Date: 28 Aug 2000 18:21:36 -0400 Message-ID: <20000828222136.2378.qmail@xuxa.iecc.com> From: owner-telecom-digest@telecom-digest.org (Telecom Digest) To: telecom-digest@telecom-digest.org Subject: Telecom Digest V2000 #36 Reply-To: editor@telecom-digest.org Sender: owner-telecom-digest@telecom-digest.org Errors-To: owner-telecom-digest@telecom-digest.org Precedence: bulk X-UIDL: d9e0c62bae51e1f944fd2e3abbf1eee1 Status: RO X-Status: Telecom Digest Monday, August 28 2000 Volume 2000 : Number 036 In this issue: Re: Payphones charging for 800 Directory Assistance Re: COCOTs charging for 800 information? Re: legality of automated telphone spam Computerworld: Iridium satellite network prepares for decommissioning Re: COCOTs charging for 800- Directory? Re: CWA Operating verizonREALLYsucks Web Site Telecom Update (Canada) #247, August 28, 2000 Cannot change my long distance provider? Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? NYTimes.com Article: What City, Please? Vexation in Dialing Can Start With 411 Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? Telephony and billing ISDN and Billing Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? Re: CWA Operating verizonREALLYsucks Web Site ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 28 Aug 2000 07:55:47 -0400 From: Dave Levenson Subject: Re: Payphones charging for 800 Directory Assistance Under current FCC regulations, payphone operators are entitled to compensation for every completed call they handle. For calls to toll-free numbers, this compensation is paid to the payphone operator by the carrier who bills the destination number for the call. The amount is currently $0.24/call. Many carriers mark this up considerably and pass it along to the billed destination customer. This applies to both COCOTs and LEC-owned payphones, and the regulations to not permit payphone operators to require a coin deposit for these calls. The regulations also permit payphone operators to charge for calls to directory assistance. (Verizon has just begun to charge $0.35 for calls to 411 from their payphones in New Jersey.) The regulations to not specifically address the issue of calls to 800 directory assistance. A likely scenario, however, is that some smart payphones may be charging for 800 directory assistance unintentionally. In order to charge for interstate directory assistance (which is permitted and is widely done) the person who programs the payphone probably uses a wild-card macro like "1-???-555-1212 = 0.75". This will match 1-800-555-1212 unless that specific pattern precedes it in the list of special numbers. The syntax varies from one payphone manufacturer to another, but a similar capability is available in all of the instrument-implemented payphones, whether deployed by the LEC or an independent payphone provider. Dave Levenson Westmark, Inc. Voice: 908 647 0900 Email: dave@westmark.com Stirling, NJ, USA Fax: 908 647 6857 Web: http://www.westmark.com - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 08:21:45 -0400 From: Subject: Re: COCOTs charging for 800 information? Green, Andrew wrote: >> It's against federal law to charge for calls to toll-free >> numbers. > Er, by anyone? Hyatt Hotels will ding you a dollar for calling a toll-free > access line from your hotel room. Interestingly, other toll-free numbers are > no charge... So, that means they are only charging for "well known" toll free access numbers, or do they really keep track of *every* 800 access number for Fred's Long Distance and Towing Company? I suspect they are violating some regulations doing this. - -- ***************************************************************************** * Bill Ranck +1-540-231-3951 ranck@vt.edu * * Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, Computing Center * ***************************************************************************** - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 09:05:02 -0400 From: johnl@iecc.com (John R Levine) Subject: Re: legality of automated telphone spam > What is worse then that is the trend to calling Cell phones. I was > getting at least 2 calls a day and more on my voice mail. I tracked > the source down and made a little trouble for them. I have heard > that the FCC and the California PUC are looking into complaints > since the Called party pays for the call, at least it does here. The TCPA specifically outlaws sales calls to cell phones. If you know who did it, you can sue them for $500/call, just like junk fax, tripled if you can show it was "wilful and knowing", i.e. if they knew or had reason to know it was illegal. - -- John R. Levine, IECC, POB 727, Trumansburg NY 14886 +1 607 387 6869 johnl@iecc.com, Village Trustee and Sewer Commissioner, http://iecc.com/johnl, Member, Provisional board, Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial E-mail - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 09:13:23 -0400 From: spam_i_am_not@yahoo.com Subject: Computerworld: Iridium satellite network prepares for decommissioning Rob Pierce has sent you a story from Computerworld.com, and wants you to see it! Story headline: Computerworld: Iridium satellite network prepares for decommissioning Author: Message: Instructions: Click on the link below, or copy and paste it into your browser to view the note. http://www.computerworld.com/cwi/story/0,1199,NAV47_STO49056,00.html You can visit us here http://www.computerworld.com to find out what we can offer - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 10:06:58 -0400 From: Mark J Cuccia Subject: Re: COCOTs charging for 800- Directory? Regarding COCOT _PAY_phones charging for 800 Directory: The is a problem do to either _CHEAP_ chips/hardware, or else _SLOPPY_ programming of chips/hardware in the phone. The chips rating/translations tables are looking at the "555" of 800-555 and "assuming" it to be a chargeable Directory call, DESPITE the fact that SAC 800 is toll-free, even for 800-555-1212. This charging for 800-555-xxxx will also either charge or block for accessing Stentor's "Canada-Direct" card/operator platform for Canadians travelling/living in the US and wanting to call back to Canada collect, or call (virtually) anywhere in the World with a (Stentor) Canadian (incumbent) LEC-issued calling card (SBC-Ameritech-Bell Canada, Bell's Aliant group of: NBTel MT&T/NS PE-IslandTel and NewTel in NF/LB, MTS in MB, SaskTel, GTE/VeriZon-Telus of BCTel AGT/EdTel and QuebecTel in eastern PQ/QC, Bell's Northwestel in YT/NWT/VU, Bell's Northern Tel in northern ON and Telebec throughout PQ/QC, Ontario Northland Tel, and various incumbent independents throughout ON and PQ/QC as well as Prince Rupert City BC Telco). The access number for "Stentor-Long-Distance / Canada-Direct" as used throughout the US and Canada for Card and Operator-billed calling is 800-555-1111. From the eastern half of the US and Canada it routes to Bell's auto-platform/menu in Montreal PQ/QC. From the western half of the US and Canada it routes to GTE/VeriZon/Telus/BCTel in Vancouver BC. Because it is 800-555, there can be MANY COCOTs in the US which will either _CHARGE_ a "directory" rate for dialing it, or else _BLOCK_ it altogather! :( In Nov.1994, the industry agreed that 800-555 should be made available to "general" purpose toll-free numbers. (MCI "gobbled" up a whole batch of line-numbers right off). Previously, Bellcore-NANPA had stated that 800-555 would be strictly for Directory (800-555-1212) and certain other "grandfathered" 800-555-xxxx line numbers (all routing via AT&T within the US, Telecom-Canada/Stentor group within Canada) -- such "grandfathered" 800-555-xxxx line numbers have included the (now gone) 800-555-5000 "Bell Answer Center" for answering questions about divestiture, equal access, etc., and WECo/AT&T/Lucent Consumer Products 800-555-8111 for customer service mainly about little old ladies' leased WECo-made 500, Princess, 302, 202, etc. phones that were probably still hard mounted to the wiring block or WECo-made hard mounted 554, 352, etc. wall phones. As far as I know 800-555-8111 still routes to WECo/ AT&T/Lucent leased-phones customer service. There were probably a few other 800-555-xxxx line numbers in existance prior to Nov.1994, which were "grandfathered" when Bellcore-NANPA took over 800-NXX code administration - since replaced in 1993/94 by full 800/toll-free portability via database-lookup. So, COCOTs with either sloppy chip-hardware or programming of that chip-hardware might be blocking or charging for _ALL_ 800-555-xxxx numbers! :( BTW, for reasons still not "clear" to me, the FCC (with the concurance of Canada's CRTC?) has informed the toll-free numbering industry that for the time-being, 888-555, 877-555, 866-555, 855-555 are not to have any line-number assignments. When 888 first came online in early 1996, there were some Canadian Stentor LECs that were allowing 888-555 in their translations and routings for 888-555-1212, routing to the same toll-free directory center _in_Canada_ as if the caller had dialed 800-555-1212. (AT&T has their own 800-555-1212 centers in the US; you really get AT&T on 800-555-1212 in the US regardless of who your PIC happens to be, but what does it really matter since the call is toll-free to you). I don't know if any Canadian-Stentor LECs still route 888-555-1212 to 800-555-1212, or if they now block it. MARK_J._CUCCIA__PHONE/WRITE/WIRE/CABLE:__HOME:__(USA)__Tel:_CHestnut-1-2497 