The latest telephone scam: 'Hijacked' accounts

Article Abstract:

Slamming, the term used for switching someone's long distance telephone service to another carrier without their knowledge or permission, has become a serious type of telephone scam. Slamming is accomplished by companies that randomly target homes and send to their local Bell company a letter of agency claiming that the target family gave them permission to switch long-distance carriers. The rates for the new service are frequently higher than other carriers. Companies that perform slams frequently target immigrants from Latin America or Asia by sending them contest entries written in Spanish or Chinese, with permission for switching service written in fine print in English. Companies linked to slamming include Sonic Communications, Cherry Communications, Metromedia Communications and Wiltel Inc. The FCC and the states of California, New York, Florida and Georgia have begun developing regulations to stop slamming.

Forecasts and trends, Industry trend, Fraud

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U.S. faults BellSouth bid on Louisiana long-distance service

Article Abstract:

BellSouth should not receive permission to offer long-distance telephone service in Louisiana because of failure to open its local network for statewide competition, according to a Justice Department recommendation. The FCC is expected to reject BellSouth's application, the fourth filed by a regional Bell company, on Feb 6, 1997. A Telecommunications Act of 1996 provision, meanwhile, directs the agency to give 'substantial weight' to the Justice Department's recommendations. The legislation also requires regional Bells to open their local systems before receiving approval to offer long-distance service within their regions. The Justice Department and FCC have rejected previous and similar applications from SBC Communications and Ameritech. Most telecommunications experts believe the FCC will turn down the third petition, from BellSouth in South Carolina, by Dec 29, 1997.

United States. Department of Justice, BellSouth Corp., BLS, Louisiana

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F.C.C. blocks two Bells on long-distance entry

Article Abstract:

The FCC rejected attempts by Ameritech and U S West to sell long-distance service, ruling that their marketing arrangements with long-distance Qwest Communications International violated the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Terms of the May 1998 deal would have allowed Ameritech and U S West to collect fees in exchange for signing up their customers for Qwest's long-distance service. The FCC upheld the communications act's prohibition of Bells from selling long distance because of their AT&T legacy and local phone influence. None of the five Bells has convinced the FCC that they have opened their local networks to rival companies in compliance with the communications act. By contrast, the newly-created MCI WorldCom and nearly all other companies have the right to join the long-distance market.

United States. Federal Communications Commission, U S WEST Inc., USW, Regional Bell Operating Companies, AIT, Ameritech Corp.

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