TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Re: Pay Phone Regulations

Re: Pay Phone Regulations

Lisa Hancock (hancock4@bbs.cpcn.com)
9 Jun 2005 12:08:42 -0700

Robert Pierce wrote:

> I have a client who would like to have a pay phone in their break area
> for employee use. The COCOT vendor they were using wasn't making
> enough money, and so they pulled out.

There are other vendors, perhaps another vendor would be more
interested. Was the shortfall so much that the company wouldn't want
to make it up?

Perhaps the payphone could be put in the lobby or someplace accessible
to more people than just the break room so as to do more volume.

> They're not looking to turn a profit; they just want to give employees
> without cell phones a chance to call home etc. without having to open
> up an outside line to long distance charges, abuse, etc.

Even old PBXs had a feature to limit outside calls to local numbers,
not long distance; I would presume this kind of thing is still
available. I would strongly consider a phone of this nature. Might
be a lot simpler than putzing around with a pay phone.

> o What kind of drawbacks/pitfalls would they be looking at by going
> this route?

One way payphones make money is through very high long distance
charges. If one of the employees makes a collect or calling card call
and subsequently discovers a $25 charge for a 1 minute call, they
won't be very happy. The price of long distance is up to the property
owner and need not be so high but then the phone might not pay for
itself.

(The Philadelphia transit carrier, SEPTA, has Verizon pay phones at its
stations with relatively reasonably priced coin long distance. NJ
Transit, in contrast, has the high rates and no coin long distance.)

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