WORK:__mcuccia@mailhost.tcs.tulane.edu|4710-Wright-Road|__(+1-504-241-2497) Tel:UNiversity-5-5954(+1-504-865-5954)|New-Orleans-28__|fwds-on-no-answr-to Fax:UNiversity-5-5917(+1-504-865-5917)|Louisiana(70128)|cellular/voicemail- NWORLASKCG0 (BellSouth #1AESS Cl.5 Local "Seabrook" 504-24x-) to become a #5ESS (yeah!), NWORLASKDS0, 12:01am SAT-11-NOV-2000 NWORLAIYCM3 (BellSouth-Mobility Ericsson Cellular-MTSO NOL) NWORLAMT01T (BellSouth DMS-100 "Metairie" Tndm; Cellular routes thru) NWORLAMA0GT (BellSouth DMS-100/200 inTRA-LATA/fg.BCD Tndm "Main" 504+) NWORLAMA20T (BellSouth DMS-200 TOPS:inLATA OprSvcTndm "Main" 504+053+) NWORLAMA04T (AT&T #4ESS Class-2 Toll 060-T / 504-2T "Main" 504+) JCSNMSPS06T (AT&T #5ESS OSPS:Operator-Services-Tandem 601-0T 601+121) JCSNMSPS14T (AT&T #4ESS Class-3 Toll 040-T / 601-2T; OSPS routes thru) NWORLAELH01 (PBX NEC-2400 504-862-3/8xxx, 504-865-4/5/6xxx) NWORLACADS0 (BellSo.DMS-100 Cl.5 Lcl "Carrollton" 504-86x-;PBX 'homes' on) ======================================================================== - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 10:07:56 -0400 From: Joel B Levin Subject: Re: CWA Operating verizonREALLYsucks Web Site In <8oc547$rfo$1@panix5.panix.com>, dannyb@panix.com (danny burstein) wrote: }danny 'does "2600" have any telco history meaning?' burstein You're kidding, right? /J - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 10:43:43 -0400 From: John Riddell Subject: Telecom Update (Canada) #247, August 28, 2000 ************************************************************ TELECOM UPDATE Angus TeleManagement's Weekly Telecom Newsbulletin http://www.angustel.ca Number 247: August 28, 2000 Publication of Telecom Update is made possible by generous financial support from: AT&T Canada ...................... http://www.attcanada.com/ Bell Canada ............................ http://www.bell.ca/ Lucent Technologies .................. http://www.lucent.ca/ Sprint Canada .................. http://www.sprintcanada.ca/ Teleglobe Business Solutions ...... http://www.teleglobe.ca/ Telus Communications.................. http://www.telus.com/ TigerTel Services ................. http://www.tigertel.com/ ************************************************************ IN THIS ISSUE: ** Videotron Refuses to Endorse Quebecor Bid ** Rates Set for Use of High-Speed Cable ** Gateway to Build Across West ** Call-Net Sells U.S. Fibre to 360 ** Bracknell to Buy WorldCom Contractor ** Another Bell Cable Break ** Look Portal Offers Streaming Audio, Video ** Videotron to Announce IP Calling Plans ** Bell Mobility Offers Flat-Rate Family Calling ** CRTC Rejects Challenge to NBTel Rates ** Cogeco Buys Belleville Cableco ** Motorola Equips Defense Network ** Surtees Leaves Globe and Mail, Joins IDC ** Norigen Puts Its Bills on the Web ** Major U.S. Telecom Show Dies ** Rogers Hires Another Telus Exec ** Strike Ends at Telus Call Centres ** Excel Enters European Market ** Is Dark Fibre in Your Future? ============================================================ VIDEOTRON REFUSES TO ENDORSE QUEBECOR BID: Videotron's Board declined August 25 to recommend Quebecor's $4.9 Billion takeover bid because the offer "contains certain problematic conditions," including complications related to the $241- Million fee that Videotron must pay Rogers if it terminates their deal. (See Telecom Update #245) RATES SET FOR USE OF HIGH-SPEED CABLE: CRTC Order 2000-789 sets the rates and conditions that will apply when Internet Service Providers use cable companies' high-speed facilities to deliver Internet service to end customers. The decision applies to Cogeco, Rogers, Shaw, and Videotron. http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/Orders/2000/O2000-789.htm GATEWAY TO BUILD ACROSS WEST: Gateway Networks plans to build a fibre network from Vancouver to Winnipeg, connecting to its Central Canadian network through Chicago, by the end of 2001. Canadian Pacific Railway is providing the right-of-way. CALL-NET SELLS U.S. FIBRE TO 360: Call-Net Enterprises has agreed to sell two-thirds of its U.S. fibre network to 360networks for $240 Million. Call-Net will also buy local and intercity fibre in Canada from 360networks for $21 Million, and has committed to buy products and services worth another $15 Million over the next five years. BRACKNELL TO BUY WORLDCOM CONTRACTOR: Toronto-based Bracknell Corporation has agreed to buy Able Telecom, a U.S. builder of fibre optic networks. WorldCom, which owns 20% of Able, will now own 14% of Bracknell, and Bracknell will build at least 75% of WorldCom's new network facilities for the next six years. ** In May, a Florida Court found that Able used fraudulent means to block Markham-based Sirit Technologies from buying MFS Network Technologies from WorldCom in 1998. Able gave Sirit US$5 Million and 5 million