Monday, August 21, 2006

Verizon double talk

I wasn't sure if I was going to post this, but after just reading about it on Techdirt, I think I will. My ISP (Internet service provider) is Verizon DSL. Overall I'm happy with the service (10x better than my old AOL dialup.) Over the weekend I got this longwinded, confusing email... (feel free to skip this if you want)...

Effective August 14, 2006, Verizon Online will stop charging the FUSF (Federal Universal Service Fund) recovery fee. We will stop being assessed the fee by our DSL network suppliers. Therefore, we will no longer be recovering this fee from our customers. The impact of the FUSF fee is as follows: for customers of Verizon Online with service up to 768Kbps, the fee eliminated is $1.25 a month; for customers of Verizon Online with service up to 1.5 Mbps or 3Mbps, the fee eliminated is $2.83 a month (based on current FUSF surcharge amounts). On your bill that includes charges for August 14, 2006 you will see either a partial FUSF Recovery Fee or no FUSF line item at all, depending on your bill cycle.

Starting August 26, 2006, Verizon Online will begin charging a Supplier Surcharge for all new DSL customers, existing customers with a DSL monthly or bundle package, and existing DSL annual plan customers at the time their current annual plan expires. This surcharge is not a government imposed fee or a tax; however, it is intended to help offset costs we incur from our network supplier in providing Verizon Online DSL service. The Supplier Surcharge will initially be set at $1.20 a month for Verizon Online DSL customers with service up to 768Kbps and $2.70 per month for customers with DSL service at higher speeds.


Ok, still awake? Here's what I got out of it... There is no longer an imposed fee on Verizon (from who? I guess the federal government?) of $1.25 - BUT... I guess Verizon figures we are all used to paying this fee, so they've made up some technical sounding name like "Supplier Surcharge" and guess what it's only $1.20. What the *BEEP*!?
Well, apparently I was not the only one who took notice of thie idiotic scam... The Onion has released a "news report" that sums this plan up nicely...
Verizon Introduces New Charge-You-At-Whim Plan.

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