Arizona Landscape

It's All Over Now Baby Bell...

Mountain Bell > US WEST Communications > Qwest > CenturyLink

Wireline's Declining Market

End of the line...

CenturyTel recently announced it's acquisition of Qwest Communications to be rebranded as CenturyLink. CenturyTel is the descendant of an old Independent Telephone Company and Qwest, a Baby Bell, previously US WEST, which in turn was a descendant of Mountain Bell, Pacific Northwestern Bell, Malheur Bell and Northwest Bell. They operate on the Public Service Switched Network (PSTN) providing basic wireline service to residences and businesses based on a network model that dates back to the late 1940s. It is a declining market.

These are photographs of what has become of once was The Phone Company.

411: What City Please?

Men Broke Barriers Too...

In early 1973 I was one of the first male telephone company switchboard operators hired by the Bell System (and Independent Companies) in the US in over 75 years. I was crossed-trained as a Directory Assistance operator (we worked with large paper directories) and as a Toll and Assistance operator on a manual cord switchboard built in 1948. I later worked as an overseas operator on old circuits in an International Operator Center. Some of my anecdotal operator stories, as well as operator history articles are on the website Privateline.

Telephone history still interests me and look forward on this blog for photographs of original switchboards we used "back in the day."


This is a short video I did a few years ago telling a comedic story about one of my experiences in those days.


411: For What City Please? from JR Snyder Jr on Vimeo.

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POTUS LBJ and Obama: Early Adopters of Communications Tools

...Presidential Electronic Trendsetters in footsteps of Lincoln.

"President Johnson believed in using the telephone, and his staff saw to it that he was never more than two minutes from one no matter where he was."

From The Heritage of Time: The People and Times of GTE Southwest 1876-1988, by Larry Johnson. (1990)

LBJ on phone in Oval Office.
Notice the large PBX console,
speakerphone box and
thick cable connecting the console.


President Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) was an early adopter of complex telecommunications to stay in constant communication wherever he went. Through this method he was able to keep tabs on a volatile social political environment he wanted to control. He advanced the use of telecommunications in the Office of the President and the White House, paving the way for a 21st century President Obama to use a Blackberry device.

When he was elected Vice President in 1960 LBJ's "telephone mania" was kicked into high gear and he required even more telephone equipment at the LBJ Ranch . The ranch was served by the Independent Telco Southwestern States Telephone and the high level communication needs in ranch country required a complex arrangement between them and the nearby local Bell System company, Southwestern Bell in Austin.

The assassination of President Kennedy meant an immediate increased demand for instant communications at the ranch by the "always on" new President. On Privateline.com in Telephones at the LBJ Ranch the story of how sudden communications needs were met at the LBJ Ranch, during that national emergency, is recounted from the out of print Good Connections: A Century of Service by the Men and Women of Southwestern Bell by David Park Jr. It is a study in how the regulated wireline telecommunications infrastructure stepped up to meet the needs of a President demanding instant communications in a manner that gives every indication he would make use of wireless devices and the internet today. Also in that section is Don Kimberlin's brush with LBJ's telephone mania and experience with POTUS setup for President Richard M. Nixon.


Going Mobile
LBJ's console
underdesk pullout
Air Force One


President Johnson pushed the envelop of available telecommunications for instant messaging through electronic communications in the 1960s and that included personal involvement in the conducting of a war. A century earlier, President Abraham Lincoln pressed boundaries of available electronic technology by extensive use of the telegraph for instant messaging.

President Abraham Lincoln is a hero of President Barack Obama and Mr. Lincoln's T-Mails: How Abraham Lincoln Used the Telegraph to Win the Civil War by Tom Wheeler (2006) is a friendly read on how President Lincoln combined his skill as a writer with use of the telegraph for effective immediate electronic communication to win the Civil War. Tom Wheeler plays a role and is influential in President Obama's telecommunications policy. It is helpful in understanding how electronic communications that advance in one President's administration permanently changes social communication in the Office of the President .

Blackberry President

President Obama's Air Force One Phone

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"Oh Doctor please, some more of these, outside the door..."


