Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To Modify the Description of the Nasdaq Daily Share Volume Service, 67234-67235 [2011-27994]

Agencies

• SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 210 (Monday, October 31, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67234-67235]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-27994]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

[Release No. 34-65617; File No. SR-NASDAQ-2011-145]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC; 
Notice of Filing and Immediate Effectiveness of Proposed Rule Change To 
Modify the Description of the Nasdaq Daily Share Volume Service

October 25, 2011.
    Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 \2\ thereunder, notice is hereby given 
that on October 13, 2011, The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC (the ``Exchange'' 
or ``Nasdaq'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission 
(``SEC'' or ``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

    The Exchange is filing this proposed rule change to modify the 
description of the Nasdaq Daily Volume Share Service in Nasdaq Rule 
7040, as well as to remove the word ``Daily'' from the name of the 
service.
    The text of the proposed rule change is below. Proposed deletions 
are in [brackets]. Proposed new language is in italics.\3\
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    \3\ Changes are marked to the rules of The NASDAQ Stock Market 
LLC found at https://nasdaq.cchwallstreet.com.
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* * * * *

7040. Nasdaq [Daily] Share Volume Service

    (a) The Nasdaq [Daily] Share Volume Service [shall allow 
participating subscribers to view volume reports on a T + 1 basis] 
is a historical data product that provides aggregated share volume 
information at the market participant and issue level for all 
Nasdaq- and non-Nasdaq-listed securities in the Nasdaq Market 
Center. The Nasdaq Share Volume Service is comprised of two 
different reports:
    (1) Daily Share Volume Report--providing aggregated share volume 
information on a daily basis. The daily report is available to 
subscribers the following calendar day for the prior trading day's 
data.
    (2) Monthly Share Volume Report--providing aggregated share 
volume information on a monthly basis. The monthly report is 
available to subscribers on the fifth calendar day of every month 
for the prior month's data.
    [1] (b) Access to the underlying data for redistribution shall 
be available for a fee of $2,500/month.
* * * * *

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
    This proposal pertains to the Nasdaq Daily Share Volume Service 
(the ``Service''), which makes information available via a Web-based 
data product and provides daily traded share volume by issue for 
participating market participants (the ``Daily Share Volume Report''). 
Specifically, the Service is a historical data product that summarizes 
the aggregated share volume in the Nasdaq Market Center at the market 
participant and issue level for all Nasdaq- and non-Nasdaq-listed 
securities. Thus, the product allows subscribers to determine the share 
volumes of a particular market participant in a particular stock.
    Prior to the establishment of the Service and the Daily Share 
Volume Report in a 2007 filing (the ``Initial Filing''),\4\ the monthly 
share volume report (the ``Monthly Share Volume Report'') was provided 
free of charge to anyone with internet access via NASDAQtrader.com.\5\ 
In the Initial Filing, the free-of-charge monthly product was discussed 
as a part of the basis for the Service. The Initial Filing specifically 
noted that Nasdaq had received numerous requests for a daily product 
comparable to the existing monthly product. As a result, the Service 
included both the Daily Share Volume Report and the Monthly Share 
Volume Report. Subsequently, Nasdaq began providing the monthly product 
solely to subscribers of the Service. The fee for the Service, 
comprised of both the Daily Share Volume Report and the Monthly Share 
Volume Report, is $2,500 per month. The monthly and daily reports have 
since become widely used in the data product customer community.
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    \4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 55444 (March 12, 
2007), 72 FR 12648 (March 16, 2007) (SR-NASDAQ-2007-006).
    \5\ At that time, Nasdaq, as well as other exchanges, had 
concluded that the Act did not require exchanges to submit proposed 
rule changes when making data available free of charge. Commission 
staff has since advised Nasdaq to submit proposed rule changes in 
circumstances where information about quotations or transactions is 
provided free of charge.
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    Nasdaq proposes to modify the description of the Service in Nasdaq 
Rule 7040(a) to reflect the fact that subscribers of the daily version 
of the Service also receive the Monthly Share Volume Report in 
consideration for the $2,500 per month fee that they pay. The proposal 
would also remove the word ``Daily'' from the name of the Service to 
lessen confusion concerning the share volume information provided. 
Thus, the rule change will make it clear that the Service is comprised 
of the Daily Share Volume Report and the Monthly Share Volume Report.
    The Daily Share Volume Report summarizes the aggregated share 
volume in the Nasdaq Market Center at the market participant and issue 
level for all Nasdaq- and non-Nasdaq-listed securities. All Nasdaq 
market participants are given the option to determine whether they wish 
to have their trading volumes included in the data provided to 
subscribers to the Service. In the case of the daily product, market 
participants are excluded unless they specifically opt to have their 
data included. This provides flexibility to market participants as to 
what information they would like to include in the report. Thus, while 
some market participants wish to include their data in the product in 
order to advertise their level of market activity, others decide

