Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ginosko!gem.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!network!ucsd!orion.cf.uci.edu!uci-ics!zardoz!ccicpg!cci632!rit!tropix!moscom!ur-valhalla!uhura.cc.rochester.edu!rochester!rutgers!netsys!vector!telecom-gateway From: zellich@st-louis-emh2.army.mil (Rich Zellich) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: What *is* "least cost" Message-ID:Date: 22 Jul 89 14:17:11 GMT Sender: news@vector.Dallas.TX.US Lines: 22 Approved: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.dallas.tx.us X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 201, message 2 of 8 In the TELECOM Digest, Volume 9, Issue 200: > (4) Least call call routing. If you do not specifically request a > specific long distance carrier, the local operating company should > route the call on the carrier with the lowest list price for the > given origin and destination. With stored program control exchanges, > this would be fairly simple to implement, and would spawn a new > level of competition between the long distance companies. Simple? Just what is the "lowest list price"? Rates from different service providers differ not only on first-minute or first-3-minute charges, but also on subsequent-minute charges. Which is cheaper often depends on how long you talk...how is the computer supposed to know if you're making a 1- or 3-minute call, or a 5-10 minute call? Does the system have to keep a customer-history log on you and use AI techniques to figure out how long you're *probably* going to talk? And how will it account for multiple subscribers using the same line? Not to mention knowing if you prefer a certain provider for calls to particular locations, due to line quality considerations... All in all, I think we'll be using 10288, et al, manually-entered access codes for a long time (those of us who aren't too lazy to not always use the "default" LD carrier.