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The California Public Utilities Commission's Assigned Commissioner Dian M. Grueneich issued a temporary suspension of the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service verification process for 6 months.
The California Public Utilities judge assigned to this case heard the facts and issued the following proposed decision on October 30, 2006. It adopts some of the safeguards proposed by UCAN but, ultimately, let's AT&T recover some undergrounding revenues in phone rates. A final decision is expected sometime in late November/early December.
The California Public Utilities judge assigned to this case heard the facts and issued the following proposed decision on October 30, 2006. It adopts some of the safeguards proposed by UCAN but, ultimately, let's AT&T recover some undergrounding revenues in phone rates. A final decision is expected sometime in late November/early December.
UCAN filed formal testimony with the California Public Utilities Commission regarding SBC's proposed surcharges, showing the inequities of the SBC/AT&T rate proposal and how it would result in the citizens of San Diego subsidizing AT&T's efforts to vanquish competitors.
UCAN filed formal testimony with the California Public Utilities Commission regarding SBC's proposed surcharges, showing the inequities of the SBC/AT&T rate proposal and how it would result in the citizens of San Diego subsidizing AT&T's efforts to vanquish competitors.
The FCC recently sought comment concerning what actions need to be taken to ensure consumers of wireless, broadband, and video services are well informed about: the costs associated with the services; the contracts consumers must enter into; the charges for which consumers are billed; and the methods for resolving billing issues.
Imagine you are small business and you get a bill from your local phone company company for $1000. You are shocked because your monthly bill is usually closer to $100 per month. The company claims that your higher bill is for the international calls that you made from your fax machine. "Hold on", you think. "I didn't make any international calls from my fax machine or from ANY phone. I didn't make any international calls at all!"
You protest but the phone company says that even though you didn't make the calls, someone was able to hack into your phone system and make the calls. "But wait", you exclaim, "I don't have a phone system. I don't have a PBX. I just have two phone lines provided by you".
"Ah, but you didn't take precautions to protect your phones from being hacked," responds the phone company.
"What precautions!", you reply. "I put international call blocking on my phone service".
An impossible scenario? Apparently not accordingly to Telepacific/MPower. It did almost exactly this to a San Diego-based flower shop. Read our complaint about this shocking practice.
The CPUC is considering revising the rules regarding reporting of unauthorized charges for telecommunications services. Learn about the proposed changes as well as UCAN's position and legal filings on the issue.
UCAN has filed a federal class action complaint against Sprint Nextel (aka Sprint Solutions) for illegally billing customers taxes, fees, and text message charges on data services plans. You can read the complaint here.
AT&T's practice of enabling international roaming without customer notification violates the CA Public Utilities Code, which is intended to protect consumers from "cramming" of unauthorized charges. AT&T customers are also being charged for calls that were never placed. UCAN asserts that these customers never sought nor authorized international roaming as a service provided in connection with their cellular phone service.
California Lifeline, formerly known as Universal Lifeline Telephone Service (ULTS), provides discounted basic residential (landline) telephone service to low-income households.
UCAN's complaint, filed with the California Public Utilities Commission, details how MCI added surcharges to the bills of local phone customers in violation of California law. MCI's new long-distance "Basic Monthly Fee" is being imposed on those customers who use MCI's local phone service...but don't use MCI long-distance.
Of all the new features and capabilities of today's cell phones, UCAN receives the most complaints about ringtones and text messages. Our issue center contains all sorts of valuable information from consumer guides and updates to lawsuits and settlements against major cell phone providers. Come inside and see for yourself!
UCAN established that Cingular Wireless engaged in illegal marketing and customer service practices from 2000-2002 and filed a suit in July 2002. The case dragged on for years, but in was worth the wait. In 2006, a CA Court of Appeals judge ruled against Cingular and upheld a CPUC decision to hit Cingular with a large fine for its unconscionable actions. Get all the details inside our issue center.
From SDG&E to SBC, get the real story on undergrounding in San Diego inside this issue center.
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?
On March 26th, New York Times columnist Bob Tedeschi featured UCAN's phone cost study to highlight the difficulty in assessing phone costs. He focused on the wireless aspects of our report but he totally "got" the message. He calculates that, for example, if you were on a calling plan where you paid an average of 26 cents a minute and you switched to a prepaid plan charging 10 cents a minute, a new phone would pay for itself after about 167 minutes of calling rather than 560 minutes of calling on a "bucket plan".
His conclusion is spot-on correct..... the cell phone companies can be doing a much better job in helping consumers navigate the actual costs for phone service. What he didn't add was that regulators should be doing more to push wireless carriers to start fully disclosing actual cost data about wireless phones. Tedeshci's article is worth reading (see below) but you don't need to read the article to get the point: if you don't use all of your bucket of minutes on your cell phone every month, you may be better served by looking carefully at pre-paid wireless plans. The UCAN study referenced by the NY Times can be found here.
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!
checking for phone lines and telecom features you're paying for but didn't know you had
Union-Tribune Opinion Editor Chris Reed has slammed UCAN because he dislikes our 87-page report that exposes flaws in the deregulation of the telephone industry. Unfortunately, Mr. Reed's blogs are magically preventing readers from posting comments. You can't view our rebuttal at Chris Reed's blog, but you can read it here.
In the past two years the cost of directory assistance has skyrocketed. Telephone companies are charging their customers unreasonable fees. Thankfully, there are some real alternatives available that should ensure consumers never pay for directory assistance again.
In the past two years the cost of directory assistance has skyrocketed. Telephone companies are charging their customers unreasonable fees. Thankfully, there are some real alternatives available that should ensure consumers never pay for directory assistance again.
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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!
How to protect your own blog or website from liability for user generated content
Is Youtube putting advertisements on user videos without permission?
Essential free and open software toolkit for consumers
How to find free music, images, and video you can use or remix in your own creative works
How to Listen to Music on the Internet for Free...Legally
How to make a Podcast... for free
Visit NewMediaRights.org
Get personal assistance with your consumer complaint about a company by using our Online Complaint Forms. Or, call the Fraud Squad Hotline at (619) 696-6966!
Want to bring the hammer down on annoying telemarketers? Stop Telemarketers Now and get your number off telemarketing lists. And for the telemarketers that just won't take no for an answer; we'll show you how to take them to court and hurt em where it counts...in the pocketbook.
Don't buy a cell phone without our Mobile Phone Plan Checker!
Register to get it FREE right now!
What are you packin? Is it anything like UCAN's new and improved Consumer Complaint Directory? If not, you should really pick up a copy. This thing is chock-full of hard-hitting consumer punch.
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