xsiddalx
join:2005-03-11
Chicago, IL
 ·AT&T Yahoo
| Re: Wait... The original article is incorrect....
DSL providers do not pay into the universal service
fund any more than you or I do when we purchase telephone
service. (maybe oversimplicated, but true)
Most of the fees in the telco industry are junk fees (cable
companies aren't exempt with their "franchise fees").
"Regulatory compliance"
"Universal service"
"account maintenance"
Why not add on:
"IRS tax filing fees"
"local gross receipts tax" - varies
"state income taxes" - varies by state
"sales tax differential"
"lobbying fees"
bah...it's all bogus.
"pass through" type fees are not taxes, however, most
of us are too addicted to our internet and are establishing
"what the market will bear". Since we have contracts,
the providers have to pass through as much as possible
via "fees" because that is what we agreed to when we
signed on. We pay the same "12.99" or, whatever rate,
and are locked in with the contingency for them to
add fees.
Until a class action suit is filed, what recourse do
we have other than suck it up until the contract expires
or refuse payment and have credit report issues.
Next we might expect to see our food prices at the grocer
have an "advertising fee" and "fuel surcharge" added...
Welcome to the deregulatory model of communications 
It is up to the market to hash this out (meaning our
walking with our dollars)
Since you mention the law though, fees are not taxes (check your bill, taxes are applied to those alleged taxes).
A good lawsuit or ousting of some of our sold out politicians might more effective than a class action law suit, but frankly, we won't bother (at least in the US). |
