[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 6, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38857-38858]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-16289]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-62392; File No. SR-NASDAQ-2010-077]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; 
Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change Relating to Pricing for Direct 
Circuit Connections

June 28, 2010.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that 
on June 21, 2010, The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (the ``Exchange'' or 
``NASDAQ'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II, 
and III below, which Items have been prepared by the Exchange. The 
Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on the 
proposed rule change from interested persons.
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    \1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
    \2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
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I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of the 
Substance of the Proposed Rule Change

    NASDAQ is filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``SEC'' or ``Commission'') a proposed rule change to establish pricing 
for 10Gb direct circuit connections and codify pricing for 10Gb [sic] 
direct circuit connections for customers who are not co-located in 
NASDAQ's datacenter. The text of the proposed rule change is available 
at http://nasdaq.cchwallstreet.com, at the Exchange's principal office, 
and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.

II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

    In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements 
concerning the purpose of and basis for the proposed rule change and 
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The 
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in 
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in 
Sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such 
statements.

A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and 
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change

1. Purpose
    The Exchange is proposing to establish fees for direct 10Gb circuit 
connections, and codify fees for direct circuit connections capable of 
supporting up to 1Gb, for customers who are not co-located at the 
Exchange's datacenter. Currently, the Exchange already makes available 
to co-located customers a 10Gb circuit connection and charges for each 
a $1,000 initial installation charge as well as an ongoing monthly fee 
of $5,000. The Exchange is establishing the same fees for non co-
located customers with a 10Gb circuit.\3\
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    \3\ NASDAQ provides an additional 1Gb copper connection option 
to Nasdaq for co-located customers. Given the technological 
constraints of copper connections over longer distances, NASDAQ does 
not offer a copper connection option to users outside of its 
datacenter.
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    The Exchange also already makes available to both co-located and 
non co-located customers direct connections capable of supporting up to 
1Gb, with per connection monthly fees of $500 for co-located customers 
and $1,000 for non co-located customers. Monthly fees are higher for 
non co-located customers because direct connections require NASDAQ to 
provide cabinet space and middleware for those customers' third-party 
vendors to connect into the datacenter and, ultimately, to the trading 
system. Finally, for non co-located customers the Exchange charges an 
optional installation fee of $925 if the customer chooses to use an on-
site router.
2. Statutory Basis
    NASDAQ believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\4\ in general, and with 
Sections 6(b)(5) of the Act,\5\ in particular, in that the proposal is 
designed to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and practices, to 
promote just and equitable principles of trade, to foster cooperation 
and coordination with persons engaged in regulating, clearing, 
settling, processing information with respect to, and facilitating 
transactions in securities, to remove impediments to and perfect the 
mechanism of a free and open market and a national market system, and, 
in general, to protect investors and the public interest. In 
particular, the proposal will provide greater

[[Page 38858]]

transparency into the connectivity options available to market 
participants.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \5\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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    The Exchange also believes that the proposed rule change is 
consistent with the provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\6\ in general, 
and with Section 6(b)(4) of the Act,\7\ in particular, in that it 
provides for the equitable allocation of reasonable dues, fees and 
other charges among members and issuers and other persons using any 
facility or system which the Exchange operates or controls. The filing 
codifies and makes transparent the fees imposed for direct connections 
to non co-located customers. These fees are uniform for all such 
customers and are either comparable to fees charged to co-located 
customers or vary due to different costs associated with providing 
service to the two customer types.
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(4).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition

    NASDAQ does not believe that the proposed rule change will result 
in any burden on competition that is not necessary or appropriate in 
furtherance of the purposes of the Act, as amended.

C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed 
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others

    Written comments were neither solicited nor received.

III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for 
Commission Action

    Within 35 days of the date of publication of this notice in the 
Federal Register or within such longer period (i) as the Commission may 
designate up to 90 days of such date if it finds such longer period to 
be appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or (ii) as to 
which the self-regulatory organization consents, the Commission will:
    (A) By order approve such proposed rule change, or
    (B) institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule 
change should be disapproved.

IV. Solicitation of Comments

    Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views, and 
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule 
change, as amended, is consistent with the Act. Comments may be 
submitted by any of the following methods:

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an e-mail to [email protected]. Please include 
File Number SR-NASDAQ-2010-077 on the subject line.

Paper Comments

     Send paper comments in triplicate to Elizabeth M. Murphy, 
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE., 
Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number SR-NASDAQ-2010-077. This 
file number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. 
To help the Commission process and review your comments more 
efficiently, please use only one method. The Commission will post all 
comments on the Commission's Internet Web site (http://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml). 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 Web site 
viewing and printing in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F 
Street, NE., Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between 
the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of such filing also will be 
available for inspection and copying at the principal office of the 
Exchange. All comments received will be posted without change; the 
Commission does not edit personal identifying information from 
submissions. You should submit only information that you wish to make 
available publicly. All submissions should refer to File Number SR-
NASDAQ-2010-077 and should be submitted on or before July 27, 2010.
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    \8\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\8\
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2010-16289 Filed 7-2-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P