Able shares to settle the case. ANOTHER BELL CABLE BREAK: Construction work in downtown Toronto damaged five Bell Canada cables August 22, cutting service to 3,300 business and residential lines. Service was fully restored by Friday. (See Telecom Update #246) LOOK PORTAL OFFERS STREAMING AUDIO, VIDEO: Look Communications has launched Looktvi.com, an Internet portal that delivers audio and video content to users of broadband access services. VIDEOTRON TO ANNOUNCE IP CALLING PLANS: Videotron, Cisco Systems, and Telcordia say they will announce in September the world's first Voice over IP project that uses cable TV facilities to deliver service to a large residential market. BELL MOBILITY OFFERS FLAT-RATE FAMILY CALLING: Bell Mobility has a new rate plan, RealTime Family, that offers unlimited calling among up to four family cellphones for no extra charge. Pricing starts at $35 for two phones and 100 minutes. CRTC REJECTS CHALLENGE TO NBTEL RATES: CRTC Order 2000-797 rejects an application by Dramis Cabling for an order requiring NBTel to provide rates on multiline business trunks that decline with volume, similar to the rates for BCS (Centrex) lines. The CRTC says that would be inappropriate because "the call carrying capacity of multiline groups increases as the multiline group size increases." http://www.crtc.gc.ca/archive/Orders/2000/o2000-797.htm COGECO BUYS BELLEVILLE CABLECO: Cogeco Cable is buying Cablevue (Quinte) Limited, which serves about 33,400 customers in Belleville, Ontario. MOTOROLA EQUIPS DEFENSE NETWORK: Motorola Canada has a $38.5 Million contract to build a secure e-mail system for the Department of National Defence, using Motorola's Military Message Handling System. SURTEES LEAVES GLOBE AND MAIL, JOINS IDC: Lawrence Surtees, veteran telecom reporter at the Globe and Mail, is resigning to join International Data Corporation Canada, an information technology analysis firm. ** Jordan Worth, IDC's former telecom research manager, has joined AT&T Canada as Senior Manager, Strategy & Business Development. NORIGEN PUTS ITS BILLS ON THE WEB: Customers of Norigen Communications can now view and analyze their invoices at Norigen's Web site. MAJOR U.S. TELECOM SHOW DIES: The Communication Managers Association, the most important telecom user group in the north-eastern U.S., has cancelled its annual trade show and conference, and is laying off its professional staff. The 52- year-old CMA's show, once one of the largest in the U.S., has been in decline for some time: this year it had only sold 75 booths by August. ** The Canadian counterpart of CMA, the Canadian Business Telecommunications Alliance, closed its doors and cancelled its annual trade show last year. (See Telecom Update #188) ROGERS HIRES ANOTHER TELUS EXEC: Rogers AT&T Wireless has named Arnie Stephens President of its Western Canada region (BC and Alberta). Stephens was formerly Acting President, Telus Mobility. (See Telecom Update #246) STRIKE ENDS AT TELUS CALL CENTRES: 1,000 employees at Telus call centres in BC returned to work August 24 after a two-day wildcat strike against changes in job classifications. Telus will postpone changes while it negotiates with the Telecommunications Workers Union. EXCEL ENTERS EUROPEAN MARKET: Excel Communications, a Teleglobe subsidiary, says it will begin offering long distance and other services in Europe this year. It has granted IBM a US$300-Million contract to supply call centre, billing, and IT services for its European operations. IS DARK FIBRE IN YOUR FUTURE? Bill St. Arnaud of CANARIE answers frequent questions about customer-owned optical networks in the September issue of Telemanagement, available this week. Also in Telemanagement #178: ** Allan Sulkin analyzes the latest in call centre systems and options; ** Michael Sone reviews major trends in Canada's wireless industry. To subscribe to Telemanagement, call 1-800-263-4415, ext 225, or visit the Telemanagement home page at http://www.angustel.ca. ============================================================ HOW TO SUBMIT ITEMS FOR TELECOM UPDATE E-MAIL: editors@angustel.ca FAX: 905-686-2655 MAIL: TELECOM UPDATE Angus TeleManagement Group 8 Old Kingston Road Ajax, Ontario Canada L1T 2Z7 =========================================================== HOW TO SUBSCRIBE (OR UNSUBSCRIBE) TELECOM UPDATE is provided in electronic form only. There are two formats available: 1. The fully-formatted edition is posted on the World Wide Web on the first business day of the week at http://www.angustel.ca 2. The e-mail edition is distributed free of charge. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to: listmanager@postmastergeneral.com Insert as the subject of your message the two words: subscribe TelecomUpdate To stop receiving the e-mail edition, send an e-mail message to: listmanager@postmastergeneral.com Insert as the subject of your message the two words: unsubscribe TelecomUpdate =========================================================== COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER: All contents copyright 2000 Angus TeleManagement Group Inc. All rights reserved. For further information, including permission to reprint or reproduce, please e-mail rosita@angustel.ca or phone 905-686-5050 ext 225. The information and data included has been obtained from sources which we believe to be reliable, but Angus TeleManagement makes no warranties or representations whatsoever regarding accuracy, completeness, or adequacy. Opinions expressed are based on interpretation of available information, and are subject to change. If expert advice on the subject matter is required, the services of a competent professional should be obtained. ============================================================ - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 12:07:11 -0400 From: joemitchellsc@yahoo.com Subject: Cannot change my long distance provider? I don't know if this is the right ng, but here goes: I called my local phone provider this morning and requested that they change my long distance provider. The person I spoke with politely told me that "with SimCom, you cannot change your long distance provider". Is this possible? If this is true, I'm thinking about using 10-10-220 (or similiar codes) to get around my local provider. Any hidden charges (connection fees) that I should be aware of? Thanks, Joe Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ Before you buy. - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 12:56:13 -0400 From: Joel B Levin Subject: Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? In <8oe1kd$ddf$1@nnrp1.deja.com>, joemitchellsc@yahoo.com wrote: }If this is true, I'm thinking about using 10-10-220 (or similiar codes) }to get around my local provider. Any hidden charges (connection fees) }that I should be aware of? No. Read the fine print for any dial-arounds you do use, though, to make sure. I haven't used 10-10-220. The ones I have used, including its sister service (whose number I forget)(well, my daughter used it without prior consent), have all been fair and above board. There are some mandatory charges, like universal service fund and taxes, that will be added on. The two I use most consistently, as found in my part of Arizona, are 1016868, at something like 7.9 cents/minute (more interlata intrastate, but still less than my "bargain" AT&T rate), and 1010811 which is only 5 cents/minute but minimum charge is 10 minutes. The latter is when I know it will be a long call. Mostly I use these on the two lines which do not have a default carrier. /JBL - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 13:36:51 -0400 From: itsamike@yahoo.com Subject: NYTimes.com Article: What City, Please? Vexation in Dialing Can Start With 411 This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by Mike Pollock itsamike@yahoo.com. Telecom Digest For crying out loud, don't archive this! Mike Pollock itsamike@yahoo.com /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ Celebrate Summer with a NYTimes.com Photo Screensaver NYTimes.com's latest screensaver captures the unforgettable moments from Coney Island amusement park. Enjoy these images every day on your computer, absolutely free. http://www.nytimes.com/partners/screensaver/index.html?eta2 \----------------------------------------------------------/ What City, Please? Vexation in Dialing Can Start With 411 August 27, 2000 By SETH SCHIESEL Sandra L. Frankel, town supervisor of Brighton, N.Y., just east of Rochester, thinks of dialing 411 as a call for disinformation. "When someone uses directory assistance and asks for an individual or a business in the town of Brighton, directory assistance doesn't recognize that location," Ms. Frankel said recently. "It's as if Brighton and other similar communities don't exist to the telephone companies." Erin L. McKelvey, a technology executive in Maryland, is no fan of directory assistance, either. "I was trying to order takeout from Bennigan's in College Park and it took nine calls to get the number," Ms. McKelvey recalled. "I got an operator and each time I was getting the wrong number and they kept giving me a different wrong number. They even gave me a residence." Because the whole directory assistance system is a lot more complicated than it used to be, many consumers can attest to tales of woe about calling to find a phone number. Maybe they dialed 411 in Manhattan and could not get a listing for the Empire State Building. Or they called 555-1212 in Los