VOIP etc > Voice Over IP - VOIP > VOIP Tech Chat > [Other] Lingo pricing

·Gizmo5

1 edit

reply to mlcampbe
PhonePower and Voipo are good choices for VoIP companies that provide the equipment for you.

CallCentric, FutureNine, and Voip.MS are some of the good choices for BYOD. Note that on most of the BYOD providers you pick outbound and inbound plans individually.

-------------------------

When someone last mentioned Lingo here, Mr. Slate was still yelling at Fred, and that cat never did stay out for the night.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-03 21:00:08 ·

SCADAGeo

join:2012-11-08
N California

reply to mlcampbe

said by mlcampbe:

Additionally it seems crazy that the fees are 67% of the service fee.

Wow, this reminds me of my Frontier/Citizens Communication days.

said by mlcampbe:

Regulatory, Compliance & Intellectual Property Fee for xxxxxxx 2.99

This is an interesting fee.

I am curious about the percentage applied towards Intellectual Property, because I associate this with patent licensing (royalty payments) and legal expenses (offensive, defensive, and retainers).

said by mlcampbe:

As such I am beginning to look for a new provider. Do all have the same tax/fee ratio?

Definitely not.

said by mlcampbe:

What is the groups recommendation for price/features for US calls only?

I have multiple inbound and outbound routes from my Asterisk (PiaF based) PBX system.

I normally use the CallCentric routes for incoming and outgoing calls because of their consistently excellent call quality (before this topic is side tracked, I switched to using DNS SRV records during the DDoS attacks against CallCentric).

I pay $4.45 per month for a Dirt Cheap DID (residential, unlimited - this includes the $1.50 E911 cost recovery fee) for inbound calls, and I use the Pay As You Go outbound plan.

My total cost is less than $10/month (this includes international calling).

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-03 22:56:03 ·

mlcampbe

join:2002-03-28
Decatur, AL

reply to mlcampbe
Just to follow-up...

I called lingo to complain and ask what could be done to reduce my costs. The first person I talked to only offered one of their limited minutes plans. Although that might be ok I was not willing to lose the unlimited minutes plan at this time. I was transferred to another person and she offered me a $6 per month lifetime discount off of their unlimited $22.95 plan. This was due to the fact that I have been a lingo customer for many years.

I accepted it as I don't want the hassle of setting up asterix or google voice, or callcenter. Basically I need an plug-and-go solution. I considered viatalk and voipo but in the end my discount was enough to keep me for the next couple of billing cycles. I fear that the 'county/local taxes' of 5.00 is going to apply to any service I get.

So in the end I now have:
$22.95 - $6.00 discount = $16.95

Assuming the tax fee is proportional then it will be approx:
Federal Program Fees: 1.11
Universal Services: 2.11
State Taxes & Fees: 1.46
County/Local Taxes: 5.00
Subtotal for Tax and Fees 9.68

So my monthly cost should be around $26.63

That at least is reasonable while I search for other providers.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-04 08:45:03 ·

PX Eliezer
Premium
join:2008-08-09
Hutt River
kudos:13

Reviews:

·Gizmo5

Thanks for the update and glad you were able to negotiate.

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For some more info, here is how things could work with CallCentric. There are many ways to do it, these are just two examples:

»www.callcentric.com/products/

500 outbound monthly minutes: 6.95 including cost for e911
Phone # and unlimited inbound minutes: 5.95
Total 12.90 paid monthly (no need for annual payment)

1000 outbound monthly minutes: 12.95 including cost for e911
Phone # and unlimited inbound minutes: 5.95
Total 18.90 paid monthly (no need for annual payment)

No other taxes or fees (911 cost is included in these particular outbound plans, trust me on this even though their website is confusing on this point) except that there is NY State sales tax only for NY State customers....

As with Voip.MS, you'd have a 25.00 porting fee, and you'd need an ATA or equivalent.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-04 09:32:16 ·

PX Eliezer
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join:2008-08-09
Hutt River
kudos:13

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·Gizmo5

reply to mlcampbe

said by mlcampbe:

I fear that the 'county/local taxes' of 5.00 is going to apply to any service I get.

That's simply not true.

Have you checked directly with your local governments (city and county) to see exactly what taxes and fees they impose on VoIP?

And even if there are local taxes, they are imposed on the VoIP provider or the company that provides the phone number to the VoIP provider (CLEC), they are NOT passed through to the customer unless the VoIP provider chooses to do so.

The provider can:

a) Pass on the taxes directly, or

b) Mark up the taxes and charge you extra by imposing "regulatory compliance fees", or

c) Eat some of the cost of the taxes, or

d) Eat all of the taxes.

