TELECOM@Usc-Eclb (06/24/82)
TELECOM AM Digest Thursday, 24 June 1982 Volume 2 : Issue 78
Today's Topics: More On Cellular Radio
D.C. Suburbs And 202
More On Alternate DC Area Codes
Voice Storage System - Held Up At FCC
Areas 619 (New), 714
Galestown, MD -- Belated Comment
When Is A FEX Not A FEX?
Local Calling Areas With Incomplete White Pages Listings
New IDDD Locations Effective 16 October
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Date: 21 Jun 1982 2246-PDT
Sender: GEOFF at SRI-CSL
Subject: Cellular Update.
From: the tty of Geoffrey S. Goodfellow
Reply-To: Geoff at SRI-CSL
Having just spent another week in the WDC area with a Cellular
(Motorola DYNATAC) Portable phone I have some updates since my last
report to this list.
The license applications for the top 30 cellular markets are all in at
the FCC. There were 194 applications filed at the FCC on June 7th.
For the time being it looks like the FCC's wire line set-aside policy
is still in place.
I guess the two biggest surprises of the filing were: (1) That on the
non-wire line side there were relatively few companies that filed in
the larger markets (like Boston where only two applicants filed).
Boston is the nations 6th largest SMSA (Standard Metropolitan
Statistical Area). Of the other SMSA's there was Tampa, Fla where a
dozen or so applicants filed.
Keep in mind that each of these applications are about 600 to 1,500
pages in length and cost each person on the order of $100,000 to
$200,000 or so to prepare!!
Why would someone go to all that trouble and expense you might ask,
just taking all that risk, chance, time and expense to be ONE of the
12 people to get a license? Because cellular systems, once fully
deployed and operational will bring their investors' an unprecedented
return on their dollars. This is the first time you can build, own
and operate your own public utility which competes with an established
monopoly, AT&T.
The WDC-Baltimore Cellular Market Trial has been an unqualified
success. Should American Radio Telephone Service (ARTS) be granted
the (commercial) license for the non-wire line set-aside in the
WDC-Baltimore SMSA's, in year 5 of commercial operation, each months
projected profits will equal the cost of the total system itself!!
(If that isn't `unprecedented return' on investment, I don't know what
is!).
Surprise #2 of the week was the large number of non-wire line
applicants (with substantial amounts of bank credit and cash) which
filed with fantastically low basic monthly service rates of $4.95 to
$15 and per minute usage charges of $.06 to $.25.
Here in the San Francisco SMSA one applicant filed his basic service
rate at $9.75 a month with the average cost per minute of use at $.25.
Another filed his basic rate at $8 a month with the cost of $.50 for
the first three minutes of conversation and $.15 each additional
minute.
If that isn't affordable, I don't know what is! I'm a firm believer
in low(er) monthly service charges and a little bit high(er) usage
charge, so that the people who use the system (more) pay (more) for
it.
On the equipment cost scene, the hand-held portables, like the
Motorola DYNATAC unit I use, will sell for about $2500 initially, or
lease/rent for about $65 a month, where as the traditional car
installed mobiles will sell for about $1850 initially, or lease/rent
for about $55 a month.
That means the cost of a brand NEW Cellular car mounted mobile phone
will cost LESS than a USED IMTS/direct-dial phone sells for today (in
the $2500 range). New, state of the art, IMTS/direct-dial phones
sells for $3600-3700 today.
On the feature front, for a coupla bucks extra per month, you'll be
able to enjoy features like call forwarding (to mobile or land-line
phones), call forwarding on no answer (to direct your call to an
alternate number), call answering/message taking on no answer, call
screening and conference calling.
It is also rumored some of the portable units will have RS-232 jacks
on them which will interface to a built in 300 or 1200 baud modem.
The cellular spectrum can support up to 9600 baud I have been
informed.
It is expected to take about a year to get the licensing issues
between competing applications settled and then a year or two after
the license is granted to construct a cellular system.
So, all in all, it looks like a bright future for truly portable
communications for us all to have and enjoy.
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Date: 22 Jun 1982 0921-EDT
From: John R. Covert <RSX-DEV at DEC-MARLBORO>
Subject: D.C. Suburbs and 202
The rate is determined by the entries for the two NPA-NXX pairs in
the rate database. Those Maryland or Virginia NXXs which can be
reached with 202 have a second entry in the rate database which
indicates where they really are. The use of 202 has nothing to do
with the rate.
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From: Stephen C. Hill <STEVEH at MIT-MC>
Subject: alternate DC area codes
To: cmoore at BRL
All phones in the Washington D.C. local dialing area can be
reached with either their own area codes (703/301) or through
the D.C. area code of 202.
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Date: 22 Jun 82 11:32:45-EDT (Tue)
From: Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) <cmoore@BRL>
To: Stephen C Hill <STEVEH@Mit-Mc>
cc: cmoore at BRL
Subject: Re: alternate DC area codes
I am not so sure about the EXTREME fringes of Washington local calling
area. Can 703-860 Herndon (Va.) be reached with area code 202?
