telecom digest Sun, 22 Nov 2015
Volume 34 Issue 211

Table of contents:

* 1 - [telecom] Verizon must pay taxes on fees it collected to install
  landlines - Bill Horne 
* 2 - Re: [telecom] Road hazards reaching the AARP's tollfree phone number -
  Barry Margolin 
* 3 - [telecom] Roseville CA Seniors Rallying Against Proposed Verizon
  Cellphone Tower - Bill Horne 
* 4 - [telecom] Verizon running promotion with 1GB of data - Bill Horne
  

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Message-ID: 
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2015 12:05:58 -0500
From: Bill Horne 
Subject: [telecom] Verizon must pay taxes on fees it collected to install
 landlines

Verizon must pay taxes on fees it collected to install landlines,
Pennsylvania court says

by Sue Marek

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled 3-2 that Verizon (NYSE: VZ) must
pay taxes for fees from installing phone lines and providing directory
assistance as well as performing a variety of repairs and services.
However, the amount of those fees is unclear as the ruling didn't give a
specific amount owed and didn't say whether the company is also
responsible for any back payments.

According to the Daily Journal, the ruling stems from an 11-year-old
dispute and reverses a previous decision that said Verizon could avoid
paying taxes for certain nonrecurring charges related to repair and
maintenance of phone lines.

http://www.fiercetelecom.com/story/verizon-must-pay-taxes-fees-it-collected-install-landlines-pennsylvania-cou/2015-11-20

--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my email address to write to me directly)


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Message-ID: 
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2015 11:46:04 -0500
From: Barry Margolin 
Subject: Re: [telecom] Road hazards reaching the AARP's tollfree phone number

In article <186ct59tdmtmy.1dnhjl3y7wy0a$.dlg@40tude.net>,
 tlvp  wrote:

> The American Association of Retired Persons, aka AARP, maintains an
> easy-to-remember toll-free phone number: OUR-AARP = 687-2277. Ah, yes,
> you do need to remember *which* toll-free 8xx AC to prefix before
> OUR-AARP -- is that to be 1-800? 1-855? 1-866? 1-877? 1-888? Or do
> they all work?
>
> [The answer is that] only 1-888 is correct. The others (all but one,
> anyway) either
>
>   (i) Thank you for calling and warn you to pay close
>       attention because their "menu options have changed", or
>
>  (ii) Congratulate you for having just won ... [sort of "prize"
>       irrelevant] ... . (The one outlier is unclaimed and still up for
>       grabs, according to the toll-free number merchant offering it to
>       the errant caller -- or was so when last I called it.)
>
> No rules in place to prevent this sort of blatant exploitation of
> innocent mistakes, I guess? All is "caveat emptor" and "bamboozle the
> unwary"?

Who decides which numbers deserve protection from "exploitation"? AARP
could have bought all the other numbers if they wanted.

And the 800 number was probably taken before they got their own number,
because they obviously would have preferred that number if it was
available.

--
Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***


------------------------------
Message-ID: 
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2015 12:01:23 -0500
From: Bill Horne 
Subject: [telecom] Roseville CA Seniors Rallying Against Proposed Verizon
 Cellphone Tower

by Ron Jones

ROSEVILLE, CA (CBS13) - A group of seniors in Roseville are fighting to
prevent an 85-foot tall tower from going into their community.

Neighbors at the Sun City Senior Resort say they are not being given the
chance to vote on it.

Residents wanted CBS13 to attend a meeting between them and their
homeowner's association's board of directors, but the board kept us out.

"The point is we don't want a cellphone tower in a residential area,"
resident Jennifer Martin said. "Put it some place else."

http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2015/11/20/roseville-seniors-rallying-against-proposed-verizon-cellphone-tower-near-community/

--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my email address to write to me directly)


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Message-ID: 
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2015 11:55:59 -0500
From: Bill Horne 
Subject: [telecom] Verizon running promotion with 1GB of data

Verizon is Giving Away 1GB of Free Data Right Now for "Thanksgetting"

by Kellox

For the 2nd straight year, Verizon is trying to turn the day before
Thanksgiving into some sort of freebie day, where they can promote their
own products, along with those from others. Last year, they called it
Connection Day or something really weird. This year, it has apparently
changed to "Thanksgetting." I have no idea what that is supposed to
mean, but this day is like last year's day before the feast in that
Verizon is giving away free things.

Starting today, they are handing out 1GB of free data to everyone on
Verizon with a qualifying plan. All you have to do is hit the link
below, tap the "Get Now" link, sign-in to your account, and claim. The
data will then be added to your account for use. The promo also seems to
suggest that you will get another free 1GB in your next billing cycle as
well. Free data!

http://www.droid-life.com/2015/11/19/verizon-free-data-thanksgetting/

--
Bill Horne
(Remove QRM from my email address to write to me directly)


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End of telecom Digest Sun, 22 Nov 2015