TELECOM Digest Mon, 9 Jan 95 16:43:00 CST Volume 15 : Issue 17 Inside This Issue: Editor: Patrick A. Townson Cellular Telecommunications - GAO Report (Keith Bonney) MCI Paging Announcement (0003436453@mcimail.com) FCC Proposes to Restrict Access to Cellular 911 (Doug Reuben) DQDB and SMDS (Kristoff Bonne) Looking for X.25 Concentrator (Paul D. Guthrie) Wireless CO's Challenge New NPAs? (Linc Madison) TELECOM Digest is an electronic journal devoted mostly but not exclusively to telecommunications topics. It is circulated anywhere there is email, in addition to various telecom forums on a variety of public service systems and networks including Compuserve and America On Line. It is also gatewayed to Usenet where it appears as the moderated newsgroup 'comp.dcom.telecom'. Subscriptions are available to qualified organizations and individual readers. 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Any organizations listed are for identification purposes only and messages should not be considered any official expression by the organization. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: gao-docs@MAILHOST.GAO.GOV (gao-docs) Subject: Cellular Telecommunications - GAO Report Date: 9 Jan 1995 08:42:46 -0600 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway The U.S. General Accounting Office, the Congressional watchdog agency, has recently released the following report: *** ASCII Full Text Access and Ordering Info Follows *** TITLE: Telecommunications: Status of Research on the Safety of Cellular Telephones RPTNO: RCED-95-32 DOCUMENT DATE: 11/04/94 ABSTRACT: On the basis of present scientific knowledge, federal agencies have no reason to take regulatory action on the use of portable cellular telephones because no research has been completed on long-term human exposure to the low levels of radiation generated by these phones and research findings on exposure to other sources of low-level radio-frequency radiation are inconclusive. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Science Foundation, both epidemiological and laboratory studies are needed to determine any link between cellular telephone use and human diseases. The cellular telecommunications industry plans to do both types of studies. If federal regulators want to use this research, they need assurances that it will be carried out objectively. FDA is working with ellular telephone manufacturers on the possibility of redesigning portable cellular telephone and on providing users with instruction for proper use. The Federal Communications Commission has proposed revising standards set by the American National Standards Institute for radio-frequency radiation; this standard may be applied to cellular telephones. *************************************************************** This report is available both in print and electronically. *************************************************************** Table of Contents - ELECTRONIC ORDER INFO - PRINTED COPY ORDER INFO - ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON GAO REPORTS - GAO'S DAYBOOK VIA INTERNET NEWSGROUPS - GAO'S DAYBOOK VIA FAX - GAO ANNUAL INDEX - SUBSCRIPTION: GAO'S MONTHLY CATALOG OF REPORTS & TESTIMONY - GAO REPORTS CATALOGED ON OCLC - SUGGESTIONS/COMMENTS - FUTURE PLANS - BACKGROUND ***************** ELECTRONIC ORDER INFORMATION **************** To access GAO reports as FULL TEXT ASCII electronic files from the Government Printing Office (GPO) BBS, follow these steps: 1) TELNET to and designate "port 3001" or dial 202-512-1387 (Menu Selection #22 on FEDWORLD); (***NOTE*** Depending on how your system accesses the TELNET feature, you may need to TELNET to this address: ^^^^^ and hit return a few times after connecting. 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Thank you! ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Jan 95 09:36 EST From: Hardwire <0003436453@mcimail.com> Subject: MCI Paging Announcement CONTACT: Ed Bergstraesser/Frank Walter MCI Business Markets 1-312-938-4958 1-800-644-NEWS Carol Aarhus MCI Consumer Markets 1-800-436-9749 MCI ENTERS NATIONAL WIRELESS MARKET THROUGH MAJOR PAGING INITIATIVES Agreements with SkyTel and PageNet to make wireless messaging services more available to MCI residential and business customers WASHINGTON, DC, January 6, 1995 -- Capitalizing on the continued growth of the wireless messaging market, MCI today announced agreements with the nation's leading paging companies, Paging Network, Inc. (PageNet) and SkyTel Corporation, to provide wireless messaging services nationwide to consumers and businesses under the MCI brand name. "MCI's goal is to provide, through one-stop shopping for consumers and businesses, an ever-broadening range of communication services under the MCI brand name," said Timothy F. Price, executive vice president and group president, MCI Communications Services. úÿ "Already, the wireless marketplace has attracted 20 million customers. In ten years, the market will skyrocket to nearly 90 million people and be valued at 40 billion to 50 billion dollars. Through alliances like these -- and many more on the way -- MCI expects to capture a significant share of that market." With this announcement, MCI is the first major long distance company to offer paging and wireless messaging services with the nation's largest wireless messaging companies. Paging Integrated with Friends & Family Service Leveraging its own successful