Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!bellcore!texbell!killer!vector!telecom-gateway From: anon@nowhere.NADA Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: Re: Cellular service Message-ID: Date: 21 Mar 89 21:53:55 GMT Sender: news@vector.UUCP Reply-To: brian@cbw1.UMD.EDU (Brian Cuthie) Organization: CBW, Columbia, MD 21046 Lines: 38 Approved: telecom-request@vector.uucp X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.uucp X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 104, message 5 of 7 In article decvax!decwrl!apple!zygot!john @ucbvax.berkeley.edu (John Higdon) writes: >X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 85, message 3 of 7 >With all of the hoopla that PacTel Cellular is generating over its >installation of its "new digital equipment", some questions must be >... >PacTel Cellular may be the only cellular operator in the country that >charges the moment you hit the s(p)end button, whether the call is >answered or not. This means you are charged for busys, no answers, >... >Are there any other systems in the country that are this slimy? >John Higdon Actually, I was pretty sure that the Cellular One Service in the Baltimore/Washington are (my home area) was the only system that *did not* charge from the second you pressed the send key. Since the system here was the Motorola test and development system (and the first non-wireline system ever) I was sure they were the only ones lucky enough to get answer supervision. As it is, the BAMS (Bell Atlantic Mobil Systems) service is just as you described in this area. That is, you get charged for everytime you hit send. One interesting note, Cell One charges $0.10 per call as a "Land line access charge" whereas BAMS does not. Cell One claims thay are only passing this charge along from the phone company (Bell Atlantic). BAMS says they just don't charge it because they *are* the phone company. Sounds a little fishy to me... -brian -- Brian D. Cuthie uunet!umbc3!cbw1!brian Columbia, MD brian@umbc3.umbc.edu