JFK 1963 Phone Call requesting "a little extra medication" sent up



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White House Operators 1970

Qwest: Baby Bell Black Sheep

As a former long time Mountain Bell-USWC-Qwest employee who aaaaaalmost made it to a full pension or buyout but didn't (Joe Nacchio just decided to cut the cord when our turn came around)...

there is still value in Qwest, even if they don't always recognize it, leaving the conclusion that they still have life after debt if they manage it correctly.

The following is a Doug Mohny's FierceTelecom article of December 15, 2008 on Qwest. Then also BloggingStocks blog on Qwest by Steven Halpern, where Doug Mohny derived his information.

The Qwest story: to be continued...



"Qwest Speculation: Turnaround or takeover"

December 15, 2008 — 5:35pm ET | By Doug Mohney

Investors have been focusing on Qwest's shortcomings, but at least one Wall Streeter is looking hungry like the bull at the stock.

Turnaround specialist George Putnam says the company is looking good because of its large base of landline - yes, landline - customers. Each landline customer is an opportunity to sell new or expanded services, including data, video and wireless. While Qwest continues to build out its broadband network, it has partnered with Verizon Wireless to sell cell phone service and DIRECTV for video.

Meanwhile, Qwest has been expanding its business services unit revenues, and Putnam expects revenues to uptick on the consumer side as it continues to add more products.

Cash flow remains "very strong" and, after cutting its debt by nearly a third since 2001, Qwest is now providing dividends and buying back shares. Expenses have been cut by $2.5 billion over the past five years, and the company is trimming another 1,200 jobs this year.

Putnam says that Qwest looks especially tasty for an acquisition by either AT&T or Verizon, or even a foreign telecom firm looking for an American beachhead [Hmm, there's a lot of Persian Gulf money sloshing around these days]. At about six times 2008's expected earnings and four times cash flow, the company looks "very cheap."

Regardless, he expected to see earnings and cash flow to increase and multiples to rebound, translating into a "significantly higher" stock price.

For more:
- Speculation on Qwest's fate is blogged.

Related articles
Qwest CFO reassures investors
Qwest Q3 profit drops, job cuts ahead

Qwest (Q) for profits: Turnaround or takeover?

Posted Dec 15th 2008 10:42AM by Steven Halpern
Filed under: Newsletters, Qwest Communications Intl (Q), Stocks to Buy, Technology

"Investors have been focusing on the shortcomings at Qwest Communications International (NYSE: Q), and to be sure, it has plenty," observes turnaround specialist George Putnam.

In his The Turnaround Letter, he adds, "But the company also has very valuable assets and strong cash flow. In addition, we believe the stock would command a good premium in a takeover." Here's his bullish review.

"Following its IPO in 1995, Qwest expanded via acquisitions and partnerships, and participated in the telecom bubble of the late 1990's.

"Unlike many of the other high-flying telecoms of that era, however, Qwest realized that in addition to a story you needed customers. In 2000, it went out and acquired US West, which gave Qwest the revenue base to survive the bursting of the telecom bubble

"Although the company survived, the shareholders have had a rocky ride during the current decade. The stock peaked around 60 in 2000, dropped to just above 1 in 2002, rebounded to 10 in 2007 and then declined to its present level.

"Management's challenge is too maximize the value of its assets. One of Qwest's greatest assets, and biggest challenges, is its huge traditional landline telephone business. The landline business is in a slow but steady decline as customers move to wireless or Internet telephony.

"But each landline customer also represents the opportunity to sell new or expanded services, including data, video and wireless. Qwest has partnered with Verizon Wireless to provide cellphone service, and DIRECTV to provide video, and it is building out its own broadband data capability.

"The company is showing good growth in broadband and video customers. Wireless customers have declined recently as Qwest changed partners from Sprint to Verizon, but they should begin to rebound as the new relationship becomes better established.

"Qwest has been successful in expanding the revenues of its business services unit, and as it adds products on the consumer side, it should be able to improve revenues there as well.

"In the meantime, the company is cutting costs to boost the bottom line. Over the past five years, management reduced expenses by $2.5 billion. So far in 2008, Qwest has eliminated 2,300 jobs (6.4% of its workforce), and it just announced plans for another 1,200 job cuts.

