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Re: [LUG] 0870 numbers ...

 


On Thu, 2009-07-02 at 19:38 +0100, Gordon Henderson wrote:
> On Thu, 2 Jul 2009, Martinus Scriblerus wrote:
> 
> > 2009/7/2 Gordon Henderson <gordon+dcglug@xxxxxxxxxx>:
> >
> >> However - http://www.saynoto0870.co.uk/ is still a good place to get
> >> alternatives.
> >
> > There is some misleading information for the organisation I work for.
> > We use an IN to distribute calls to various centres around the country
> > to reduce queuing. There are a series of numbers quoted to allegedly
> > get through to the office for different areas. Probably just some poor
> > so and so whose direct line number has leaked out, and most likely
> > somebody who has their own job to do.
> 
> One thing that really really got my goat was the whole scam applied to 
> 0870 and 0845 numbers being "sold" to businesses (and places like doctors, 
> dentists, local councils, etc.) due to the ability to queue a call "in the 
> network" rather than at the premises.
> 
> Well - to some extent that's true, and arguably needed for mega-corps 
> handling 100's of calls a minute, but for the most part it was (and still 
> is) a huge rip-off, and the "owners" of these revenue generating numbers 
> don't care. A report was published recently about the revenue generated by 
> some companies - I'll see ifI can find it, but I recall that British Gas 
> was taking in millions a year from them - all because they can answer the 
> call at the network level then put you on hold in a queue - while you pay, 
> and they trickle in the cash. You can have 1000 calls on hold to a 
> 100-person string call centre.
> 
> Now I've no issues about using the telephone service as a revenue 
> generation, or micro payment system, but at least people could be up-front 
> about it, and I really don't see why I should pay to complain to someone 
> like british gas or my bank )-:
> 
> For the average SME (1-250 staff), call queuing at the network level 
> really should not be justified at all as it's really not hard to get the 
> number of lines required into a building to support the erlang number of 
> them making/taking phone calls.
> 
> And I can network Q using 01/02 numbers - so why can't everyone else? Oh, 
> no money to be made that way, silly me...
> 
> Oh - and while saynoto0870 is good, it's not always possible to get an 
> underlying 01/02 number for an 0845 number... I can allocate them with no 
> underlying 01/02 connected at all...
> 
> Gordon
> 
Can I suggest a New piece of Hardware or Linux Based phone that when a
caller phones and asks to speak to  "the Owner Of The Business?" wanting
to Sell them Some cut price Utility. I say "Please Hold whilst I
transfer you......" to a 0870 or some such premium rate number that will
replace the lost revenue time I have spent answering their persistent
calls.  I get up to 10 per day at least.  I know when they are on the
line now, as you get a 5 sec delay from answering to them saying " Am I
talking to the Owner of the Business?" I give them 4.5 secs and replace
the receiver.


Regards

Kevin Lucas
Minions Post Master(Sub) reprieved (possibly!)
Po House, Minions,
Liskeard Cornwall 
PL14 5LE
01579363386


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