Angeles and were asked to spell Sunset Boulevard. Or maybe they were among the thousands of people each day on the East Coast who heard a "We're sorry . . ." recording when they dialed 411 during the recent Verizon Communications strike. But anyone hoping for federal or state regulators to step in and fix directory assistance might find their time better spent reading the phone book. By most official measurements, at least, directory assistance is working pretty well. The Federal Communications Commission, which receives some 1,900 complaints a day from the public, could count only 15 that had anything to do with directory assistance in the six weeks from the beginning of July to the middle of August. And the New York State Public Service Commission, one of the nation's most active state telephone regulators, says that while it has received 8,200 complaints so far this year about phone companies, fewer than three dozen were about directory assistance. It is not that there is no problem. It just may be that directory assistance, when it does not work quite right, is one of those vexations of modern life that seldom rise to the level of formal complaint. "The degree of frustration I think is the issue," said Trip Agerton, who oversees the directory service operators for the BellSouth Corporation, the main phone company in the Southeast. "If I get a wrong phone number I'm frustrated, but it's not like I had a car wreck." So what is a frustrated consumer to do -- short of punching in numbers at random in hopes of hearing a familiar voice? As it turns out, there are actually some patterns of logic to today's bizarre directory assistance bazaar. And while understanding the underlying structure may not guarantee always getting the right number, it just might help a person navigate the network. The place to start is with the industry's glowing report cards. Verizon, the nation's biggest local phone company -- whose unions ended an 18-day strike last week -- says that data compiled before the strike indicates that the average time spent on hold by each of its nearly three million daily directory assistance callers in the area formerly served by Bell Atlantic declined from 5.5 seconds in 1996 to 3.6 seconds this year -- or, collectively, 65 fewer years on hold this year than four years ago. The trouble with the data compiled by big phone companies like Verizon is that it may cover a receding portion of the billions of directory assistance calls that Americans make each year. As more of the telecommunications industry has been deregulated in recent years -- bringing waves of competition in everything from pay phones to home phones, business phones and cell phones -- hundreds of companies around the country are now providing directory assistance. And they are doing so with varying degrees of accuracy and efficiency. After the breakup of AT&T's Bell System in 1984 and before 1996, almost all directory assistance calls were handled by the big local phone companies. Callers would dial 411 or 555-1212 to reach a local operator. And for a long-distance number, they could add an area code to 555-1212 and reach an operator actually in that area. Even now, dialing 411 from home or office, or a pay phone run by the main local phone company, still generally reaches a local operator. But other pay phone providers sometimes farm out directory assistance calls to companies that may cover many cities and states. And some corporations link their office phone systems to a carrier other than the dominant local phone provider, which means a 411 call might connect to an operator across the country who is looking up numbers from a national database. As for long-distance number inquiries, that game changed radically about four years ago when AT&T, the No. 1 long-distance carrier, began intercepting its customers' long-distance calls to 555-1212. So now, a caller in, say, Miami who dials (415) 555-1212 will not reach a Pacific Bell operator in the San Francisco area. Instead, the caller may well be routed to an AT&T subcontractor in Phoenix. "We wanted to run that business in a particular way and any time we wanted to make a change, we had to negotiate with 25 different companies," explained Howard E. McNally, AT&T's senior vice president for consumer services. "We couldn't guarantee a consistent experience by sending those calls to 25 different carriers." The other major long-distance carriers, including WorldCom and Sprint, have done essentially the same thing. The wireless phone industry, meanwhile, operates under its own system. A wireless subscriber who dials 411 is generally connected to a directory assistance operator affiliated with his wireless carrier. Those operators generally use a national database. But