"Cash flow remains very strong. After using the cash inflows to cut debt by nearly one-third since 2001, the company has begun returning cash to shareholders – about $1 billion over the first nine months of 2008 – in the form of dividends and share buybacks.

"As the stock price has declined, the dividend yield has risen to a very generous 12%. While dividends are never guaranteed, management appears committed to maintaining the high payout. The company also has plans to buy back another $200 million of its stock.

"We believe that Qwest will reward shareholders by growing revenues and profits on its own. But it is also a very attractive acquisition candidate.

"It would fit well with either of the other two, much larger, remaining former Baby Bells, AT&T or Verizon. Or it would provide a good beach-head for a foreign telecom company that wanted to expand into the U.S. market.

"At about six times this year's expected earnings and four times cash flow (measured by EBITDA), Qwest looks very cheap.

"We would expect earnings and cash flow to increase and multiples to rebound as investors become less skittish – leading to a significantly higher stock price. Alternatively, we believe the stock would command a good premium in a takeover."

Steven Halpern's TheStockAdvisors.com offers a daily look at the latest market commentary and favorite stock picks and investment ideas from the nation's leading financial newsletter advisors.

Qwest poses as David versus small New Mexico telecom carrier’s Goliath

The echoes of 1984 and 1996 are still reverberating. . .

First an article from the Albuquerque Journal Online Edition Business section on 12.01.2008 by Winthrop Quigley, "Qwest claims disadvantage against ISPs like Cyber Mesa", with excellent information as food for thought...especially on "the last mile" and the business model of Qwest regarding local service and competition.

Following the Albuquerque Journal Online Edition article is Fierce Telecom's pithy article "Qwest complains about a little New Mexico carrier" by Doug Mohny.

Quotation of the Day:

"It really is kind of geared at regaining the monopoly, as far as I can see," Hill said. "If they [Qwest] were willing to compete, why wouldn't they lower their rates or improve their service?"

Cyber Mesa President Jane M. Hill

Monday, December 01, 2008

Qwest claims disadvantage against ISPs like Cyber Mesa

By Winthrop Quigley
Copyright © 2008 Albuquerque Journal
Journal Staff Writer

It is, perhaps, not inaccurate to call a dispute between Qwest, the multistate Baby Bell telephone company, and Santa Fe-based telecom carrier Cyber Mesa a David-versus-Goliath battle — with Qwest in the role of David.

Rather than Qwest's size offering any advantage, Qwest argues it operates at a disadvantage against the small, unregulated companies that use Qwest's own equipment to deliver telephone service that competes with Qwest's service.

Qwest has been trying since January 2007 to offer some months of free service to former customers who drop a competitor's phone service and return to Qwest. Cyber Mesa has successfully blocked the promotion by forcing the state Public Regulation Commission to consider whether the rates are legal. The PRC is scheduled to settle the dispute next month.

Since 1996, federal law has required companies like Qwest, which had a monopoly on local telephone service, to negotiate agreements with companies like Cyber Mesa to use Qwest facilities to deliver competing telephone services to customers.

Cyber Mesa President Jane M. Hill said in an interview that her company pays Qwest $20 a month per phone line and purchased equipment that it needs to provide services. The equipment is installed in Qwest's central office. Qwest connects Cyber Mesa gear to the local infrastructure, called switched access lines, that delivers service over what is called "the last mile" to residential and business customers.

Hill said Cyber Mesa's phone service costs 60 cents a month less than Qwest's, and Cyber Mesa offers free caller ID.

In filings with the PRC, Qwest says companies like Cyber Mesa have become a serious threat. "Qwest has lost switched access lines (to competitors) at the rate of more than 3,500 per month," the company argued. "Qwest stands to lose over 88,0000 access lines in New Mexico from the time Qwest first attempted to initiate a promotional offering in January 2007 through the end of this year."

Qwest warned that the erosion of its business will harm shareholders, cost employees their jobs and reduce Qwest's ability to invest in New Mexico. Qwest says it has to be able to compete "on equal footing with unregulated, nonunion competitors."