------------------------------------

Based on a Decatur zip code, Ooma indicates [State and Local taxes] of $ 2.50, they add other fees as well but those are not designated as "local".

Voipo would charge a flat $ 3 a month for all taxes and fees.

Voip.MS might charge some type of Canadian GST/HST but that won't apply to you in Alabama.

As noted, CallCentric won't charge more except for NY State residents.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-04 09:45:56 ·

N9MD
Too busy to chat
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join:2005-10-08
Boca Raton, FL
kudos:5

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·Callcentric

·VOIPo

reply to mlcampbe

said by mlcampbe:

...Do all have the same tax/fee ratio?

Spend some time browsing through past threads in these Forums and your knowledge base will expanded exponentially. No, most of the VoIP providers discussed (and used) by BBR members do not have such exorbitant fees and taxes and surcharges and assessments.

PX Eliezer has cited typical CallCentric charges. Here's a post that sites typical Voip.ms costs: »Re: [Voip.ms] How difficult is it to set-up a VoIP?

The actual choice of providers depends on whether you want to buy and set up your own ATA (adapter) ... a relatively simple task due to the wealth of information on the BYOD providers' websites. Or do you wish to be pampered by obtaining a fully provisioned adapter from a VoIP provider (plug & play). Also, figure in your expected monthly usage patterns (inbound and outbound minutes) along with what features would be useful to you (CallForwarding, BlackListing, VoiceMail, Simultaneous or Sequential Ringing, etc.)

We rarely see a post regarding Lingo ... and when we do, it generally expresses negative comments. There are many far superior and cheaper (but not "cheap") options out there for those looking to use VoIP.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-04 20:20:54 ·

nitzan
Premium,VIP
join:2008-02-27
kudos:2

reply to mlcampbe

said by mlcampbe:

Federal Program Fees: 1.48
Universal Services: 2.81
State Taxes & Fees: 1.94
County/Local Taxes: 5.00
Subtotal for Tax and Fees 11.23
Regulatory, Compliance & Intellectual Property Fee for xxxxxxx 2.99
Emergency 911 Services Fee for xxxxxxx 1.99
Subtotal for Surcharges 4.98

Wow. I operate a VOIP provider and I have no idea what some of these fees really mean.

Federal Program Fees: ???
Universal Services: this one is legit, but is a percentage of your price plan, so if you got a cheaper plan you'd pay less for this (and some providers won't charge it at all).
County/Local Taxes: not sure what this is. Most smaller providers won't charge it.
Regulatory & IP fee: doesn't mean anything - it's just another charge to mark up the price without increasing the base price.
911 fee: $1.99 is pretty high. Not a big deal overall I guess, but other providers charge $1-$1.5 or so.

To be perfectly honest, you are paying way too much for the same service you could get from another provider for a 3rd of the price. For your scenario (plug-and-go) someone like VOIPo would work and literally cost a 3rd of what you're paying now.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-05 01:41:49 ·

SCADAGeo

join:2012-11-08
N California

reply to mlcampbe

Taxes, Governmental Surcharges and Fees

Taxes, Governmental Surcharges and Fees

said by mlcampbe:

don't want the hassle of setting up asterix or google voice, or callcenter.

I didn't mean to imply that it was necessary to set up a PBX. It's not. Sorry about that.

I have a Google Voice free calling route, too, but the quality varies from call to call.

Google Voice call quality is acceptable for a lot of people, but when it comes to call quality, I prefer quality over free.

said by mlcampbe:

I fear that the 'county/local taxes' of 5.00 is going to apply to any service I get.

This may not be a valid assumption, as the others have pointed out.

I've attached page 2 of my November statement from CallCentric.

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-05 02:59:25 ·

SayNoToPOTS

join:2012-10-12
Fair Lawn, NJ

Reviews:

·Optimum Online

reply to mlcampbe

Re: [Other] Lingo pricing

With all the time they spend creating and administering fees it's hard to believe they have any left to actual deliver phone services!

+1 on PX's recommendations, although if you choose the BYOD route and are not versed in setting up your own equipment I would recommend "testing" the waters with low cost options (Google Voice or a Pay Per Use Service) before "jumping in" and porting any numbers

to forum · permalink · 2012-12-05 20:28:25 ·

mwoodj

join:2001-10-27
Madison, AL

reply to mlcampbe
Have you received another bill since this change? I have also been a Lingo customer for many years and the rapid increase in fees and taxes has left me with a decision to make. I'm not ready to ditch my home phone but I don't want to continue paying these prices. I have my server running Asterisk but I mostly use it for testing (I actually worked for Digium when they were tiny... less than 10 people... and working out of a closet almost.) I considered calling Callcentric but I did not find a number on their site. It looks like you can only contact them through e-mail. Switching to a company that doesn't even have a contact number seems a little risky to me.

to forum · permalink · 2013-01-13 22:51:09 ·

Iscream
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New York, NY
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·Verizon FiOS

People see the only things they want to see. What about just clicking at "About" link at Callcentric WEB site - this link is prominently visible at the bottom of each page there:

»www.callcentric.com/about/callcentric/

But it's true - one can get quick and helpful reply by contacting Callcentric support via their built-in Trouble-ticketing system which keeps a track of each post (including upload/download files links) until an issue is resolved.

