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From: David Schanen <mtv@milton.u.washington.edu>
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Interesting use of 900 Service
Message-ID: <5418@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 20 Mar 90 18:56:00 GMT
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Reply-To: David Schanen <mtv@milton.u.washington.edu>
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 189, Message 5 of 10


In article <5370@accuvax.nwu.edu> wmartin@stl-06sima.army.mil (Will Martin)
writes:

>If they just don't want to be bothered, I could understand a high fee
>for the first minute. But a zero fee for the first minute with some
>fee thereafter is hard to comprehend, unless this is coupled with a
>method for the tech-assistance folks to turn off the fee when they
>recognize a valid problem or decide the time they are spending is
>worthwhile to the company. Is that an available option for 900 calls -- 
>that the callee has a button they can push that tells the telco
>"this call is free to the caller"?

    Being a former representaive for ATT/USWEST/Mountain Bell (during
divestiture) I'll tell what I know about 900 numbers.

    When I worked there, 900 sevice was being billed as single-number
service, or an alternative to having 2 800 lines (one for intra and
one for inter state)

    It also had a vote taking feature whereby you could charge the
customer for a vote that they cast.  (I thought this would be great
for demographics, you could see who was willing to part with a buck
for little in return.)

    How all these Phone Sex etc... $5-$30 per call things got started,
I don't know. As for Will's question I doubt very much that ATT or
anyone else who sells 900 service would let the customers turn off and
on their rates.

	-Dave