Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!henry.jpl.nasa.gov!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!gryphon!vector!chinacat!telecom-gateway From: urlichs@smurf.ira.uka.de (Matthias Urlichs) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Phone Rates (was Re: Telephone Network in East Germany) Message-ID: Date: 25 Nov 89 20:48:46 GMT Sender: news@chinacat.Lonestar.ORG Reply-To: Matthias Urlichs Organization: University of Karlsruhe, FRG Lines: 27 Approved: telecom-request@chinacat.lonestar.org X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 532, message 6 of 10 In comp.dcom.telecom motcid!horwath%cell.mot.COM@uunet.uu.net (George Horwath) writes: < [ calling the US from East Germany ] After the call, the operator called < back with the charges which I had to pay immediately. It was around < 35(!) East German marks for a 25 minute call. At the official exchange < rate (1 East German mark = 1 West German mark) that was roughly $18! (The inofficial rate is about 1:10 now, which makes that $1.80.) So what? If you had called from West Germany, you could have dialled direct, the line would have been somewhat better, and you would have paid DM 84 for these 25 minutes, or about $40. Which tells you something about the (West) German Bundespost. Side remark: Suppose it's 11:00 here in Karlsruhe, Germany. What is cheaper: Call me from Munich (200 miles) or San Francisco (a whole lot of miles)? You guessed right; the intra-German call will be about $28/hour. :-( :-( :-( Next time I have to call someone in the US, I'll do it from East Germany, that way it will be cheaper. ;-) ) Matthias Urlichs, Humboldtstrasse 7, 7500 Karlsruhe 1, FRG urlichs@smurf.ira.uka.de