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From: chris@com50.c2s.mn.org (Chris Johnson)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Best and Worst (was: Labor Day, 1990)
Message-ID: <12001@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 10 Sep 90 22:40:57 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 635, Message 6 of 13


In article <11911@accuvax.nwu.edu> gutierre@nsipo.nasa.gov writes:
X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 631, Message 5 of 7

>> I've been to, and used the phone system in, about 40 countries in the
>> last two years.

>> The Best:  USA, Hong Kong, Singapore
>> The Worst:  India, Vietnam, Indonesia

>> My biggest complaint with USA phone system right now is that it's very
>> hostile to outsiders.  The multitude of long distance companies is
>> confusing to someone used to the telephone monopolies of other
>> countries, and there is no provision for non-subscribers to pay for
>> phone calls.  AT&T won't give a credit card to someone who has no
>> phone.

Well, maybe you'd be in trouble on just any street corner, but in all
the traveling I've done in the last year or so, I've noticed that
there are credit card operated telephones in all the airports and most
major hotels.  These will take VISA/Mastercharge/American Express/etc.
etc. so at least if one has one major credit card, and are not stuck
in Podunk, Iowa, then you could probably make a toll call to just
about anywhere.

Of course, there is tremendous room for improvement for the average
private consumer of telephone service.  I doubt that any other country
provides the myriad of telephone options to businesses that are
available in the U.S.


   ...Chris Johnson          chris@c2s.mn.org   ..uunet!bungia!com50!chris
 Com Squared Systems, Inc.   St. Paul, MN USA   +1 612 452 9522