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- Subject: Bell Canada to File Pay-per-Local-Call Rates
- Date: Mon May 22 02:09:36 1995
-
- [from Bell News, 15 May 95 - this is Bell Canada's version of events]
-
- Bell to file usage-based pricing for business local calling.
-
- Bell will move one step closer to a pay-as-you-use pricing structure
- for business local calling.
-
- On May 31, we will ask the CRTC to approve prices for this new
- structure, which would see business customers pay a reduced, flat
- monthly price to access the local network, plus per-minute usage
- charges, based on distance, for certain outgoing calls, starting July
- 1, 1997.
-
- Pay-per-use continues our move toward cost-based pricing. The need for
- price restructuring became clear following a September 1994 decision
- by the CRTC to introduce competition to the local calling environment.
- In April of this year, we filed a plan to restructure prices for
- *access* to the local network so that they will align more closely
- with costs. Pay-per-use will better reflect the costs of *usage* -
- that is, the number of calls customers actually make.
-
- Usage-sensitive pricing emphasizes fairness for business customers
- because they will only pay for the local calls they make. Customers
- who make many calls will pay more, while those who make fewer calls
- will pay less. The proposed pricing will not generate additional
- revenues for the company.
-
- Pay-per-use will also provide a platform for Bell's vision of local
- services, which would see customers enjoy greater choice and flexibility
- in the kinds of services they receive and the way they pay for them.
-
- Although usage pricing for business is the norm in many other
- countries, such as the U.S. and UK., it will represent a major change
- for our customers. As a result, it will be critical that Bell
- employees provide on-going support in responding to customer questions
- and concerns throughout the transition to usage pricing.
-
- "Employees in Sales, the Business Offices, and many other areas of
- the company will play a key role in the transition to this new
- way of pricing," says Raymond Provencher, director, Local Marketing.
-
- "We will have to work closely with our business customers, and
- provide them with the tools and solutions to manage the change."
-
- Look for in-depth coverage on this filing in upcoming issues of
- Bell News.
-
- -------
-
- [sidebar]
-
- What business will NOT pay for:
-
- * incoming calls;
- * long distance calls;
- * calls made within customer's system;
- * calls to 911;
- * directory assistance (411);
- * Bell operator (0);
- * Bell repair (611);
- * relay services for the hearing impaired (711).
-
- What business will pay for:
-
- * all other outbound local calls.
-
-
- Fidonet : Dave Leibold 1:250/730
- Internet: Dave.Leibold@superctl.tor250.org
-
-
- [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: I think they are making a big mistake by
- not requiring businesses to pay for calls to Directory Assistance. Many
- large businesses are big abusers of this service. There will usually be
- hundreds of copies of the telephone directory delivered to a large corp-
- oration each year, yet very few employees ever seem to have a copy at
- their desk; it is always easier to dial 411. Then also, businesses which
- rely on very accurate, up-to-date records of how to reach their customers
- such as credit services, banks, etc *never* use the paper directory,
- instead preferring the more accurate operator records. One reason all of
- us here in Ameritech territory have paid for Directory Assistance calls
- for many years now was because of the way businesses abused it. PAT]
-
-