Qwest said the regulatory agreement it had reached with the PRC, known as AFOR, allowed it "competitive pricing flexibility" by allowing it to offer rate reductions to customers five business days after informing the commission unless the PRC finds there is a reason to suspend the rate decrease and schedule hearings.

Jane Hill said Cyber Mesa objected to the rate decrease because "a regulated entity (like Qwest) cannot offer a regulated service, namely telephone service, below cost." That would violate antitrust law, she said.

"It really is kind of geared at regaining the monopoly, as far as I can see," Hill said. "If they were willing to compete, why wouldn't they lower their rates or improve their service?"

She added, "If Qwest lowered its rates by a dollar or so on a residential basis, then we'd really be in trouble, but it would be legal and the consumer would benefit." Just moving customers from one provider to another through promotions is not competition, it's "marketplace churn," Hill said.

"It's a business decision, not a matter of principle," she said. "I wouldn't do it if I thought there would be no consequences to my business. I think it's the beginning of a real threat."
Qwest argues that Cyber Mesa hasn't proven either that Qwest's offer of temporary free service results in below-cost service or that the harm it might suffer from the promotion is greater than the harm Qwest will suffer by not offering the promotion. Qwest's PRC filing suggests the costs of the promotion would be recovered by providing continuing service to the returning customer.

"Aside from generic, unspecified allegations of prejudice to rights of due process and harm to fair competition, Cyber Mesa neither alleges harm in its objections nor quantifies the harm," Qwest said.

The Albuquerque Journal Online Edition staff writer may be reached at wquigley@abqjournal.com or 505-823-3840.

Qwest complains about little New Mexico carrier

December 1, 2008 — 4:52pm ET | By Doug Mohney

Qwest feels outmatched when it comes to competing with smaller, unregulated companies that use Qwest's own equipment to deliver competing phone services.

Since January 2007, Qwest has been trying to offer some months of free service to former customers who drop a competitor's service and return "home" to Qwest. Independent carrier Cyber Mesa has - so far - successfully blocked the promotion in New Mexico by forcing the state Public Regulation Commission to consider whether the rates are legal. The PRC is expected to rule next month.

For over a decade, (since the 1996 Telecommunications Act, to be precise) incumbent carriers have been required to negotiate deals with independents to provide facilities to deliver competing phone services to customers. In recent filings with the New Mexico PRC, Qwest describes companies like Cyber Mesa as a serious threat. Qwest has lost landline at a rate of more than 35,000 per month and estimates that it has lost over 88,000 access lines in New Mexico from the time it tried to start its free service promo offering in January 2007.

If Qwest doesn't get the change, the company says the erosion of its business will harm shareholders (Hmm, more than they already have?), cost employees their jobs and, most ominously, reduce Qwest's ability to invest in New Mexico.

For more:
- Albuquerque Journal reports on Qwest complaint. Article.

Blackberry Storm vs. iPhone 3G

These Two Smartphones are getting the intro media blitz...

but two new worthy contenders are also out, the Samsung Saga and the HTC Touch Pro, that may rise to the surface.

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from jon4lakers of jon4lakers.com on his YouTube channel:


Blackberry Storm vs. iPhone 3G



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Blackberry Storm: Initial Impressions




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"Your Life's Work: Telephone and Telegraph" 1940's film

Telephone and Telegraph Traditional Jobs and Gender Roles

This 1946 occupational film by Vocational Guidance Films, Inc. has excellent clips of women working on cord switchboards. It also clearly demonstrates the expected gender roles in the work force and occupations of that era. The social progress to keep in mind is that women were considered an integral part of the economy and employment, although in restricted roles, after WWII as opposed to attitudes prior to the war.

Another viewpoint to note is the underlying assumption in the film that people are necessary to build the economy (after WWII) and the acceptance of fair exchange of labor in return for secure and stable employment.

This film was made in an era when rebuilding the economy was a priority and that building telecommunications infrastructure was considered an integral and necessary part of that. In this era, when we suddenly find ourselves in desperate need of rebuilding our economy, the current discussion is once again on infrastructure.

