Michiel van der Vlist (2:280/5555) wrote to Steven Horn at 16:34 on 17 Dec 2002:

 MvdV> Hmm, this has been a problem to some destinations but within
 MvdV> Western Europe those problem have long gone. International links
 MvdV> have been digital for over a decade I'dd say so there is no
 MvdV> distinguishable difference in quality between a local call and an
 MvdV> international call. In the past we had problems with satellite
 MvdV> links, but that was ages ago.

Since I no longer get my Fidonet mail by long distance, I cannot comment on
what the present state is.  I do know that the link between here and the
Yukon border has been upgraded.
 
 MvdV> We /used/ to have unmetered local calls. A local call was EUR
 MvdV> 0.07 irrespective of the duration of the call. It was changed in
 MvdV> the early 80ties. There are two versions of why this was changed.
 MvdV> Both bring into account that the mechanical exchanges at that
 MvdV> time could only handle 7 out of 100 subscribers at the same time.
 MvdV> So a situation where many subcsribers make exteremely long calls
 MvdV> had to be discouraged.

But we've never paid anything for a local call.  

 MvdV> I pay a monthly fee of EUR 14.44 for my analoge line. There is an
 MvdV> additional montly fee of EUR 0.95 for the optional caller ID. For
 MvdV> national calls there is an EUR 0.05 call setup fee that is
 MvdV> charged each time the other party answers. For international
 MvdV> calls this is EUR 0.10. Then there is the fee per minute ranging
 MvdV> from EUR 0.01 for a local call in the off hours to EUR 0.30 for a
 MvdV> call to a cell phone during office hours.

Your basic charge is marginally lower than mine but I pay no local call
setup fees or local call fees per minute.  I do get dinged for each long
distance call I make but the charges for these sre now semi-affordable.

 MvdV> For my cell phone I pay a monthly fee of EUR 9.05. An EUR 0.10
 MvdV> call setup fee and a per minute rate of EUR 0.20 and up depending
 MvdV> on destination.

I've given up trying to understand my cell phone charges because I have a
block of free time included in my monthly fee.

Take care,

Steven Horn (steven_a_horn{at}yahoo.ca)
Moderator, ALASKA_CHAT 
--- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+