no one disputes that the quality of directory assistance service varies from provider to provider. The listings themselves are generally compiled and controlled by the roughly 1,300 individual local phone companies around the country. Big carriers like AT&T and Verizon contract with outside companies to pull together phone listings from the multitude of local phone databases around the nation. To save money, other, smaller companies, may sometimes try to compile listings by scanning phone books, property records or other sources that are less likely to be up to date and reliable. All in all, big phone companies say that directory assistance listings are about 95 percent accurate. But if there are, by some estimates, three billion directory assistance calls in a year (the actual figure may be higher), that adds up to 150 million wrong numbers annually. No wonder Louis S. Richman is restive. "I think it is a really annoying aggravation that when you call for the headquarters number for a major corporation that you get some branch office delivery dock," said Mr. Richman, finance editor of Consumer Reports magazine, in New York. "Or you call for a major hospital in a major city and they never heard of it, or a restaurant that you knew was there a week ago but they can no longer find it or you get a fax number." It may help if callers understand that there are gazetteering limitations with today's patchwork directory assistance. And the limitations begin with four words: United States Postal Service. Telephone listings are almost always governed by the post office address of the residence or business listed. Take Brighton, the town in upstate New York supervised by Ms. Frankel. A letter to her town must be addressed to Rochester; the Postal Service does not recognize Brighton as an official mailing location. Given this, and the fact that there is another community in New York known as Brighton, near Buffalo, it is understandable that a directory assistance operator in Omaha or elsewhere may become a bit confused. But the Postal Service rationale carries little weight with Ms. Frankel. "I would think that the telephone directory services are something that should be upgraded," she said. "The technology is there to do it." It may depend on which company is wielding the technology. Although the main local phone company for most of New York State is Verizon, the local phone company for the Brighton that is near Rochester, and for Rochester itself, is Frontier. In an unscientific test conducted from phones in Manhattan, directory assistance operators for AT&T and Verizon were routinely able to find numbers in Brighton for the Twelve Corners Apothecary, the Bagel Bin Cafe and Ms. Frankel's two home numbers, too. In most cases, though, the operator would note that the listing was in Rochester. And in a second unscientific test, directory assistance calls placed from Rochester and within Brighton, also succeeded without exception in finding those same numbers. The volunteer tester, Jennifer Leonard, president of the Rochester Area Community Foundation, a charitable group, called various directory assistance services to obtain the listings for the apothecary and Ms. Frankel's residence. Ms. Leonard, who lives in Brighton, called a Frontier operator from her office in Rochester, a Frontier operator from a pay phone in Brighton, an operator affiliated with her local phone company, Time Warner Communications, and a Verizon operator from her wireless phone. "All of the operators were located in Rochester and all of them had both numbers and had no problem with the location of Brighton, N.Y.," Ms. Leonard reported. Whether directory assistance in Brighton is as truly bad as Ms. Frankel has found it, or as reasonably good as this informal test might indicate, it is certain that there are many more paths than there used to be to that tantalizingly helpful operator's greeting, "What listing?" With all the variables, it may be that the best hope for a caller - -- besides keeping those keypad fingers crossed -- is to be very, very precise. "In most cases you can find the one you're looking for," said Mr. Agerton at BellSouth, which handles more than 500 million directory assistance calls a year. "But what happens a lot of the time," Mr. Agerton said, "is someone calls and says, 'I want Bill Smith in Roanoke, Va.' And so you pull it up and there's Bill Smith, so you put them through. But then they call back and in fact they wanted William T. Smith on Lovers' Lane."   