Rebuilding roads and bridges are necessary and would be helpful but are part of an oil and petroleum based old economy. Building out the gaps in the digital network, creating and securing seamless inter-connected networks across the continent, seems a more forward way to accomplish turning the economy around by fully bringing it into the digital age. The US has in the past pulled itself out of economic crisis by advancing science and technology, supplemented by services created by the advances.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Listen to the "excellent opportunities available" in the "twin fields of telephone or telegraph communications...for secure life long employment."

Gender roles clearly defined: "girls...with ability and experience may be promoted to a supervisor" (and the tone is the opportunity ended there). The job description for operators, both telephone and telegraph, state "a high school diploma may be required."

although "in the early days operators were men and the service was crude"

still...

"job opportunities for men lie in...trained technicians."
"men are also needed at the switchboards that control the circuits...as well as general executive duties"
"excellent opportunities are provided for young men to acquire business training."

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THIS FILM IS PUBLIC DOMAIN



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What is the NPA on this Switchboard Multiple Panel?

At the time this Toll and Assistance switchboard was in use, the state where it was located had only one area code and only recently split into two...

TelCove (Level3) Central Office Tour

a 2006 Central Office...beyond telco PSTN

A good overview of a Central Office adapted to the new environment in a non-bell telco environment. This tour was recorded prior to Level3's acquistion of TelCove and integrated into the backbone fiber provider that interfaces with the Public Switched Telephone Network.

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Road Trip!

Tomorrow begins a road trip to New Mexico including a visit to the Telephone Museum of New Mexico in Alburquerque.

With camcorder in hand and my traveling partner's digital camera, hopefully we'll be able to get some good images.

110 Fourth Street NW Albuquerque, NM 505.842.2937
telmuseum@hotmail.com

The building as it is today and in below in 1906

Networking Telegraph, Fax, Telephone, Radio, Print in the mid-1950s for business and social advances

This Western Union video indicates how the telegraph network was still a vital backbone in the mid-1950s to "serve the communications need of America." Interesting to note the use of the telephone to call Western Union to send a telegram. This is an indication that even with the advances of Operator Toll Dialing, Universal Service and Direct Distance Dialing, for basic functional messages, the telegraph was still the least expensive and most effective method. Faxes also passed across the telegraph network.

Use of the telegraph network then was very much like text messaging (SMS) is used today in the sense that it operated over a legacy network that had been outdated for its original intention but was quickly put to use as an adjunct to the new. Text messages are transmitted over the traditional analog paging network and not on the digital cellular voice/data network.

The analogy is the telegraph backbone, although no longer the primary method of transmitting information was still in use for useful low-cost functional purposes for decades. The analog wireless network backbone is used today for text messaging, paging from cellular phones and other purposes and is also likely to remain in use for a long time.

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How Phone Phreaks Launched Hacking...

and started social engineering.

The five video series below is from ca 2000 and tells the story of Capn Crunch and his Blue Box and the development of phone phreaking culture. There was a natural progression from phreaking the phone system to hacking massive corporate computers. Watch the videos to see how John Draper, aka Capn Crunch, was the hero of Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs and their origins as hackers, and the origins of social engineering. This social behavior, using impersonal technology to manipulate personal behaviors, is manifested today on the internet, especially through online social networking sites.

My parents accomplished their goal of redirecting my behavior in their own inimitable way by convincing me to become one of the first teenage male operators in over 75 years. I had progressed from "playing with the phone" as a kid to an adolescent "breaking into the phone" and that could lead to serious consequences. So...I never got very far as a phone phreak because suddenly I virtually had the keys to the kingdom when I sat at the old cord switchboard where I learned and legitimately used all the codes on a regular basis. As heavily monitored as it was, it was the source of the information I was seeking.

It's amazing how much you could figure out how to reach the most far flung places across the globe, just by sitting at a lowly cordboard with plain tandem trunks, working with only a few people in the middle of the night...in a state with one area code in a Toll Center designed only for standard North American calls. With subtle inquiring questions at the right time, to gain insight and information, on how the networked was designed and worked.

What the telephone network personally meant to me was connection and communication with the big, wide world and I saw it as a big impersonal system I learned to use effectively to get out of where I was. I was intrigued by the massive network and what could be done with it to connect people by shrinking geography through telecommunications. It was the old social network and almost everything that has occurred with the internet with social interaction, online networking and connection to government and commerce, was preceded on the telephone network.