marketing and branding strategies, MCI will provide local and nationwide messaging services to its millions of Friends & Family customers as part of the company's just-announced Friends & Family Connections program. Friends & Family Connections is the industry's first package of services designed to meet the total communications needs of today's teleconsumer by offering E-mail and residential 800 services -- and now paging -- to complement its long distance telephone services. Wireless Services Also Target Businesses Targeting the growing mobile work force, MCI will market paging and messaging services to businesses under the brand name, networkMCI Paging. The company will utilize its extensive national sales organization to market networkMCI Paging to businesses of all sizes. In addition to offering businesses paging along with long distance services, MCI will integrate paging with MCI's latest business communications software package, networkMCI BUSINESS. Users of networkMCI BUSINESS will be able to send and receive wireless messages via the package's e-mail component and also receive news bulletins on the pager from the package's news service, infoMCI. Business customers of networkMCI Paging will be able to customize the scope of their paging services to reflect their individual local or national requirements. "The two agreements have immediate and significant appeal to both mobile professionals and consumers who want the convenience of paging and messaging services, along with simple bill payment," added Price. "Customers reap the benefit of unparalleled customer service and responsiveness provided by MCI and the integrity of its network. In a sense, MCI is creating a new market, one where paging services combine with traditional telephone service to become part of everyday communications." The agreements extend already strong relationships between MCI and the two companies. MCI is already primary provider of 800 phone service for both companies in separate contracts. SkyTel, the pioneer in nationwide and international messaging, offers the broadest range of service options to meet the needs of business professionals who travel locally, regionally or nationwide. With the SkyTel network, customers receive text messages, electronic mail, fax and voice mail notification, and news and information updates wirelessly using paging and computing devices. The SkyTel network offers service to all major business corridors. SkyTel will also offer, in the second half of 1995, the first two-way paging and messaging services using its Destineer network. In 1994, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) awarded the first-ever Pioneer's Preference License solely to Destineer, SkyTel's sister subsidiary. Destineer also purchased two additional licenses at the narrowband PCS auctions. PageNet owns and operates the country's most extensive nationwide digital transmission network covering more than 90 percent of the U.S. population. The company was recently awarded three nationwide licenses at the narrowband PCS auctions conducted by the Federal Communications Commission. With more than 4.1 million subscribers, PageNet is the largest wireless messaging company in the United States. The company provides messaging services to the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. It also markets local, regional and nationwide paging services as well as news and stock updates, voice mail, fax forwarding and wireless data transmission to palmtop computers. PageNet expects to begin testing the world's first wireless pocket answering machine, VoiceNow (R), in the second half of 1995. MCI, headquartered in Washington, D.C., has grown from its core long distance business to become the world's third largest carrier of international calling and a premier provider of data communications over the vast Internet computer network. With annual revenues of $12 billion, the company today provides a wide array of consumer and business long distance and local services, data and video communications, on-line information, electronic mail, network management services and communications software. ------------------------------ From: dreuben@netcom.com (CID Tech/INSG) Subject: FCC Proposes to Restrict Access to Cellular 911 Date: Mon, 9 Jan 1995 02:31:09 PST I saw this post (which is somewhat edited for Telcom relevance) on the Telecommunications Roundtable Policy Forum (rountable@cni.org FOR POSTS!), and thought that the Digest may be interested in this recent FCC cellular proposal. My comments/responses to the Roundtable are included below the commented text. Doug ----------------------------- Recently, Jim Conran wrote: > The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued a Notice of Proposed > Rulemaking (Notice)(Docket Number 94-102) on October 19, 1994 in the > Matter of Revising the FCC Rules to ensure Compatibility with Enhanced 911 > Systems. [...] The proposed rulemaking requires wireless carriers to > provide this service only to "service initialized" users or users that > purchase their cellular phones from a wireless service provider. This is an innane idea, probably suggested by some of the more stingy cellular companies who want to squeeze every dime of airtime out of customers that they can. They basically don't want people getting a phone on their commission, dropping service after the minimum service period, and as a result