covert@covert.enet.dec.com (John R. Covert 25-Sep-1989 0807) (09/25/89)
Fr: Greg Monti
Dt: 23 September 1989
Re: Equal Access Pay Phones
The following were tried from a Bell Atlantic (C&P of Virginia) controlled pay
phone in an equal access area. The phone was marked that 0+ and 1+ calls other
than those authorized to be carried by C&P, would be carried by (in capital,
red letters) AT&T COMMUNICATIONS.
1 700 555-4141 "You have reached the AT&T Long Distance Network"
10 222 1 700 555-4141 "You have reached the AT&T Long Distance Network"
10 333 1 700 555-4141 "You have reached the AT&T Long Distance Network"
So, all 1+ calls are routed to AT&T for coin collection (although this call,
being free, requested no money). 10 XXX codes are ignored for 1+.
Then, the following were tried:
dialed: 0 + valid out-of-LATA 10-digit number
response: "bwongg (without the 'AT&T')"
dialed: my valid 14-digit Bell Atlantic/AT&T card number
response: "thank you for using AT&T" and call rings through
dialed: 10 222 0 + valid out-of-LATA 10-digit number
response: "bwongg" (without the 'AT&T')"
dialed: my valid 14-digit Bell Atlantic/AT&T card number
response: "thank you for using MCI" and call rings through
dialed: 10 333 0 + valid out-of-LATA 10-digit number
response: "bwongg (without the 'AT&T')"
dialed: my valid 14-digit Bell Atlantic/AT&T card number
response: thank you for using US Sprint" and call rings through
dialed: 10 488 0 + valid out-of-LATA 10-digit number
response: "at the tone, please dial your card number or dial zero for the
ITI Operator" (pause) "beep (like an answering machine)"
dialed: my valid Bell Atlantic/AT&T card number
response (after about 10 seconds): "please wait for card verification"
(incredibly long pause, about 30 seconds of dead silence) "thank you for
using ITI; if the party you are calling is busy or does not answer, press 1
to leave up to a one minute message" call rings through
So there is true equal access, using a Bell card number, for 0+ calls
out of LATA. Long distance carriers like ITT (whose 10 XXX is 488,
above), who do not offer their own operator service route your calls
to an AOS, which I believe ITI is, for billing. Some AOS's, like ITI,
offer value-added services as well, as above.
Did the difference between the way the MCI/Sprint calls were handled
and the way the ITT call was handled mean that Bell Atlantic (C&P) was
providing the card verification for MCI and Sprint but not for ITT?
Wonder what, if anything, I will get charged for this little
experiment.
Greg Monti, Arlington, Virginia; workplace +1 202 822-2459robert@hutch.UUCP (Robert L. Oliver) (10/12/89)
In article <telecom-v09i0408m05@vector.dallas.tx.us>, covert@covert.enet.dec. com (John R. Covert) writes: > Wonder what, if anything, I will get charged for this little > experiment. > Greg Monti, Arlington, Virginia; workplace +1 202 822-2459 Through my own experiences with Alternate Operator Services, I would roughly estimate that your next phone bill won't contain much of a surprise. Several months from now, however, you'll receive a bill nearly exceeding the National Debt of the U.S. Do you have a small country to mortgage?