New Jersey

From: pmokover@ix.netcom.com (Peter Mokover)
Newsgroups: dc.general,comp.dcom.isdn
Subject: Re: residential ISDN rates
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 1996 04:17:14 GMT

alby@empire.org (Albatross) wrote:
>The Maryland OPC is interested in hearing from ratepayers regarding this issue.  
>They will also forward comments to the PSC. 

Anyone in New Jersey wanting to write about the same issue should write
ASAP to:

James Nappi
Secretary, Board of Public Utilities
2 Gateway Center
Newark, NJ 07102

and

Ms. Blossom Peretz
Division of Ratepayer Advocate
31 Clinton Street
Newark, NJ 07102



From: Linda Cook  cook@castle.com    http://www.castle.net/~cook
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.isdn
Subject: Bell Atlantic NJ - ISDN Prices Gouge Customers
Date: 9 Nov 1995 02:29:34 GMT
Organization: The Castle Network, Internet Accounts 908 548-8881.

Based on today's Star Ledger (11/8), Bell Atlantic is finally about to
offer ISDN service to residential service.  However, there is a major
problem, they want a $125 hook up fee, monthly charges ranging from
$19.50 to $24.75 (my current service costs $10.94), and worst of all
they want to charge one to four cents a minute depending on bandwidth
and time of day.

Right now I can make local calls to other lines in my local calling
area and I pay no usage fees.  Bell Atlantic is trying to stop the
necessary and longstanding tradition of not charging usage fees on
local calls.

Hardly a difference, if any, exists between making a local call using
my current basic service compared to placing a call with ISDN service.
Bell Atlantic connects two lines through a digital switch.  The
switches today transmit the signal digitally and under ISDN they
transmit the signal digitally.  Bell Atlantic could possibly determine
nothing more than minimal cost differences between calls over ISDN, and
calls over normal basic service.  Nevertheless, Bell Atlantic wants to
charge outrageous usage fees ranging from one to four cents per minute
for these minimal cost differences.

Bell Atlantic has been trying for years, before ISDN service even
existed, to charge usage fees on Local  Residential Service.

Please write to the NJ Regulatory Commissioners to demand that they
reject Bell Atlantic's outrageous filing.  The address is:

                 Board of Regulatory Commissioners
                 Two Gateway Center
                 Newark, N.J.  07102

Tell them to order Bell Atlantic to resubmit their ISDN service request
and force them to propose a service for ISDN with no usage charges for
calls within the local calling area.

From: Joe Plescia                             
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.isdn
Subject: Bell Atlantic ...ISDN   ==READ THIS===
Date: 11 Nov 1995 01:33:31 GMT
Lines: 51
Message-ID: <480uhb$b77@gti.gti.net>

Here is the names of people to write and call if you
are interested in having a voice in the ISDN issue.

Here is a copy of a note from Peter....
***********************************************************************************
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities is about to consider Bell
Atlantic's proposed residential ISDN tariff.

If you have any comments on it, please send your comments in a letter
to:

Mr. James Nappi
Secretary,
Board of Public Utilities
Two Gateway Center
Newark, NJ 07102

Send a copy of your letter to:

Ms. Blossom Peretz
Division of Ratepayer Advocate
31 Clinton St
Newark, NJ 07102

The Board is interested in hearing comments on this matter from
interested members of the public.  They have assured me that letters
will be read and considered.

Largely as a result of letters from the public, the Boards in other
Bell Atlantic states have recently rejected all or part of BA's
proposed residential ISDN rates and told them to come back with a more
"consumer friendly" plan.

You can get more information about this at: 
http://www.essential.org/cpt

Peter Mokover
======================================================================

Hope this helps....
Joe Plescia

__________________________________
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From: fgoldstein@bbn.com (Fred R. Goldstein)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.isdn
Subject: Re: Bell Atlantic NJ - ISDN Prices Gouge Customers
Date: 13 Nov 1995 05:38:58 GMT

In article <4869s0$8us@news-e1a.megaweb.com>, rucom@gnn.com says...

>It seems to me that the pricing issue could be compromised by setting
>metered rates for business hours only, and no usage fees for evenings
>and weekends.  This would prevent inefficient use of bandwidth during
>the hours when bandwidth usage peaks, while making residential ISDN
>competitive enough to be considered by the mass market. 

In a lot of COs, bandwidth peaks in the evening.  Anyway, a far better
idea is to simply define "flat rate" in terms that provide some
incentive to hang up.  While there's a lot of complaining here from
Utah, I don't disagree with USWest's overall approach of allowing
200 hours of monthly usage for a given rate, with genuine flat rate
set way higher.  More than 200 hours a month becomes a "semi-permanent"
circuit, a form of leased line that some telcos in Europe actively
sell.  

Not that USWest's rates are sensible; they set the price of 200 hours
in Utah just ABOVE the price of Frame Relay, which seems to be the
only data service they give a tinker's dam about.  And the overage is
10 cents a minute, again an order of magnitude too high.

Bell Awful, on the other hand, is not even offering that much.
-- 
Fred R. Goldstein   k1io   fgoldstein@bbn.com   +1 617 873 3850
Opinions are mine alone; sharing requires permission.