gaining an essentially free (or close to it) phone which they can always call emergency services with "just in case" and not have to ever pay a monthly charge. This ruling is also contradictory (I suspect) with the FCCs "roaming operator" regs. which seem to require carriers to allow non-validated roamers to place credit card or calling card calls while roaming on a system. Typically, this is encountered when a roamer enters a non-home service area where there is no service on the same "side" (A/B) as the roamer's home serive provider, and thus he/she is forced to switch to the other side to place calls through the roaming operator. Since all calls are placed and paid for by use of a credit card or calling card, there is no need to validate a given user. (I've used the roaming operator on phones with totally invalid ESN/MIN combos, such as a MIN with 312-000-1212, and it worked fine.) Does this new FCC proposal take this into consideration at all? > This proposed arcane requirement is quite contradictory to the FCC's > ultimate objective of providing "broad accessibility" to 911 services. > Cellular users will have the expectation that when they use their phone to > contact 911 during an emergency, they will have immediate contact with the > operator. Consumers will not think to question the reliability of their > cellular phone or the wireless service providers, instead public > confidence on the 911 emergency system will be jeopardize. Indeed ... one of the main reasons I tell people NOT to lock out the "other side" from their phones is that if they ARE in a dead spot with, for example, the "A" carrier, the phone will seek the "B" carrier while the "A" carrier signal is too weak, and thus a call to 911 will then go through. If a phone IS locked to one's preferred "side", and they encounter a dead spot, it will at best take them some time to switch sides (if they know how to do so), and at worst be tragic if they are unable to report an emergency in time. > The Alliance for Public Access to 911 (Alliance) believes that in order > for the FCC's proposed rulemaking on the "broad availability of 911 and > enhanced 911 services" to be fully recognized, the FCC must require all > cellular switches to accept all 911 calls. Hmmm ..."require" all "switches"? Don't you mean "carriers". The switches can accept anything, including state police numbers, non-emergency numbers for disabled motorists (#77 in MD for example), etc. I think the regulations should: A) Mandate that ALL carriers allow access to 911/*911/etc. services and that they can NOT block access to these services for non-validated phones. They may, however, block access to phones on the STOLEN ESN list (not just ESN deny, you can get ESN deny for a lot of reasons other than true fraud, and you don't want to prevent people who are erroneously placed on the "denied" list [it happens a lot!] from making 911 calls while they wait for their carrier to fix the "deny" situation.) B) Allow local authorities (state DPUCs, etc.) to mandate further codes which as in "A", state that cellcos MUST allow free and unrestricted 911 access, and which manadate that they are not allowed to block such calls, except for STOLEN ESN phones. This would allow MD to keep #77, Mass to keep *MSP, etc. (You don't want to create a market for stolen phones: If 911 would work even from stolen phones where the actual physical equipment were stolen, people would have a reason to take them. By preventing 911 on stolen phones, you prevent this from ever becoming a problem, even if it would only be a limited problem anyhow.) > In addition, the FCC should require all cellular phones to be > equipped to access the strongest cellular base station signal when 911 > is called. Just 911? There are a lot of codes which shoulds be allowed, and in some cases 911 won't even work. How will this work in Canada? Won't the CRTC have to go along with this change in the AMPS format treats 911 calls? I don't think it's a good idea to mess with the AMPS protocol after the fact. Cell phones (well, the switches) normally seek the strongest signal path when available, so the only important thing here is to make switching from A to B easy (ie, have simple codes or mechanisms by which a customer can override the "A" only or "B" only settings.) What you MAY want to do is have the FCC require that user equipment manufacturers ALLOW 911 calls to go through from a given phone even if the SID for a given roaming system is blocked. Frequently, the "A" carrier in a given market will block the "B" carrier in the same market by blocking out the "B" carrier's SID code when the phone is being programmed. So, if a given user encountered a dead spot on the "A" side and tried to use the "B" side to place a call, the call would be denied by the PHONE, not the switch. As a result, no call is even SENT to the switch, and the cell customer is stuck without a way out unless he/she knows how to reprogram the phone on the spot (not likely for most customers.) > Finally, the FCC should make the 911 provision an issue as it > currently reconsiders cellular license renewal applications. The > issue of safety and security for all Americans is too important an > issue to be compromised. Indeed ... as it is they "overlook" a great deal too many things when reconsidering a cellular license; universal 911 access should NOT be one of them. Doug Reuben dreuben@netcom.com (203) 499 - 5221 Interpage Network Services Group E-Mail/Telnet Gateway to Faxes, Alpha and/or Numeric Pagers. ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Jan 1995 17:54:56 +0000 From: KRISTOFF.BONNE@PIRESSYS.BELGACOM.RTTIPC.belgacom.be Subject: DQDB and SMDS Greetings to all, Can anybody explaine me what the difference and/or connection is between DQDB (Distributed-Queue dual-bus) and SMDS (Switched Multi-Megabit Data Service). Many thanks in advance, Kristoff Bonne, BelgaCom IS/TeLaNet netwerk planning en - beheer (C=BE;A=RTT;P=RTTIPC;S=Bonne;G=Kristoff) fax : +32 2 2025497 kristoff.bonne@belgacom.rttipc.belgacom.be voice mail : +32 70 615492 ------------------------------ From: paul@vorpal.digex.net (Paul D. Guthrie) Subject: Looking For X.25 Concentrator Date: 9 Jan 1995 12:37:06 GMT Organization: Vorpal Software I'm looking for a piece of equipment that I can best term as an X.25 concentrator. I have a need to connect a number (4 would be good) of X.25 host connections at low speeds (up to 56K) into a single X.25 host connection (again low speed - 56K). I can't use stat muxs, etc, because I need a single X.25 channel at the other end. I don't really term this as a switch because I will only be making calls from one direction, from the individual ports to the "multiplexed" port. In theory, this should be simple to do because there is no address resolution to be done (any inbound call goes out a single port). This is essentially to support a multidrop X.25 type setup for devices that do not support multidrop X.25. Has anyone seen something that can do the above? Price is important because I would buy quite a few. I've looked at low end switches, such as the Netrix series 100, but at $4K approx entry price, this is a little too pricy for the small amount of functionality I am looking for. Please email any suggestions. Paul Guthrie paul@vorpal.digex.net ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 9 Jan 1995 06:26:20 -0800 From: LincMad@netcom.com (Linc Madison) Subject: Wireless CO's Challenge New NPAs? In some of the recent discussions of the swarm of new area codes coming this year, I've seen notations that the wireless companies are challenging plans to move wireless services (cellular, beepers, etc.) into an overlay area code. The challenges are being made to the state regulators and/or to the FCC. My question is, on what grounds are they challenging the overlays? It seems to me that the tariffs have always been pretty clear that the telco does not in any way guarantee that you will be able to keep a given number or area code. It seems to me that the wireless companies are being very silly in fighting the new area codes. One of the places where I saw such a footnote on the area code list was Chicago, where 630 was supposed to enter service yesterday with wireless services from 708, but the wireless companies are fighting it. What is the status? Is 630 up and running or delayed? Linc Madison * Oakland, California * LincMad@Netcom.com [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: 630 was put in service over the weekend, although I don't think there are any subscribers in that 'area code' yet. The wireless people are fighting it because they say it will impose a hardship on just their customers who will *always* have to dial an eleven digit number to call elsewhere in what is essentially one large metro area. On the other hand the people in 312 or 708 will presumeably be able to dial seven digits for many/most of their calls, needing only to go eleven digits when calling the other code or *any* wireless number. So the wireless people are saying let's spread the grief out equally among everyone. If necessary, divide northern Illinois in three parts (in place of the present two) and have a more or less equal distribution of 312/708/630 (and of course bits of 815, but not many) among both land line and wireless customers. The last report I recieved early Monday was that Ameritech has agreed to put 'some of' the new subscribers 'beginning next year sometime' in 708 into 630. They have not said what communities will be affected. They did say all existing 708 subscribers would be grandfathered 'if they wanted it' in 708. It will probably be one of those deals where if you move then you lose your grandfather status and wind up in 630. I can't really say for sure. No one has contacted me about changing the 708 number on my pager, and the local Radio Shack manager says no one at the pager or cellular offices he works with have told him very much about giving out 630 numbers ... yet here it is the day after it has officially been started. The local RS guy does not sell that many pagers or cell phones so that may be why. He said they told him next time he calls in to get a new subscriber turned on they will 'probably' give him a 630 number. My feeling is you won't see much activity out of 630 for several months to a year. I tried a few known cellular exchanges at random just now with 630 as the area code; every single one was intercepted 'not in service'. However 630-555-1212 *is* working; at least I *think* I reached it as dialed ... she told me she was in downtown Chicago (312)! It could be the local central office plucked it away when it saw the 630-555 and simply handed me to local directory assistance. PAT] ------------------------------ End of TELECOM Digest V15 #17 *****************************