An end to telemarketers...

[White_Eskimo]

Due to a federal court order, people who do not want to be disturbed by telemarketer's calls can resume signing up for the government's do-not-call list. Consumers can register home or cell phone numbers with the free government service by visiting the Web site www.donotcall.gov or calling 1-888-382-1222, beginning Thursday at 8 a.m. EDT. Once you have your numbers listed, it might take up to three months before you seriously start to see a reduction in telemarketing calls. However, telemarketers calling listed numbers could face thousands of dollars in fines for each violation. The list is intended to block about 80 percent of telemarketing calls, with exemptions for charities, pollsters and calls on behalf of politicians. A company also may call people on the list if it recently has done business with them.
Anyways go to www.donotcall.gov and add your numbers and stop the evil telemarketers!!!!


SOURCE: http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/news/arti...24120209990008

(but i think that that URL is always changing, and you have to be a member of AOL to view it)

[c0bra]

WOW there is a god!!! about time aswell

[nihil]

I have always found that an "ex-directory" telephone number does the job If I need to give a number and don't trust the recipient I always give my mobile (cellphone)..........now that cost them serious $$$

Cheers

[BrainStop]

nihil,

In the United States, it usually costs you money to receive calls on your cell phone ... so that wouldn't be a good option there.

Unlike Europe, where the Calling Party Pays (CPP), the United States has no dedicated area codes for cell phones and thus the caller cannot know he's calling a cell phone ... and thus they charge the cell phone owner for the incoming calls ...

Cheers,

BrainStop

[nihil]

Thanks for the info BrainStop, I didn't know that. Do they have the free "ex-directory" number option?


Cheers

[VicE$DoS$]

Hang on a minute...so everytime you get a call on your Cell phone in the States you pay for the connection from the Provider to yourself??

Surely thats not right? Is it?

Cheers
V$D$

[BrainStop]

nihil wrote:

Do they have the free "ex-directory" number option?

Back when I was there (until 2001), the "ex-directory" option cost you $5 a month on your residential phone line ...

Vice$DoS$ wrote:

so everytime you get a call on your Cell phone in the States you pay for the connection from the Provider to yourself??

Yes, which is why most cell phone providers will try to sell you a monthly package with a humongous amount of "free minutes" included. Otherwise, people would not be handing out their cell phones numbers and using them.

The reason the US system is the way it is comes from the unlimited monthly calling plans for residential phone lines. For approx $25 a month, you can have unlimited calling in your local area on your phone line (which is why dial-up was a lot cheaper to use in the US than in Europe). This also meant that the phone company wasn't able to charge extra for cell phone calls (since the cell phones are in the same area code, example, I was living in DC, so my home phone was 202-xxx-xxxx, and my cell was 202-xxx-xxxx since I had a DC service provider).

The phone companies thus had two options:
1. Make you listen to a message any time you dialled a cell phone number telling you that this call would be charged an additional fee because it was a cell phone.
2. Make the cell phone user pay for the priviledge of having a mobile phone.

It's a crappy system, which the phone companies are defeating themselves by giving cell phone owners more and more free minutes.

I used to have a cell phone for my job in the States. The monthly plan I was on started with 400 free minutes (and every additional minute at $0.30) then it changed to 600 and when the company got bought out it even went to 700. Now you get plans with 1200 or more minutes ...

Anyway, that's the way it works ... whether you like it or not. The upside is that when I call someone in the States, I don't care about calling him on his cellphone, cause my phone company just charges me the same regular rate for the international call. Unlike calling a cell phone in Europe, where they charge an additional $0.25 per minute for cell phones ...

Cheers,

BrainStop

[r8devil]

yup thats right. its the same thing here in Singapore. the mobile user pays when caling and receiving a call.

I think its a stupid thing but thats the way its done here. thats why i do not bother to entertain telemarketers and wrong numbers.

[lumpyporridge]

It is the same in canada as the states, personally i like it. I have a cell as my only phone and i get 0 calls from telemarketers
there is no way they will dare call you when you are paying for the time. I have had only one telemerketer call in the last 10 years and that person got a an earful and a complaint to the phone company. If you don't gab alot on the phone it is actually cheaper or the same to use a cellphone here.

When you say ex-dirctory do you mean not listed in the phone book?

[nihil]

Interesting,

Yes "ex-directory" means you are not in the phone book, and "directory enquiries" will not give it out.

In the UK, we pay for local calls..............about £0.01 per minute off peak. You pay for calls to cell phones, usually £0.25 to £0.50 per minute. I have a contract fo mine, I get 120 minutes per month free time, anytime, anywhere. I have not paid for a call in six years! they make the money out of people calling me.

I guess the Telcos have to balance their books wherever they are?

I have a new deal with my broadband...£11 ($16) per month. Unlimited UK and £0.06 for each call up to 1 hour international, off peak.

Broadband is £27 per month 24/7/365(6) that's about 40 US dollars. It is very new where I am living now (April 03), so I am connecting 288/576k. There is obviously some redundancy built in?

Cheers