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Glossary of Terms
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Access Charges - Long distance companies pay local phone companies access
charges to use their network for originating and terminating long distance
calls. The charges are based on minutes of use. They are commonly passed
through to customers as part of the per-minute toll rate.
- BLETS - Basic Local Exchange Telephone Service
- CLEC - Competitive Local Exchange Carriers are companies competing for local telephone business.
- Cramming - the practice of placing unauthorized, misleading, or deceptive charges on your telephone bill.
- FCC - The Federal Communications Commission has the authority to regulate all interstate
communications (including cellular) originating in the United States. The FCC is run
by a five-member board appointed by the President.
- Federal Subscriber Line Charge - A monthly fee paid by telephone subscribers that is used
to compensate the local telephone company for part of the cost of installation and maintenance
of telephone wires.
- ILEC - Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers are companies that provided
local telephone service to customers in Virginia on December 31, 1995, and held
a certificate from the SCC.
- IXC - Interexchange Carriers are companies that are allowed to provide long distance
telephone service to customers.
- Landline - Traditional wired telephone service.
- Lifeline Service - A minimal telephone service designed for low income consumers to
assure they can be reached by phone and have a “lifeline” to the world. The basic rate for
this service is less than standard rates.
- Linkup Service - A service to increase the availability of telecommunications services
to low-income subscribers by providing a credit to the non-recurring installation and service
charges for qualifying residential subscribers.
- Local Loop - The physical wires that run from the subscriber’s telephone set, or PBX
or key telephone system, to the telephone company’s central office or switch.
- Reseller - A company that provides telecommunications service by buying the service
on a wholesale basis from another company and reselling the services to the public.
- Slamming - The practice of switching a telephone customer’s long distance supplier without
obtaining permission from the customer.
- State Corporation Commission (SCC) - The agency charged with regulating local and
intrastate long distance telephone service within the Commonwealth.
- Tariff - The documents filed by a company describing its services and the rates, terms
and conditions under which those services are offered.
- Telecommunications Act of 1996 - Federal legislation enacted in 1996 to promote competition
and reduce regulation in order to secure lower priced and higher quality services for
American telecommunications consumers, and encourage the rapid deployment of new
telecommunications technologies. The Act gave various powers to the FCC and states
to accomplish these goals.
- Universal Service - The nationally recognized policy of providing every household
with at least one access telephone line.
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