[comp.dcom.telecom] Sprint billing not all bad?

wmartin@ALMSA-1.ARPA (Will Martin -- AMXAL-RI) (04/19/88)

The April '88 issue of "The Office" magazine just came in today's mail, and
I noted the following in the "Telecommunications Insights" column by Thomas
J. Hargadon, page 28:

[Refers to previous column which described Sprint billing foul-ups, and
continues:]

"One very large company uses US Sprint BECAUSE of these problems. It says that 
the bills arrive anywhere from one to six months late, giving them a nice cash
cushion, and usually come with less than 70% of the calls they know they made.
US Sprint will have to shape up fast, because such problems cannot last much
longer, if it wishes to survive."

He then goes on to mention COCOT problems such as have been discussed here
recently.

I just wonder if his dire predictions as to Sprint's fate are really
valid. It seems to me that the charges for Long Distance service don't
really have a lot to do with the actual costs of providing that service,
and it may well be that Sprint will continue blundering along, thrashing
wildly with its billings, and still make enough to survive. 

Anyway, I thought I'd post this because it demonstrates a viewpoint
which differs from those of earlier Sprint-billing comments.

Regards, Will Martin

jordan@ADS.COM (Jordan Hayes) (04/20/88)

	"One very large company uses US Sprint BECAUSE of these
	problems. It says that the bills arrive anywhere from one to
	six months late, giving them a nice cash cushion, and usually
	come with less than 70% of the calls they know they made."

Well, the party's over.  I did this as well, and in this month's
Pacific Bell bill, I received a bill from Sprint for the last 6 months
worth of calls ... a small note at the bottom said "We hope this isn't
an inconvienience" ... grrr ... so much for any scratch money I had
budgeted for this month ...

/jordan