[[Page 67235]]

not to opt in, in order to maintain full anonymity with respect to 
their trading activity. The daily share volume information is available 
the next calendar day for the prior trading day's activity.
    The Monthly Share Volume Report volume information is similar to 
the Daily Share Volume Report in that it summarizes the aggregated 
share volume in the Nasdaq Market Center at the market participant and 
issue level for all Nasdaq- and non-Nasdaq-listed securities. In 
contrast to the Daily Share Volume Report, the Monthly Share Volume 
Report aggregates the information on a monthly, rather than on a daily 
basis. Because the information is provided on an aggregated monthly 
basis, and thus reveals less granular, and less timely, information 
about market participants, most market participants do not object to 
inclusion of their data in the product. For those market participants 
that do object, they are able to opt out of inclusion. The monthly 
share volume information for a given month is available on the fifth 
calendar day of every month for the prior month's data. This provides 
adequate time for month-end processing.
    Because the pre-existing Monthly Share Volume Report has never been 
specifically stated in Nasdaq Rule 7040 to be part of the information 
provided by the Service, Nasdaq now proposes to submit a rule change to 
clarify its inclusion in the product. Accordingly, Nasdaq proposes to 
modify Nasdaq Rule 7040(a) to clarify that the Monthly Share Volume 
Report will be included as part of the information provided to 
subscribers of the Service, as well as to remove the word ``Daily'' 
from the name of the Service to lessen confusion. The fee for the 
product is not changing. As such, this should be considered as a non-
controversial rule change.
2. Statutory Basis
    Nasdaq believes that the proposed rule change is consistent with 
the provisions of Section 6 of the Act,\6\ in general and with Sections 
6(b)(5) of the Act,\7\ in particular in that it 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. The proposed rule change is 
designed to clarify what is included in the Service, as well as the 
modify [sic] name of the Service, thereby eliminating any confusion 
surrounding Nasdaq's rules.
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    \6\ 15 U.S.C. 78f.
    \7\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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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

    Because the foregoing proposed rule change does not: (i) 
Significantly affect the protection of investors or the public 
interest; (ii) impose any significant burden on competition; and (iii) 
become operative for 30 days from the date on which it was filed, or 
such shorter time as the Commission may designate, it has become 
effective pursuant to Section 19(b)(3)(A) of the Act \8\ and Rule 19b-
4(f)(6) thereunder.\9\ At any time within 60 days of the filing of the 
proposed rule change, the Commission summarily may temporarily suspend 
such rule change if it appears to the Commission that such action is 
necessary or appropriate in the public interest, for the protection of 
investors, or otherwise in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
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    \8\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(3)(A).
    \9\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4(f)(6).
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IV. Solicitation of Comments

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

Electronic Comments

     Use the Commission's Internet comment form (https://www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
     Send an email to rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include 
File Number SR-NASDAQ-2011-145 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-2011-145. This 
file number should be included on the subject line if email 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 (https://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 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 offices 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-2011-145, and should be submitted on or before 
November 21, 2011.
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    \10\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).

    For the Commission, by the Division of Trading and Markets, 
pursuant to delegated authority.\10\
Kevin M. O'Neill,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2011-27994 Filed 10-28-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8011-01-P