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<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Hey. I want to give my customers 911 service. Truly I do. My
customer’s safety is important to me. Before we go legislating lets make
sure we are on a level playing field by:<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Open access to the ALI databases to providers that can
provide a reliable interface and stop sole-sourcing in to the ILECs.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Open access to central listing and stop sole-sourcing to the
ILECs.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>I went to OM2Tech, they first told me 250.00 to set up, then
250.00 min monthly, plus .25 per DID, that was a small price to pay. Then I
open up shop, call them, ready to go, then they tell me it’s going to be
a little more than double. No problem, I don’t care, I want to provide my
customers with the service.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Now, they tell me, sorry, BellSouth WILL NOT ALLOW THIS. So
I call Intrado (BellSouth’s contractor for the ALI) who tells me sure I
can do it, 4500 DOLLARS SET UP, and 3500 DOLLARS MIN MONTHLY, .50 PER DID.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Now I ask you, what kind of crap is this? I called my
representative, the Hon. Tom Feeney, whose assistants informed me sorry, they
don’t have anything they can tell me.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>If you are going to break the monopoly, BREAK THE DAMNED
MONOPOLY. You cannot have Chairman Powell stand there and encourage us to
innovate and create and then tell us you have to buy 911 service from the ILEC
at a price none of us can afford without a major investment. That won’t
even begin to break even for which in my case would be over a year at least to
get 7000 subs, and that would be with a lot of luck. Realistically, my goal was
1500 subs residential this year and 50 biz subs.<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>Once again, I want to offer 911 to my customers. Give me the
tools. Heck I would gladly eat 2 bucks a month to provide 911 service just as a
matter of public safety…I was considering that I could do a cost of 4
bucks a month and eat two. But here we are, I guess I tell me customers that
no, I don’t have 911 service. But why? Vonage and Packet 8 do? Do they
really or is it Level 3’s 911 call center? <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>The big companies get away with this crap thanks to major
vulture capital investment that allows them to hire armies of lawyers and
lobbyists and ridiculous sums of advertising. You want innovation? Level the
damned playing field. There is a need for people like me that actually answer
the phone for my customers. There is a need for people like me that actually
fix a customer problem immediately. There is a need for people like me who
actually get the billing right and don’t BS the customer. If you
legislate 911, fine, give everyone equal access to the ALI and listings.
Otherwise, what have you really accomplished? Give the consumers a choice
between the ILEC that loves to trample and screw their customers and the
MegaVoip company that just doesn’t have to provide ANY level of service
at all?<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'>That is not promoting innovation, ideas, and competition. Of
course, that’s not the job of the US Congress anymore. The job of the US
Congress is to do exactly what the highest contributors and most influential
lobbyists ask of them. Guess what gang…they could give a rats
you-know-what about “competition”<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'></rant><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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