Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!ginosko!usc!rutgers!netsys!vector!telecom-gateway From: wnp@attctc.dallas.tx.us (Wolf Paul) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Why DA Costs Should Be Spread Among All Subscribers Message-ID: Date: 9 Sep 89 10:59:40 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Reply-To: wnp@attctc.dallas.tx.us Organization: The Unix(R) Connection BBS, Dallas, Tx Lines: 40 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 362, message 4 of 8 In article phil@goldhill.com writes: >X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 353, message 1 of 9 >> Unfortunately, if a phone company says "Well, XYZ Corp is abusing DA, so >> I'm going to charge XYZ Corp $5 a pop for DA," the next thing that >> happens is XYZ Corp goes to the PUC, the FCC, court, and anywhere else >> their lawyers can think of, and blasts the phone company for >> discriminatory pricing. And most likely wins, too -- phone companies, >> being common carriers, aren't really allowed to charge customer A a >> certain rate and customer B another rate for the *exact* same service. > >Is there a distinction between "common carriers" and "utilities" like >the electric and gas companies? I was under the belief that electric >companies charge differing rates depending upon consumption, when the >consumption occured, etc... I guess it depends on the way it is phrased (isn't that usually the case when it comes to legal matters ? :-) ?). The telco wouldn't say, "XYZ Corp is abusing DA, so we'll charge them more", rather it would say, "Everyone gets that many calls to DA per $100 in phone charges; every call to DA beyond that is $.25", or whatever. In that case they are not charging different parties different rates for the same service, but rather, everyone's call volume determines their rates. It is the singling out of **specific** customers for different treatment which is prohibited to common carriers, not the establishment of different service levels or rate classes applicable to all customers -- we already have some of that, i.e. residential and business rates, etc. The criteria for each such level or class may need to be approved by the PUC, but the principle is already well established. Wolf Paul -- Wolf N. Paul * 3387 Sam Rayburn Run * Carrollton TX 75007 * (214) 306-9101 UUCP: {texbell, attctc, dalsqnt}!dcs!wnp DOMAIN: wnp@attctc.dallas.tx.us or wnp%dcs@texbell.swbt.com NOTICE: As of July 3, 1989, "killer" has become "attctc".