If we leave AOL signed on all the time, does that mean no more charges for local call

Factual Questions
1

We have “unlimited service” on AOL. It seems to just stay signed on indefinitely. Every so often a box comes up that says something about “Your idle message”, but as far as we can tell, this doesn’t mean that it’s disconnected. You can tell the “idle message” box “OK” and go ahead and pick up browsing where you left off, without having to sign on again.

MSN used to disconnect us for no particular reason at random intervals (and no, it wasn’t because of the “time offline” thingie). Sometimes when we switch screen names on AOL, it will make the dialing modem noises, but most of the time it just switches screen names, and we continue with our browsing (Internet Explorer 5.5).

We have McLeod USA for both local and long-distance phone service. I checked with them, and they said that yes, for local calls, we only pay per call, not per minute. So theoretically, unless I’m missing something in a big way, that would seem to mean that if we never signed off from AOL, we would never have to pay for another local phone call again.

But that can’t be right. McLeod USA wouldn’t be making any money. So what am I missing?

Is it maybe disconnected anyway but we just can’t hear the dialing modem noises? But when it dials up, it also brings up a box that says “Connecting” etc.

So, huh?

2

I have AOL too and leave for hours at a time and it still stays logged on. I haven’t seen any changes in my phone bill so I don’t think it matters since it’s one call and it’s a local call.

When AOL disconnects you it goes to the sign on screen where you enter your password, so you definatley know when you’re disconnected.

Your phone company is making the money for the basic rate you have to pay just for having the line. I have two phone lines at home and the line I use for internet service is about $17 a month. If you are using the same line you use for your home phone service then yeah, I guess your phone company isn’t making any extra money off you.

3

I’m confused. Why do you pay for local calls? Aren’t they free?

If you are dialing a local number for AOL, you shouldn’t be charged anything for the call itself. Now, I haven’t used AOL in a while, but it used to be that they would disconnect you if you were staying idle for too long, because they wanted to cut down on the busy signals other folks got when they called the dialup numbers. But they’ve increased their service tremendously since then, and now (apparently) you won’t get disconnected.

Assuming you are paying for local calls (as per your phone company, not AOL), then you’d only pay for the call - if that’s what they say.

It also used to be that if the phone company knew you were using your line for a computer, they charged you more. I don’t think they can do this now, but I’m not sure.

4

Kewl! :smiley: So our phone bill oughta go down quite a bit, after a while, if we just leave AOL connected. Excellent.

We’re paying $9 a month for a second phone line just for the Internet, and when we had MSN, there would also be, like, “690 local calls” on the phone bill, and we’re assuming this was from the many pointless disconnects and irritable “oh, for heaven’s sake” reconnects.

Jeepers, Dan, in what Utopian paradise do you live where you get local calls free? McLeod USA charges us 3 cents a call.

5

I’m confused here. Do you have two phone lines? Do you never use the phone for anything but AOL? If you stay online forever and never disconnect (heck, it might even be true, judging from how much you post ;)), then yes, you’ll only be charged for making one phone call. On the other hand, you’ll only be making one phone call. If you want to give Aunt Maude a ring, then you need to disconnect from AOL, call her, then re-connect afterwards.

Surely, though, there aren’t that many people who really use their (single) landline 24/7 for nothing but Internet, so McLeod is in no danger of bankruptcy.

6

Yes, we have two phone lines. The one phone line we pay the $9 a month “second phone line” fee for is only used for the Internet, and the occasional incoming call from confused random-number-computer-dialing telemarketers. :smiley:

7

OK, when I posted that, I didn’t see anything but the OP. If you have two phone lines, then the phone company is already making money off of your regular line you use for calling Aunt Maude, plus whatever flat rate there is for the extra line. Cheaper than six hundred disconnects, yes, but still not free.

8

I don’t remember ever paying for a local call. Calls within your calling area have been termed local calls by every phone company I’ve dealt with. I’ve had to pay for calls to other area codes (but not all) and certainly to other states.

Maybe it’s a question of semantics. You’re charged for regional phone calls. At least I have been… :slight_smile:

9

Heck, I just checked my phone bill. I make scores of local calls each month, because I’m always reconnecting to get online. I’ve never once been charged for these calls.