I was asking about the long-distance RATES from Md. to Md. suburbs or
from Va. to Va. suburbs. Are they affected by one's use of 202 area
code?
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Date: 22 June 1982 1150-PDT (Tuesday)
From: lauren at UCLA-Security (Lauren Weinstein)
Subject: Voice Storage System
The 1A VSS is a nice chunk of technology. For some of my detailed
comments (some negative) on the subject, see the old archives (of
HUMAN-NETS, I suppose) from about 1.5 years ago or so.
The original Bell Labs Record article describing the service included
a nifty soundsheet demo'ing the system, and I was given "live" demos
several times over a period of some months.
My last information on the project (from a reliable source close to
the development team) was that the regulatory issues had become VERY
sticky and the project was on "hold" officially. There was a struggle
going on with government agencies claiming VSS was an enhanced service
and ATT insisting it was more of a "basic" service (like a super
custom calling feature). Apparently some moves by IBM and Delphi
Communications [with "competing" systems] also caused considerable
concern. One of the big problems was that VSS, as designed, had to be
very tightly physically integrated with basic equipment in the CO's...
this helped to confuse the basic/enhanced service issue.
Given the recent Consent Decree changes, pending court actions, and
the associated turmoil, I'd think that all bets, either way, about VSS
would be questionable. Since manuscripts for most BSTJ articles
usually are submitted far in advance of publication, I'm not sure how
useful the BSTJ info will be on this subject except in a strictly
technical sense.
--Lauren--
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Date: 22 Jun 82 16:45:43-EDT (Tue)
From: Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) <cmoore@BRL>
cc: cmoore at BRL
Subject: areas 619 (new), 714
(Breaking-off of new area 619 from area 714 this coming Nov. was
announced in this digest earlier.)
I just had a look at drawing of areas 619 and 714 in phone book for
Fremont-Newark (elsewhere in Calif.) and see that 714 will be very
small in land area once 619 is put in! 714 will be left with Anaheim
and extreme SE part of LA area; San Diego and that long skinny area
running N along Nevada border will go into new 619 area.
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Date: 22 Jun 1982 2031-PDT
From: ROODE at SRI-KL (David Roode)
Subject: Galestown, MD -- belated comment
No one thought to wonder, but is it possible that the people in
Galestown were served via actual wiring which connects their homes
with the Seaford, Delaware central office? It seems to me that this
was originally the case, and if it is still so, this is not what is
generally meant by "foreign exchange" service when they have a Seaford
exchange.
A similar situation arose on the border of Sunnyvale Calif. and Santa
Clara recently but the question concerned sewer hookups. It seems
that although Sunnyvale has a moratorium on hookups, there is a
restaurant desiring new service in an area which has both Sunnyvale
and Santa Clara sewer mains, the Santa Clara mains dating from days
when Sunnyvale did not offer service to that part of the city. Seems
cities like to force their residents to use their own sewer systems,
but in this case they are in the position of saying "you have to use
ours but we won't serve you."
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Date: 23 Jun 1982 0150-EDT
From: John R. Covert <RSX-DEV at DEC-MARLBORO>
805 238-7994 in Paso Robles, California, is actually an FX, run over
private facilities (a satellite) to the switchboard at Kwajelein, an
army base located about halfway between Hawaii and Australia. There
are four lines, available for public use to military and their fam-
ilies located there.
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Date: 23 Jun 82 8:26:31-EDT (Wed)
From: Carl Moore (VLD/VMB) <cmoore@BRL>
Subject: neighboring local areas
Does the following sound unusual?
That part of Delaware along Pennsylvania border (all the way from
Delaware River to Maryland border) has local service into Pa., but
nobody has the listings for all of their Pa. calling area listed in
the local phone book (Wilmington, Del.) nor do they get a
separately-delivered directory for Pa. (All the Pa. prefixes
mentioned here are in 215 area.)
The following Pa. prefixes ARE listed in Wilm. phone book:
274 Landenberg, 268 Avondale, 444 Kennett Square, 388 Mendenhall
The following Pa. prefixes are in Del. calling areas, but are not
listed in Wilm. phone book:
255 Kemblesville; 869 West Grove; 358,459 Chester Heights; 891 Media
(Chester Heights service?); 485 Marcus Hook; 447,494,497,499,872,874,
876 Chester; 833 Woodlyn.
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Date: 23 Jun 1982 1335-EDT
From: John R. Covert <RSX-DEV at DEC-MARLBORO>
Subject: New IDDD locations effective 16 October
Algeria 213
Cameroon 237
Egypt 20
Ethiopia 251
Gabon 241
Guantanamo 53 (Note that 53 is the code for Cuba)
Malawi 265
Morocco 210
Oman 968
Pakistan 92
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End of TELECOM Digest
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