Also - Verizon does have phone support. Have you ever tried calling it?

You don't have to switch to a company which seems risky to you.
IMHO - switch to a company you feel good with and have trust to - otherwise you're going to be disappointed and frustrated.

to forum · permalink · 2013-01-13 23:10:33 ·

PX Eliezer
Premium
join:2008-08-09
Hutt River
kudos:13

Reviews:

·Gizmo5

reply to mwoodj

said by mwoodj:

Switching to a company that doesn't even have a contact number seems a little risky to me.

Your statement is ironic because CallCentric is one of the best documented VoIP companies around. Their main offices are in long-established telecom facilities in lower Manhattan (New York City) which became even more clear during Sandy.

And it's even more ironic because your current outfit (Lingo) is not well regarded by those in the know. BTW Lingo is owned by Primus, which went through bankruptcy in 2009.

CC could easily list a contact number so you could talk to some kid reading from a script in Mumbai.

But more meaningfully, they choose to provide their customer support by ticket system.

And anyone who uses them will tell you that except during a major disaster like Hurricane Sandy or a criminal DDoS attack, their response to tickets is both quick and competent.

On this website you are on right now, CallCentric has 145 good reviews, zero bad ones.
»User reviews - Callcentric

Lingo's totals are 142 good reviews but 66 bad ones.
»User reviews - LINGO

I have never had any real issues but for little things whenever I have contacted them, the response has been quick and helpful, even on evenings or Saturdays.

------------------------------

Really, pretty much anything you'd need to know is on the website.

Inbound and outbound plans:
»www.callcentric.com/products/

Number porting checker:
»www.callcentric.com/lnp/

Features:
»www.callcentric.com/features/

FAQ:
»www.callcentric.com/faq/

Device configuration:
»www.callcentric.com/support/device/

---------------------------------

More documentation on this company (which exceeds that of many others):

General:
»www.callcentric.com/about/callcentric/
»www.callcentric.biz/web/

FCC Section 214 certificate (under former company name Accatel):
(Few VoIP providers have one of these....)
»licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe···e+Number

CallCentric Wholesale, CallCentric, and Telengy (their CLEC) are all registered as corporations in the State of New York.
»www.dos.ny.gov/corps/bus_entity_search.html

CallCentric's affiliate Telengy is licensed by the New York State Public Service Commission as a CLEC:
»documents.dps.ny.gov/public/Comm···1154EFE}

CallCentric's FCC Form 499:
»apps.fcc.gov/cgb/form499/499deta···m=829117
Many other providers are not even registered.

Even CallCentric's toughest competitors (and there are many good companies out there) recognize the integrity of this company.

to forum · permalink · 2013-01-13 23:54:04 ·

mwoodj

join:2001-10-27
Madison, AL

reply to Iscream
I certainly didn't intend to offend. I looked at the product page, the support page, and the contact page. These are all places you usually expect to see a phone number prominently displayed. None of them have it. I'm not saying that there is a problem with handling support issues through a ticketing system. Some people prefer to ask sales and support questions over the phone is all. As far as being "in the know", I have been a member of this site since 2001 so I'm not exactly a newb off the street. I haven't had to keep up with VoIP companies for a long time. I left Digium in 2004 and I'm a software engineer not a telecommunications worker. I have been a Lingo customer for over 8 years with relatively few issues for all that time (an ATA died a few years ago and it needed to be swapped.) It is only the recent price increases that cause me to consider a change. So as a happy customer I haven't had to keep up with what companies have come and gone. I am just now starting to investigate what the options are. In my post here I simply wanted to know how much the provided discount affected this customers bill. I am happy to learn what Callcentric has to provide and that they do have a number I can contact. The truth is that I don't really need to pay for a lot of the Lingo features that my Asterisk server could easily provide me so this option is one that piques my interest. I will definitely look into it more. I would still like to know what happened with this persons bill though. Oh and I have always known that Primus owns Lingo and I was aware of their 2009 bankruptcy at the time.

Thanks!

to forum · permalink · 2013-01-14 03:20:11 ·

ymhee_bcex
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Tarzana, CA

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