“Putting Assistance back into Directory Assistance”
ARTICLES |
Return to List | Printer Friendly View
ARTICLES
Article ID:0003 Publish Date:4/15/2001
DOES ANYONE NOTICE???
Have you taken a close look at your phone bill lately? Do you have any idea what you are paying for Directory Assistance charges? While even the slightest increase in gasoline prices seems to cause a public outcry, your LECs and IXCs seem to be able to bump up your DA charges, at a double digit pace, and no one even seems to notice! |
The two major IXCs, AT&T; and MCI, quietly raised their standard rate for long distance DA late last year from $1.49/call to $1.99/call. A 25% increase! It seems to have been absorbed, virtually unnoticed, by many businesses. And now take a look at what the LECs are doing. It used to be Ameritech held the honors as the most expensive, with a flat $0.95/call rate for both local and NDA 411 calling, in Illinois and Wisconsin. But they have quickly lost that position to Qwest, who is raising DA tariffs in the former US West territory at an alarming rate. Colorado was the first to go, moving to a flat rate of $1.25/call; keep in mind, as recently as a year ago local 411 was just 40¢ /call! Now it appears Southern Idaho has gone through at a flat rate of $1.25/call also. In addition, Arizona is jumping to $0.85 from $0.47, Utah to $0.95 from $0.50, South Dakota to $0.95 from just $0.40. And Washington, which was already pricey at $0.85/call, has jumped to $0.95. |
Everyone would be complaining if their gasoline cost went up by 25% to 50% or more. But no one seems to be too phased by the jump in their DA costs. And considering the billions of calls that are made every year, this is a big revenue producer for these companies. |
If you would like to find out more on what you are paying and how you might be able to keep these costs under control, we have a solution for you. Call me at 215.793.4880 or email me at [email protected]. |
Please Contact Us for more information.