Phone phreaking had a mentality that naturally leant itself to hacking and the beginning of social engineering started on the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN). The evolution from the PSTN to the internet was natural and the social behaviors of the internet were already in society on the PSTN for decades.

btw...

Computer History Museum

In many ways the post WWII analog telephone system that developed has been more properly recognized by computer historians as the beginning of contemporary interaction online. It often seems telephone historians are more interested in either the progression of technology in a purely factual manner or basking in the aura of a bygone era. The fusion of the idea that the old PSTN socially networked people and was pivotal in the transition of society to the digital Information Age and the internet has yet to be fully explored by telecommunications historians.

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John Draper inspired Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs



The Blue Box
video 1 of 5


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Inventing Hacker Sensibility
Busted!
video 2 of 5


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The Counterculture of Hacking
personal computing and the transition from phreaking to hacking
video 3 of 5


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WarGames!
video 4 of 5


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Phreaking: from wireline to pc to wireless
video 5 of 5


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International Telephone Operators Video ca 1970's

You've got to love the complaint of the customer in this video about the echo on the satellite circuit. "Do I get charged extra for bouncing off this satellite?"

In that era the noise, echo and clipping was expected at times in that stage of technology. Someone hearing that today would think he had a justifiable complaint but in the 60s and 70s the tension between the customer and the operator was the customer's expectation of good quality voice (too many televised space missions) and every day reality . The frustration of the operators of that time was explaining to customer's that "this is it, this is the connection you have and this is the rate" in a patient and calm way and start timing as quickly as possible.

We had not come as far yet with the technology...

...performing that work was a unique juxtaposition of using old technology that had been adapted over decades, to access and utilize new technology that hadn't been fully developed yet. It required skill to manage an old cord switchboard whose basic design was from 1929, updated with electromechanical switching advances and mark sense computer technology...an analog world...and somehow get satellite to work well enough that a customer could have at least a modicum of "exclusivity of conversation." They "could hear" and "be heard," although more often than not, with effort.



The quality of this video is rough, likely due to conversion from analog to digital and with compression. It gives a pretty good idea of what it was like handling calls in the AT&T International Operating Centers in the late 60's and early 70's. This appears to be in the Manhattan IOC where the cordboards were much older and built out from the original "Overseas Operator" centers. Manhattan and Oakland at one time had the higher call volumes due to having access to the majority of unique dedicated circuits.

The other IOCs were located in Montreal, White Plains, Pittsburgh, Springfield, Denver and Jacksonville. Springfield, Denver and Jacksonvlle were new centers built to handle the volume by placing operators where there were new Number 4 ESS Toll switches being placed. The majority of the call volume was handling calls that could be key pulsed by the operator using the International Dialing Codes on a North American tandem trunk. There were additional reasons for locatons, for example MARISAT began communcations service in 1976 and Jacksonville was atmospherically deal to handle High Seas on the Atlantic Ocean.

In the Jacksonville IOC the cordboards were actually fairly new, reconditioned standard Western Electric cord switchboards pulled out of a Toll Center that was closed somewhere. They were installed in the early 70s in four units of the IOC and the beautiful wood paneling was painted over with colors of that era (different color for each unit) with murals on the walls. It would look very dated now although the idea was to make the building as modern and forward looking as possible in the most cost effective way.

The Springfield, Jacksonville and Denver centers had been built to meet the rapidly growing demand for international calling. Their primary function was to process calls on North American tandem trunks (for example the new 4 ESS Toll Switch in Jacksonville) that would soon be handled by IDDD (International Direct Distance Dialing). The operators were processing volumes of calls by in effect dialing IDDD for the customers on station-to-station calls since the IDDD had not been rolled out on even a small scale in addition to the person, collect, card, coin, hotel and third-party billed calls. The original design was to then convert these centers to International Service Position Systems (ISPS) in these more remote and lower wage cost centers.

