BUCKS WATCH
TRAC Surveys Cable Company Phone Plans - The buzz word in the communications industry today is “convergence.” Telephone service is no longer the sole domain of the former local Bell telephone companies. In addition to the various wireless carriers that have been operating for more than twenty years, cable companies are starting to expand their offerings to include telephone service, usually by using VoIP technologies. While these offerings are still not available in many communities where these cable companies operate, the service is becoming increasingly widespread. TRAC decided to take a look at the phone plans that the largest cable companies are offering to help you decide if you should consider letting your cable company become your phone company as well. Readers should note that the prices below are only estimates based on selected areas where the cable phone service is offered. The prices charged in other communities may differ significantly. In addition federal, state, and local taxes as well as other fees and surcharges, such as the $6.50 federal subscriber line charge, may also apply.
- Comcast Digital Voice Service:
$39.95 per month for unlimited local and nationwide long distance service. This price applies only when Comcast cable modem and cable television service is also purchased. With only Comcast television service OR cable modem service, the price is $44.95 per month. When only Comcast Digital Phone service is chosen, the price is $54.95 per month. A $3 per month modem rental fee may also apply. According to Comcast, in the event of a power outage, their modem has a battery backup that will maintain phone service for several hours.
- Time Warner Digital Phone:
$39.95 per month when Time Warner Internet and cable television service is included in the subscription package. Service includes unlimited local and long distance calls nationwide, to Canada, and U.S. territories. Service will not work in the event of a power outage.
- Cox Digital Telephone:
Monthly prices range from $9.95 for bare bones local-only service to $49.95 for unlimited local and long distance calling in the U.S. Backup power is available in the event of a power outage.
- Charter Telephone Service:
Prices range from $9.00 per month for limited local-only service to $39.95 for unlimited local and nationwide long distance calling. Note that Charter Telephone Service is not a VoIP system. It runs over the same telephone jacks as traditional telephone service.
- Cablevision Optimum Voice:
$34.95 per month for unlimited local and long distance calling in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Canada. Service will be interrupted in the event of a power outage.
As with most bundled local and long distance calling packages offered by traditional telephone companies, the value in these plans tends to lie more in the convenience of having voice, television, and Internet all on the same bill rather than in actual cost savings. Third-party VoIP providers like Vonage, VoicePulse, or Packet8 typically offer the same suite of services (unlimited local and long distance calling and a bucket of advanced features) for $15-20 less per month. The digital cable companies claim that their call quality is better since their VoIP services use their proprietary networks rather than the public Internet that the third-party carriers use. However, we have yet to see call quality studies to back up this claim.
The Bottom Line: Most light-volume callers will likely find a better deal on their local and long distance telephone bills by getting a bare-bones local telephone service plan and using their wireless phone or a prepaid calling card to make domestic long distance calls. High-volume long distance callers who are already paying for cable modem Internet and cable television service, who want the convenience of a single bill, and whose phone bill for a single line of local service exceeds $45 per month may find that cable telephone service compares favorably with their current telephone service. Consumers looking for a bargain on their VoIP home phone service would be better advised to search out a third-party VoIP service provider, however. Consumer should definitely not look to go with their cable company if all they want is phone service, not cable modem or cable television service.
FRAUD WATCH
New Website Adds to Wealth of Anti-Fraud Information Online - A coalition of government agencies and private companies has teamed up to launch one of the more comprehensive fraud information sites on the web. LooksTooGoodToBeTrue.com, launched last week, provides consumers with an abundance of useful information about frauds of all types, from online phishing schemes, to pyramid schemes, to bogus hurricane relief scams. The website is the product of a unique collaboration between the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, FBI, and private companies such as Monster.com and Target, among others. Thanks in large part to the proliferation of online scams, fraud has taken a quantum leap forward recently. According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, 207,449 complaints were reported in 2004, a 66.6 percent increase over 2003; the total monetary loss from all referred cases of fraud was $68.14 million with a median dollar loss of $219.56 per complaint. LooksTooGoodToBeTrue.com offers some very useful consumer tips to avoid becoming a victim of fraud including:
- Be suspicious of emails that appear to be from banks, online auction sites or other retailers. Usually they ask you to correct mistakes in your account information or to provide other personal information.
- Never use a link in an email to visit any website if the email is asking for sensitive personal information or if you have any doubt at all about the sender or site. Instead, type in the address that you normally use to log onto the site.
- If you have doubts, call the business on the telephone. You should always be able to resolve any issues with the customer service representative if the company is legitimate.
- Only purchase goods and services from sites you trust. Software makes it easy to create websites and emails that look exactly like the real ones. Examine all offers carefully before purchasing.
Other useful anti-fraud links include:
TRAC AND YOU
100th Issue of TRACNotes! – In our zeal to bring you the latest in telecommunications consumer news and cost-saving tips, we managed to overlook the fact that last week’s edition of TRACNotes marked our 100th issue. Since we began publication in November 2003, we’ve covered everything from ways to avoid spam to industry mergers to commentary on the 20 year anniversary of the AT&T breakup. It’s been a great two years for us here and we hope that you will stick with us through the next 100 issues. In case you missed an issue, every edition of TRACNotes is available in our newsroom archives by clicking here. Thanks to all of the TRAC staff for helping to make TRACNotes a success and to you, our readers, without whom none of this would be possible.
If you have found TRACNotes useful over the past two years, please consider becoming a member of TRAC. Individual memberships are quite affordable at $25 per year ($40 for two years). Your tax-deductible contribution helps to sustain the consumer education and advocacy mission of TRAC. More information on the benefits of TRAC membership is available at http://www.trac.org/membership/.
INTERESTING LINKS
FCC Main Page: http://www.fcc.gov
FCC Complaint Form - http://svartifoss2.fcc.gov/cib/fcc475.cfm
List of State Regulatory Commissions: http://www.naruc.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=15
What do you think? Got a tip you want to share? Nominate your "Scam of the Week" and your "Tip of the Week" - If we select your submission, we'll give you a one-year free membership in TRAC and acknowledge your contribution by name in TRACNotes. Send an e-mail to trac@trac.org to submit your ideas!
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©2005 Telecommunications Research and Action Center. TRAC grants unlimited rights to reproduce TRACNotes or any information contained in it provided attribution is given as follows: "Source: Telecommunications Research and Action Center. http://www.trac.org"