10

Well, where I’m at, (I seem to recall) Verizon has three different call plans. You can either pay a flat fee for unlimited local calls, or pay per call, or per call minute.

11

Well, Dan, the next logical question is, “Who’s your phone company?” I’m quite certain that McLeod USA charges both for local calls (meaning right here in Decatur) and for long-distance calls (meaning anything that isn’t right here in Decatur, which is a MAJOR pain in the butt). They don’t have a “regional” designation, because if they did, we could probably use Springfield or Champaign ISP access numbers for the price of a local call, and we can’t–they all count as long-distance.

Maybe you’re on a “flat fee for unlimited local calls” plan?

12

I use Verizon. Before that, it was BellSouth. Before that, it was Bell Atlantic. I don’t see anything on the bill about a flat fee, though.

13

Some LECs (Local Exchange Companies) charge residential customers for each local call, some give their customers unlimited local calling.
In the case of Verizon, they do one in some areas they service and the other in other areas that they service. It varies by state (rules are written by each state’s PUC (public untility commission) and it also depends on what phone company it was before Verizon absorbed them into the huge mega-Baby Bell that it now is.

Business customers actually pay more than residential customers for local service and usually pay a per minute fee! One of the few cases where businesses make out worse than individual consumers.

14

PUC = Public Utility Commission.

Too fast on the submit button…

15

There! You see? Ha!

:wink:

16

Do US dial-up ISPs have nasty T&Cs to catch out users who ‘abuse’ the package (their term, not mine)? A few British ISPs have earned some nasty words - rightfully so - for cancelling contracts with customers who stay dialled-up for long periods of time. Most, including BT, claim that ‘unlimited flat-rate’ access isn’t unlimited at all.

17

may I suggest goose you look into DSL since they have services where you can be connected to the internet and still use the same phone to make calls.
Shop around the phone companies and find out which one is the best price but today you can get high speed connection which uses fibre optic cables and allows you to be connected to the internet and use the phone at the same time.
We have DSL in Toronto, Canada and use AOL and never get the time out signal when we are connected using DSL, and thus we are permanately connected, and can make phone calls on the same telephone line. We don’t pay any fee for each call either we only do that up here with cellular.
Shop around and get the best deal…

18

Thanks, but DSL is fifty bucks a month, more or less. :frowning:

19

Pop is dead-on, it all depends on the state and the phone company. Illinios happens to have some of the smallest free local calling areas (if any), but cheap base rates.

Crusoe, many US ISPs used to have policies against continual (abusive) usage, but the marketplace has pretty much eliminated this practice. Most all offerings around US $20 per month are truly unlimited.

The question here is with regards to the phone company, not the ISP. The ISP is AOL, and for every customer like DDG, they have 3 more that pay their $20 fee each month but never dial in.

To the OP: DDG, if you leave your line connected throughout the entire billing period, you very may well see a charge of $0.03, for one call. Across multiple billing periods, you may see one call each period, or you may see only one (and probably when it disconnected, instead of connected). It all depends on how the billing system works.

When the telephone switch originates the call, it generates a “start” call record. When the call is disconnected, the switch generates a “stop” call record. In most cases, phone companies process this data and match up the “start” and “stop” call records to generate a Call Detail Record (CDR). Normally, only matched CDRs are billed.

In some cases, the billing system may see the “start” record, with no matching “stop” record, assume some error occured, and bill you for the call. More likely, they wait till the call record is matched.

It is also likely that AOL has an idle timeout on their modem banks. If any data is passing, the line will stay up. If no data passes for some period of time (may be days), then the AOL modem will disconnect the call.

So, I’m sure you will save money, and McLeodUSA will not recover their costs for serving you (that’s there problem - not yours - I agree). It is simply inefficient market pricing that remains as a vestige from the voice-only Ma Bell days.

And finally, DDG, as a burned investor of McLeodUSA (and still a holder of plenty of their nearly worthless stock), please consider upgrading to their DSL service, and tell your friends to do the same!

20

hell no $50 US thats a lot we pay about $30 Canadian for DSL what a rip=off.