No one correctly predicted the demise of the Bell System, Divestiture and later the internet...making these centers functionally moot.

seizing a trunk in USA for posterity

This is an interesting video "seizing a trunk in USA for posterity" using Skype in the great tradition of phone phreaking "back in the day."

CenturyTel to Buy Embarq For More than $5 Billion in Stock

If you know the history behind these two formerly Independent telcos and how they became what they are today (including a new formula-ized name for one of them), this is interesting news.

From the Wall Street Journal Technical section today this comment:

"It also marks another step in the consolidation of America's traditional phone operators. Such companies are under consistent threat from wireless and cable-television operators. That has made efficiency all the more important for CenturyTel and Embarq, which run phone operations in 25 states and 18 states, respectively."

FierceTelecom's article stated:

"The deal will involve Embarq shareholders receiving 1.37 shares of Centurytel stock for each share of Embarq stock they own, resulting in a combined entity in which Embarq shareholders "are expected to own approximately 66 percent and CenturyTel shareholders are expected to own approximately 34 percent," a press release said. The deal price represents 36 percent value of Embarq's Friday closing stock price.

Glen F. Post III, CenturyTel's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said in the press release that joining the two companies will accelerate the strategic plans of both. Telco consolidation at the independent level has been expected for many months, though the credit crisis and macro-economics conditions were seen as freezing progress toward such deals."

In a FierceTelecom article Dan O'Shea goes on to write:

"CenturyTel's bid to acquire Embarq is surprising on at least a few levels."..."This is an intriguing deal, and more details--as well as more questions--are sure to emerge in the days ahead. "

Yes indeed...the industry landscape and the names change but the direction remains largely the same.

MECOBS: Mechanized Combined Line and Recording System

MECOBS

From Privateline.com is this description of MECOBS by Ronald Briggs.


[Editor Tom Farley's note. Included in the Privateline.com page are discussions of personal remembrances and the article 'Mechanized Combined Line and Recording System", which appeared in the January, 1973 GTE Automatic Journal. The authors were A.B. Behnke, J.A. Calder, and W.R. Trudo. Click here for a partial, uncorrected scan of this document (internal link.]

In reading through the MCLR documentation, the system seems like a TSPS type concept answered and operated at a cordboard position. It mentions the switchboard could only be used in either "MCLR" (using SATT equipment) or (manual) cord mode, but not both at the same time. The "Dial Rear/Flash Key" description on page 264 details how the flash function is used to identify the trunk in the multiple that the caller is on if the call needs to be manually handled, thus removing the SATT ticketer from the call and the operator. It sounds similar to another system idea you forwarded to me last year, I believe from Northern Electric, that was quite a bit more advanced but not as advanced as MECOBS.

MECOBS, though, was different. All operations and keying were accomplished using the unit installed in each position, only two keys illuminated (ST, NUM EXPR (same as Error)) and the display only displayed two digit error codes. I came close to purchasing a three panel 3CL position with MECOBS, had all the keys been in the unit I would have (it was missing the CA TMG key). Attached are pics of it, the keyshelf unit keys have been rearranged from their original positions in the unit. The display unit is the upper left corner, the keyset was lower right, the black KP keys were lower left, the blue function keys were between the black keys and display, the green class charge keys were above the keyset to the right of the display. ST was to the right of "0", below "9", NUM EXPR was above "3".


MECOBS completely eliminated the need for mark sense tickets, everything was keyed - toll, credit, trouble, coin deposits. The only time tickets and the round KP keys to the right of the MECOBS unit were used was when MECOBS was down (NUM EXPR flashing 30 IPM, display reading "99").

From the lead article:

Mechanized Combined Line and Recording System by A. B. Behnke, J. A. Calder and W. R. Trudo GTE Automatic Electric Laboratories (partial, uncorrected scan, internal link)

"Historically, CLR (Combined Line and Recording) cord toll switchboard operation resulted in the operator manually preparing a ticket on subscriber originated calls. This method of operation included the marking of called and calling number, recording the start and completion of conversation, and the monitoring of supervisory lamps for disconnects. This article describes a new development which offers an economic method of 'machine ticketing' CLR calls that results in minimum operation effort in completing these calls. This system can function with existing SATT (Strowger Automatic Toll Ticketing) systems, and is primarily designed for use in small to medium toll centers having a maximum of 125 cord toll switchboard positions."

