25 years after the breakup of the AT&T monopoly, a comprehensive audit of more than 700 San Diego phone bills challenges the long-cherished assumption that "phone deregulation has reduced costs for all customers." The ugly reality is that for the majority of wireless and landline telephone bills studied, customers pay unjustifiably high per-minute charges for long distance and wireless services. Get an overview of the 87-page report here. Get the full report in PDF format.
VoIP
AT&T tells the FCC Google Voice is blocking calls illegally
AT&T and Google are currently engaged in an ongoing dispute about the rejection of the Google Voice iPhone application. Last Friday, AT&T pushed the spat further by filing documents with the FCC saying that Google Voice violates government Internet policies.
Putting All Your Messaging In One Basket
Nimbuzz intends to enable you to get your Skype, Google Chat and Calls, social networking, SIP calls, and Instant Messages in one convenient place. When it works.
VoIP Comparison Table
UCAN has compiled a list of VoIP providers and their current costs and features for comparison purposes. Let us know if we missed any providers. UCAN does not endorse or recommend any of these services. This list is just for comparison purposes and to let you the consumer know what's available.
MAKE IT STOP!!! When Phishing Becomes Vishing and The Phone Is No Longer Your Friend
Spam has moved to your phone line and one way they get past your personal defenses is by spoofing the Caller ID text
Game changer or small step? Skype and Truphone apps appear on cell phones including the Iphone and Android G1
Is the appearance of cheap, IP based voice services on cell phones like Skype and Truphone on cell phones a game changer or a small step?
San Diego citizen journalism and media discussion forum
UCAN's affiliate New Media Rights is hosting a discussion forum on the future of media and journalism in San Diego. Join in on the discussion now!
Consumers overspending on telecom bills
INFORMATION WEEK - According to an audit of 703 consumer phone bills by TeleTruth, long-distance charges have increased on average to 55 cents a minute, and just
8% of landline customers pay less than 10 cents a minute. Full Story. Read the full 87-page report here. <!-- / teaser (dek) copy -->
How to save money and trim your budget in a down economy
UCAN recently talked to San Diego Channel 6 about ways to trim consumer budgets in a rough economy, particularly with phone, cable, satellite, and internet services.
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Utility Consumers' Action Network
(619) 696-6966 or file a complaint about a company online.
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