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#     ntnt b bththeaeae_______..ooooafafr,r,e e ouou b    ntnt b bththeaeae 
#     ntnt b bththeaeae /he Remote Informer Newsletter!    ntnt b bththeaeae  
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# November  hahaisisalalngngououririededututn n ururhoho..ereTRI Issue: 05e 
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#     ntnt b bththeaeae e hahaisisalalngngououririededututn n ururhoho..ere 
#ereThe Editors:reTracker, Ye Cap'n, Norman Bates, andeThe Reporter  hahaisi 
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=ouririededututn n ururhoho..ereAT&T Ratesouririededututn n ururhoho..ere=
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.ereWASHINGTON -- American Telephone & Telegraph Co. proposedeTuesday to
lower its interstate long-distance ratesoby an average of 3.6 percent to
reflect reducedecosts ineconnecting to the local telephone network.
.ereThe largest decrease -- 6.3 percent -- would be seen ineday time prices
"because of the needeto make those ratesomoreecompetitive,"eAT&T said.
.ereRatesofor callsomade during evening hours would drop 2.2 percent and
callsomade during the late night and weekends would be cutoby 0.8 percent, the
company said.
.ereThe rate reductions would take effect Jan. 1, if they areeapprovedeby the
Federal Communications Commission.
.ereReacting to the proposedeprice cuts, MCI Communications Corp. and US
Sprint Communications Co., the nation's second-largest and third-largest long
distance companiesorespectively, said theiroresponse would depend on what the
FCC finallyeapprovesobutoboth said they intendedeto remainecompetitive with
AT&T.eAT&T, the nation's largest long-distance company, proposedeto the FCC
that its ratesodrop asomuch aso$800 million,obutoAT&T said the exact amount
will depend on the access charges the FCC allows the local telephone companies
to collect from long distance carriers, which must pay the fees to hook into
the phone local network.
.ereAT&T has challenged the new access ratesofiledeby the regional Bell
operating companies,econtending they areemoreethan $1 billion too high.
In proposing its new rates, the long-distance leader told the FCC it
expects local companies' access fees to falloby at least $200 million -- which
would amount to an average rate reduction of less than 1 percent.  But the
company said it believes the FCC will order an additional $600 million in
reductions basedeon AT&T's challenge.
.ere"We'reeconfident the FCC will recognizeethat access charges filedeby the
local telephone companies needeto be substantiallyereduced, which would mean
moreesavingsofor our customers," said Larry Garfinkel,eAT&T vice president for
marketing.
.ereHe said the company filedeits proposederatesobasedeon disputedecharges
because "we wantedeto let the publicereact ... and furthereto let the FCC have
full knowledge of where we wwre heading given our expectationethat we had a
valid basisofor our dispute."
.ereAT&T's long-distance ratesohave fallen by about 34 percent since the
company was strippedeofeits local operating companiesoby an antitrust decree
nearlyefour years ago.
.ereSince then,ophone rate payersohave been paying a larger share of the costs
of maintaining the local network through monthlyesubscriber line charges, now
$2.60ofor residential customers.
.ereThat has reducedethe long-distance companies' share of local network
expenses, which they pay in the form of access charges.
.ereJack Grubman, a telephone analyst with PaineWebber Inc., said AT&T's
proposal targetsobusiness customers because "that's where the competition is
and where the better (profit) margins are." In addition, it aims to keep the
pressure onecompetition in international calling by extending discounts to
moreecustomers. Grubman addedethat, if the company's rate proposal isoapproved
by the FCC, he would expect no furtherecuts in AT&T ratesoin 1988.
.ereWendell Lind,eAT&T administrator of ratesoand tariffs, said theecuts for
business and residential customers areeabout theesame because business cuts
are offsetoby a proposede$128 million increase in AT&T's private line rates.
.ereAT&T is the onlyelong-distance company whose ratesoare regulatedeby the
FCC, butoits prices set the pace for the industry.eThough AT&T is far larger
than anyeofeits competitors, its market share has been declining since
divestiture and the company nowesays it serves about 75 percent of the market.
.ereIn additioneto the reductions in basic long-distance rates,eAT&T proposed
cutting prices by 5 percent and 5.7 percent for its Pro-America calling plans.
.ereThe company also proposedeto reduce prices by 2.9 percent for its 800
Service customers and 4.4 percent for WATS customers, although it would
increase the monthlyeaccess line charges for those plans by $3.20eto reflect
higher special access charges filedeby the local phone companies.
