Bell Atlantic ISDN Pricing Alert

[James Love <love@tap.org>]

INFO-POLICY-NOTES/subscriptions from listproc@essential.org

June 26, 1996
ISDN pricing in Bell Atlantic States

-    CPT sets up Web page for Bell Atlantic Consumers at:

     http://www.essential.org/cpt/isdn/bellnews.html

-    Maryland Accepts comments on ISDN rates by electronic
     mail (ISDN@psc.state.md.us) and sets public hearing for
     July 3.  Additional details about battles in other
     Bell Atlantic States.

Bell Atlantic consumers in Maryland, New Jersey, 
Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia have an 
opportunity to fight for lower residential ISDN tariffs, if 
you act swiftly.  [Virginia already has an open docket on 
residential ISDN pricing, and filings in West Virginia are 
expected soon].

In Maryland, the Public Service Commission (PSC) has agreed 
to accept comments on the issue by electronic mail, at: 
ISDN@psc.state.md.us.  Maryland is also giving the public an 
opportunity to be heard at a public hearing on July 3.  
Commissions in NJ, PA and DC have declined to provide a 
public hearing on the tariffs, or to accept comments by 
electronic mail, but they will accept written comments.  CPT 
has set up a Bell Atlantic ISDN Action page on the Web with 
information about the proceedings at:
 
    http://www.essential.org/cpt/isdn/bellnews.html

BACKGROUND

Briefly, Bell Atlantic (BA) is asking for tariffs which are 
based upon the amount of time that you use the ISDN 
connection, and this can add up.  A "BRI" ISDN line gives 
you two 64 Kbps "B" channels, which can be "bonded" into a 
fast 128 Kbps connection (referred to as 2B).  You can also 
use BRI ISDN as two separate voice or fax lines, with 
multiple telephone numbers, or the line can be dynamically 
configured on the fly.

BA is asking for 2 cents per minute (per B channel)from 7 am 
to 7 pm, or 1 cent per minute from 7 pm to 7 am.  If you use 
the faster 128 Kbps connection (isn't' the point of ISDN to 
have a faster connection?), it would cost from $2.40 to 
$1.20 per hour to make a local call to your Internet service 
provider (ISP).

BA also offers "callpack" options, where the consumer can 
pre-purchase blocks of time at large discounts.  For 
example, one could buy the 140 hours callpack for $60 per 
month.  This would allow a user to have 70 hours at 128 Kbps 
(or 140 hours at 64 Kpbs).  But you have to pay for the time 
even if you don't use it, and if you go over, you are stuck 
with the hefty per-minute fees.  The BA flat rate option is 
a whopping $249 per month, the most expensive in the United 
States.

The BA tariffs are not inevitable.  Quite a few states have 
adopted much lower residential ISDN tariffs.  Highly 
relevant is the recent decision by the Delaware PSC 
approving a flat rate residential ISDN tariff of $28.02, 
about $221 less than the rate requested by Bell Atlantic.  

In Arkansas, the Northern Arkansas Telephone Company charges 
only $17.90 per month, flat rate, for residential ISDN 
service. In California, the Roseville Telephone Company 
charges $29.50 for residential ISDN. Four of the five 
Midwest states served by Ameritech offer ISDN at a little 
more than twice the POTS rate with no per minute charges 
(Illinois $28.05 to $34.50, Ohio $32.20, Michigan $33.51, 
and Wisconsin $30.90). In Tennessee, BellSouth charges $25 
to $29 for flat rate ISDN. In New Mexico, the Commission 
recently approved a $40 flat rate.

You can get a better Bell Atlantic ISDN tariff if you fight 
now!  The most important immediate thing is to get comments 
into the record in opposition to the BA filing, and to ask 
for lower rates.  It is also helpful to call up the 
Commission in your state and talk to the staff person who is 
assigned to the issue.


In addition to the Bell Atlantic ISDN Action page 
(http://www.essential.org/cpt/isdn/bellnews.html), 
you might find these links helpful. 

CPT's ISDN pricing talking points:

    http://www.essential.org/cpt/isdn/isdntalk.html

Fred Goldstein's ISDN pricing talking points.

    http://www.essential.org/cpt/isdn/fred.txt


     James Love (love@tap.org/202-387-8030
     Consumer Project on Technology
     http://www.essential.org/cpt

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