Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxn!ihnp4!ucbvax!telecom From: lars@ACC-SB-UNIX.ARPA (Lars Poulsen) Newsgroups: mod.telecom Subject: Touch-Tone (tm) Line Charges Message-ID: <8601090556.AA03648@ACC-SB-UNIX.ARPA> Date: Thu, 9-Jan-86 00:56:23 EST Article-I.D.: ACC-SB-U.8601090556.AA03648 Posted: Thu Jan 9 00:56:23 1986 Date-Received: Fri, 10-Jan-86 07:32:01 EST Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Organization: The ARPA Internet Lines: 25 Approved: telecom@mit-xx.arpa I am appalled that NYNEX (?) would charge $5.- per month. GTE here (Santa Barbara, CA) charges $1.-/month, and I am a bit upset about that. I figured that I wouldn't pay it, since they had no means of denying me tone service anyway, so I carefully registered the pulse-dialing equivalents of whatever tone instruments I had, until the last time I moved when they didn't even ask me any more what instruments I had. Then last week, I got a letter saying that on January 21st, they'd install new equipment to deny tone service to lines that didn't pay for it, and I could "upgrade" my line "for free" now (i.e. no service charge, just an increased monthly charge) or if I asked for the upgrade after Jan 21st, they'd charge $15 for the upgrade. So I crumbled and let them get away with it. Question: I know that it's a fraud in the sense that not only does it not cost them extra to provide tone service (in fact it saves them money, as Larry Lippman pointed out) (and they really oughta charge for PULSE service) but I'm sure it will - given the present equipment - actually COST them to DENY tone service. But does the facility to deny tone service actually exist ? Just wondering .... Lars Poulsen @ Advanced Computer Communications