pkh%computer-science.nottingham.ac.uk@nsfnet-relay.ac.uk (Kevin Hopkins) (09/18/89)
Computing, a weekly trade mag, ran a small article as follows on 07.09.89. Reprinted without permission though the magazine does not have a copyright notice so it seems that they don't mind. My comments in thingies () BT WITHHOLDS VERDICT IN CENTREX TRIAL British Telecom (BT) is conducting an in-house trial of a centrex service but is still undecided on a date for its launch. Rival Mercury (the only other long-distance carrier in the UK) introduced its 2110 Centrex service in May 1987 and, soon after, BT announced its own, Centel, but did not implement it after teething troubles with the switch. Centrex services use software to run the operation of a pabx from the public network. A BT spokesman said: "We have had an in-house trial of a centrex service to gain operational experience, but we are still finalising a business plan. "We want to make sure that when we do start the service, we will be able to deal with all our customers' requirements. "We realised the concept of centrex involved far more than just an alternative to a pabx. It offers, in effect, private network services run on the public exchange," he added. As BT decide on when to launch a service, Mercury is increasing its customer base. According to a spokesman, it has more than 20 customers at over 35 sites. "Centrex has proved to be a very competitive product and is already a major contributor to to Mercury's profits," he said. +--------------------------------------------+--------------------------------+ | K.Hopkins%cs.nott.ac.uk@nsfnet-relay.ac.uk | Kevin Hopkins, | | or ..!mcvax!ukc!nott-cs!K.Hopkins | Department of Computer Science,| | or in the UK: K.Hopkins@uk.ac.nott.cs | University of Nottingham, | | CHAT-LINE: +44 602 484848 x 3815 | Nottingham, ENGLAND, NG7 2RD | +--------------------------------------------+--------------------------------+