The New York Times on the Web http://www.nytimes.com /-----------------------------------------------------------------\ Visit NYTimes.com for complete access to the most authoritative news coverage on the Web, updated throughout the day. Become a member today! It's free! http://www.nytimes.com?eta \-----------------------------------------------------------------/ HOW TO ADVERTISE - --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact Alyson Racer at alyson@nytimes.com or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@nytimes.com. Copyright 2000 The New York Times Company - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 14:15:16 -0400 From: "Bryan Bethea" Subject: Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? That all depends your local provider. If you use Qwest (USWest), then I see no reason that you should not be able to change your PIC. However, if you are using another local service provider, whether that be a reseller of Qwest's services or a CLEC, that company may indeed not offer long distance equal access. Bryan Bethea Pensacola, FL - ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Monday, August 28, 2000 11:07 AM Subject: Cannot change my long distance provider? > I don't know if this is the right ng, but here goes: I called my local > phone provider this morning and requested that they change my long > distance provider. The person I spoke with politely told me that "with > SimCom, you cannot change your long distance provider". Is this > possible? > > If this is true, I'm thinking about using 10-10-220 (or similiar codes) > to get around my local provider. Any hidden charges (connection fees) > that I should be aware of? > > Thanks, > Joe > > > Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/ > Before you buy. > -- > The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail > messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. > - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 15:10:49 -0400 From: pete-weiss@psu.edu (Pete Weiss) Subject: Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? >>From what I can tell, not all dialarounds are available from every CO e.g., WxC is not available from 570-298-xxxxx /Pete - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 15:30:55 -0400 From: "Gunnar Liknes" Subject: Telephony and billing Hello, We are looking for a company in the US which can deliver 100 digital subscriber lines to a location in Florida. We also need 1000 numbers and a billing solution enabling us to charge 10-15USD per minute on inncomming calls. I have tried AT&T, Bell south and MCI but I just get put trough to a lot of people who doesnt understand what I want. Gunnar Liknes - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 15:30:54 -0400 From: "Gunnar Liknes" Subject: ISDN and Billing Hello, We are looking for a company in the US which can deliver 100 digital subscriber lines to a location in Florida. We also need 1000 numbers and a billing solution enabling us to charge 10-15USD per minute on inncomming calls. I have tried AT&T, Bell south and MCI but I just get put trough to a lot of people who doesnt understand what I want. Gunnar Liknes - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 18:18:25 -0400 From: sjsobol@NorthShoreTechnologies.net (Steve Sobol) Subject: Re: Cannot change my long distance provider? >>From 'Joel B Levin': >In <8oe1kd$ddf$1@nnrp1.deja.com>, > joemitchellsc@yahoo.com wrote: >}If this is true, I'm thinking about using 10-10-220 (or similiar codes) >}to get around my local provider. Any hidden charges (connection fees) >}that I should be aware of? > >No. Read the fine print for any dial-arounds you do use, though, to make >sure. I haven't used 10-10-220. 10-10-220 is MCI (errr, Worldcom). I wouldn't touch them. - -- North Shore Technologies, Cleveland, OH http://NorthShoreTechnologies.net Steve Sobol, BOFH - President, Chief Website Architect and Janitor Linux Instructor, PC/LAN Program, Natl. Institute of Technology, Akron, OH sjsobol@NorthShoreTechnologies.net - 888.480.4NET - 216.619.2NET - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ Date: 28 Aug 2000 18:21:34 -0400 From: sjsobol@NorthShoreTechnologies.net (Steve Sobol) Subject: Re: CWA Operating verizonREALLYsucks Web Site >>From 'Joel B Levin': >In <8oc547$rfo$1@panix5.panix.com>, > dannyb@panix.com (danny burstein) wrote: >}danny 'does "2600" have any telco history meaning?' burstein > >You're kidding, right? I'd like to know its significance, myself. - -- North Shore Technologies, Cleveland, OH http://NorthShoreTechnologies.net Steve Sobol, BOFH - President, Chief Website Architect and Janitor Linux Instructor, PC/LAN Program, Natl. Institute of Technology, Akron, OH sjsobol@NorthShoreTechnologies.net - 888.480.4NET - 216.619.2NET - -- The Telecom Digest is currently robomoderated. Please mail messages to editor@telecom-digest.org. ------------------------------ End of Telecom Digest V2000 #36 *******************************