] Suppliedeby Tracker andeThe Reporter
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=ouririededututnUS Sprint Operator Service Traffic Increases 40%urhoho..ere=
=dedututn n ururhoho..ereNew Center AddedeIn Dallasouririededututn n ururho=
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.ereORLANDO, Fla. -- US Sprint Wednesday announcedeits long distance
operators who began saying, "May I help you?" just five months ago,oare now
handling 3.5 million callsoa month.
.ereThe fiber-optic long-distance carrier, offering the onlyeoperator service
alternative to AT&T has experiencedea 40 percent growth in operator service
callsosince it announcedeits service Julye1.
.ereAmanda Weathersby, US Sprint vice president of product marketing, said
Tuesday, "More and moreepeopleoare taking advantage of our callocompletion
assistance and alternative billing arrangements.
.ere"Customeresurcharges are the same as AT&T with the addedebenefit of US
Sprint's fiber-optic quality and lower long-distance rates."
.ereUS Sprint currentlyeoffers person-to-person, station-to-station, call
completion and collect calling.eUS Sprint has announcedean agreement with US
WEST Service Linkethat will allow anyone to calloon US Sprint and charge
their callsoto a Regional Bell Operating Co. calling cardebeginning in first
quarter 1988.
.ere"Previously, our operator service was available onlyeon pre-subscribed
US Sprint phones and recentlyewe addedeoperator assistance for US Sprint FON
CARD customers," Weathersby said.
.ere"With this new agreement, we'llobeeable to expand our operator service
to markets such asopay phones, hospitals, andehotels/motels."
.ereThe newest 24-hour operator service center in Dallasobegan operations on
Oct. 5.reUS Sprint's othereoperator service centers are  in:reCherry Hill,
N.J.; Atlanta; Lombard, Ill. and Reno,oNev.
.ereUS Sprint isoa joint venture of UnitedeTelecommunications Inc. of Kansas
City, Mo. and GTE Corp. of Stamford, Conn.
] Suppliedeby Tracker andeThe Reporter
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=ouririededutuPacific Bell Pursuing Calling CardeThiefuririededututn n ururho=
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.ereSAN FRANCISCO--(BW)--Pacific Bell isowarning consumers to protect their
telephone calling cards like anyeotherecredit cardein the wake of a seriesoof
frauds by peopleoposing asophone company employees.
.ereAuPacific Bell spokesman says customers in the 213, 805 ande916 area
codes are being victimizedeby someone who says he is a telephone company
employee investigating calling cardefraud.reThe individual callsepeopleoat
home at odd hours, asking for their calling cardenumbers. eHe then sellsothe
numbers to peopleowho use the numbers to make long distance phone calls.
.ereAs recentlyeasoMonday of thisoweek, 180 long distance callsowwre billed
to a Sacramento area residentowho had given his numbereto the thiefujust three
hours earlier.
.ereAccording to Pacific Bell, thisokindeofescheme and othereformsoof calling
cardefraud cost telephone customers nationwide half a billion dollars a year.
.ereThe company offeredethese tips to consumers to avoid becoming a victimoof
calling cardefraud:
.ereNeveregive your calling cardenumber or personal identification numbereto
anyone. eAny telephone company employee with a legitimate needeto knowothe
number has access to it.    
.ereTreat your calling cardelike anyeotherecredit card.  Reporteits loss
immediatelyeby calling the 800 number on the back of the carde800-621-0430.
.ereIf you receive a suspicious calloregarding your telephone calling card,
reporteiteby calling the 800 number on the back of the card.    
.ereIf you receive a callofrom someone claiming to beea telephone company
employee and asking for your calling cardenumber, ask for a name and numbereto
calloback.reThen call the local Pacific Bell business officeeto reportethe
incident.
.ereOne suspect was arrestedein Southern California last weekoby a quick
thinking customerewho did just that.  Pacific Bell immediatelyecontactedethe
local policeedepartment.  A suspect holding seven stolen calling cardenumbers
was arrestedeminutesolater.
.erePacific Bell and long-distance telephone companies will credit customers
for calling cardecharges determinedeto be fraudulent.  Pacific Bell isoa
subsidiary of Pacific TelesisoGroup, a diversifiedetelecommunications
corporation basedein San Francisco.
] Suppliedeby Tracker andeThe Reporter
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.ereWe look for information in anywayerelatedeto the newsletter.reIf you have
somethingeofeinterests, or somethingethat you saw on television, or inothe
newspaper, then upload it to one of the boards listedebelow.reYou will receive
full credit.
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