is to revise the fees payable to OPRA 
by professional subscribers for access to securities options market 
data and related information (``OPRA data''), so that a greater share 
of the costs of 

[[Page 5828]]
collecting, consolidating, processing and transmitting OPRA data will 
be covered by these fees.\3\ Professional subscribers are those persons 
that subscribe to OPRA data and do not qualify for the reduced fees 
charged to nonprofessional subscribers. OPRA's professional subscriber 
fees were last revised in 1991, implemented over a four year period 
beginning in January 1992 and ending in January 1995.

    \3\ This amendment only applies to OPRA's professional 
subscriber fees with respect to its basic service, which consists of 
market data on all listed options other than foreign currency 
options (``FCOs''). A separate subscriber fee is charged for FCO 
service. See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 36613 (December 30, 
1995), 60 FR 67144 (December 28, 1995).
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    The current schedule of professional subscriber fees offers volume 
discounts to larger subscribers by reducing the fee per device as the 
total number of devices maintained by a subscriber increases. There are 
six separate pricing tiers covering the range from One device to 750 or 
more devices per subscriber. For each tier above the single-device 
subscriber, a discount is provided to subscribers that are members of 
one or more of OPRA's participating exchanges.
    The proposed amendment retains the concept of a volume discount and 
retains a member discount.\4\ OPRA claims, however, that this proposal 
is the first step in a program that OPRA intends to implement over 
several years in order to reduce the number of member and non-member 
tiers and thereby simplify the administration of the professional 
subscriber fee for OPRA, its vendors and subscribers.

    \4\ The proposed tiers are as follows: (1) For 1-3 devices, 
members pay $34.00 per device, and non-members pay $35.00 per 
device; (2) for 4-9 devices, members pay $23.00 per device, and non-
members pay $24.00 per device; (3) for 10-29 devices, members pay 
$13.65 per device, and non-members pay $15.00 per device; (4) for 
30-99 devices, members pay $10.50 per device, and non-members pay 
$14.50 per device; (5) for 100-749 devices, members pay $10.50 per 
device, and non-members pay $12.00 per device; and (6) for 750+ 
devices, members pay $8.40 per device, and non-members pay $10.00 
per device.
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    The changes in the level of OPRA's professional subscriber fees 
that are being proposed either will reduce or maintain at current 
levels the fees paid by small professional subscribers having no more 
than three devices, and will increase the fees paid by professional 
subscribers having four or more devices.\5\ The net result of these 
changes in professional subscriber fees is estimated to result in an 
overall increase in professional subscriber fee revenue of 
approximately 4.75 percent, assuming no changes in the size or 
distribution of OPRA's total professional subscriber base.

    \5\ The increases range from $.40 to $1.00 per device for 
members and from $1.00 to $3.50 per device for non-members.
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    OPRA is proposing these fee changes because, over the four years 
that have elapsed since the last professional subscriber fee change was 
authorized in 1991, the exchanges have absorbed increases in the costs 
of collecting, processing, consolidating and disseminating OPRA data. 
According to OPRA, the increases largely are due to the implementation 
of systems and equipment upgrades and additions that have increased the 
capacity and enhanced the reliability and security of the OPRA system. 
OPRA anticipates continued escalation of these costs.
    OPRA believes that the costs associated with the processing of OPRA 
data are largely independent of trading volume and, therefore, it has 
determined that a larger share of such costs should be covered by 
revenues that also are largely independent of trading volume. OPRA 
claims that the proposed amendment is intended to achieve this 
objective, and to allocate market information fees fairly among the 
different categories of professional subscribers that pay such fees.

II. Solicitation of Comments

    Pursuant to Rule 11Aa3-2(c)(3), the amendment is effective upon 
filing with the Commission. The Commission may summarily abrogate the 
amendment within 60 days of its filing and require refiling and 
approval of the amendment by Commission order pursuant to Rule 11Aa3-
2(c)(2), if it appears to the Commission that such action is necessary 
or appropriate in the public interest; for the protection of investors 
and the 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 Exchange Act.
    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, and 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 
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 the filing also will be available at 
the principal offices of OPRA. All submissions should refer to file 
number SR-OPRA-96-1 and should be submitted by March 5, 1996.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\6\

    \6\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(29).
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Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-3217 Filed 2-13-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8110-01-M