[NYT] Bell-South charging access fees for phone-over-Internet
INTERNET FEES CHARGED [New York Times, C5.] Ever since April, when the Federal Communications Commission reported to Congress that telephone calls made from one phone to another using the Internet could become subject to network access fees, the industry has been waiting for a test case. BellSouth has now provided the test. The company has written to a half-dozen Internet service providers in its region saying that in November, BellSouth will start levying access fees for voice conversations the Internet companies transmit. The fees are the same sort that local phone companies like BellSouth charge to AT&T and MCI for connecting calls to the local network. Internet traffic has never been subject to such fees. But the Internet telephony companies are not ready to give in. In some ways, BellSouth's move may be largely symbolic, since most Internet voice traffic so far involves attempts to avoid the high charges for international long-distance calls, in which local access fees are a relatively minor part of the price. And yet, BellSouth is trying to close what many in the telephone industry have seen as a loophole in networking pricing regulations. Thanks! Bill Bill Stewart, bill.stewart@pobox.com PGP Fingerprint D454 E202 CBC8 40BF 3C85 B884 0ABE 4639
At 1:46 PM -0400 on 9/14/98, bill.stewart@pobox.com wrote:
The company has written to a half-dozen Internet service providers in its region saying that in November, BellSouth will start levying access fees for voice conversations the Internet companies transmit.
Bingo. A hole big enough to drive cryptography through...
Crank up your PGPFones, folks.
Or, maybe we just need ipsec?
Cheers,
Bob Hettinga
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Robert A. Hettinga
I know I'm new here, so pardon the long post if you will, but this came to my attention... Jesse Berst says: This is another in my occasional series about Natural Born Killers (NBKs) -- products, services or sites with the genetic potential to become a "killer application." An NBK is not a recommendation to buy. Or even, as in the case of Alexa, a recommendation to use a free product. An NBK nomination is a recommendation to study a product for the good ideas it contains. And Alexa stuffs a lot of good ideas into a small toolbar that appears at the bottom of your browser. This toolbar links back to the company's massive database, which archives most public Web sites. It also tracks anonymous usage patterns, so it can analyze what people really do on the Web. (This is handy because we really need to know what people do on the Web. For Gosh sakes, if we didn't know what you were doing, that'd be downright depressing! Then how could we pigeonhole you and market to you and we all know, the Web won't be successful without some good, clean, marketing!) The toolbar goes along with you as you surf, (nothing makes me more comfortable than to have a nice tracking device stapled in my flanks) offering site statistics and a variety of helpful tools. For instance, if you get a File Not Found error, you can retrieve a previous version of the page from the Alexa archive. You can see site ratings from other Alexa users (and vote on sites yourself). You even get a direct link to a Web-based dictionary, thesaurus and encyclopedia. (Compromise your right to privacy and we'll give you chump-change-virtual-trinkets!) PC Magazine says "those with more Internet savvy will get the most out of Alexa." I would go even further. Alexa is less valuable to mainstream users -- it's intended audience -- than it is to Internet insiders like you. I say that because of three things you can get from Alexa: (1 An optional shoulder-mounted Duo-Cam(r) which simultaneously watches your monitor and tracks retinal placement so marketers will REALLY know what you're looking at: 2, A FREE newsletter with important messages from our sponsors who you have indicated interest in by allowing your retina to focus on their banner ad .gif: and 3, AnalProbe Y2k(tm) that monitors, in conjunction with the Duo-Cam(r), your sphincter tightness when certain images are placed on your monitor. This device has been known to become addictive to certain members of the Log-Cabin-Republican party and certain NOW founding members, so extended use is recommended only with caution. However, the data we are able to collect has proven to be 100% accurate shit, so our sponsors feel it is a beneficial device.)
Indirectly, I am already being charged a tax for internet service: this month AT&T added a "Universal Connectivity Charge" for a "Universal Service Fund" which "not only helps provide affordable phone service but also gives schools and libraries access to the internet." It's only $1.88 right now, just a wedge . . . .. Blanc
participants (4)
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bill.stewart＠pobox.com -
Blanc -
Robert Hettinga -
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