1952: Atlanta Telephone Operator History

This fact gleaned from a statement on the Atlanta Telephone History site in the section 1952 - Operator Toll Dialing explains a lot for me. When I was an AT&T International Operator handling Inward calls in the 70s a lot of our calls were for cities in the south. We would in turn dial the Inward operator in Savannah GA and they would get the call through...by dialing every digit on a rotary dial and you could every pulse come back! It seemed like a cumbersome process.

1952 Ivy St operators

"In 1952, Long Distance Service was improved with the introduction of "Operator Toll Dialing". This was made possible by the installation of a new toll switching machine in the 51 Ivy building. Now, to connect long distance calls, the 51 Ivy operator simply plugged in to a trunk going into the new machine and keyed the 3 digit area code and local number."

Then this...

"Operators in Americus, Augusta, Buford, West Point, Columbus, Griffin, LaGrange, McDonough, Milledgeville, Rome, and Savannah were now able to take advantage of Operator Toll Dialing, using the Alanta 4A machine. But most of these operators were not fortunate enough to have Keypulsing like the Atlanta operators and had to dial all calls using a rotary dial."

Which explains why so many of our Inward calls from overseas operators went to southern US cities that basically had updated 1920s to 1940s local switchboards and central offices. Some calls just required a local operator to plug directly into the central office trunks on the switchboard and dial the last 4 or 5 digits of the number.

AT&T/Bell System Operator Routing Codes

Key Pulse
000 - The Rate Quote System (RQS) (1)
001 - 005 Spare (2)
006 - 008 Reserved (3)
009 RQS
010 Reserved
011 International Origination Toll Center (IOTC) (15)
014 TWX Switching Plan (Canada) (?)
015 - 071 Spare
072 - 079 Reserved
080 - 081 Spare
082 - 087 Reserved
088 Spare
089 Reserved
090 - 099 Spare
100 Plant Test - balance termination
101 Plant Test - test board
102 Plant Test - Milliwatt tone (1004 Hz)
103 Plant Test - signaling test termination
104 Plant Test - 2-way transmission and noise test
105 Plant Test - Automatic Transmission Measuring System / Remote Office Test Line (ROTL)
106 Plant Test - CCSA loop transmission test
107 Plant Test - par meter generator
108 Plant Test - CCSA loop echo support maintenance
109 Plant Test - echo canceller test line
110 - 119 Operator Codes
115 Operator Leave Word
116 Inward DA
120 Network Emergency Center (?)
121 Inward Operator (9)
122 AT&T Ready line INWATS (4)
123 - 130 Reserved
131 Directory Assistance
132 - 137 Reserved
138 IDDD for Equal Access (7)
139 - 140 Reserved
141 Rate and Route (10)
142 -147 Reserved
148 points not on an NPA - Hermosillo, Mexico (5)
149 Reserved
150 Cable Control (Satellite Avoidance) - Hawaii (5)
151 International Assistance
152 - 157 Reserved
158 Operator Assistance for Equal Access (7)
160 International Operator Center (IOC) (6)
161 Trunk Trouble Reporting
162 - 167 Reserved
168 points not on an NPA - Grenada
169 - 170 Reserved
171 points not on an NPA - Monterey, Mexico
172 points not on an NPA - Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands (Canada only)
173 Reserved
174 Cable Control (Satellite Avoidance) Caribbean
175 Reserved
176 points not on an NPA - Mexicali, Mexico
177 - 178 Reserved
179 points not on an NPA - Grenada
180 points not on an NPA - Mexico Numbers
181 Toll Station
182 International Switching Center (ISC) White Plains, 5 (14)
183 ISC New York, BW24
184 ISC Pittsburgh
185 ISC Atlanta OLT
186 ISC Sacramento
187 ISC Denver/Sherman Oaks (?) (15)
188 ISC New York, 5450
189 points not on an NPA - Mexico City, Mexico
190 points not on an NPA - Mexico Numbers
191 Conference loop around
191 AT&T Advanced 800 intercept recording frames (4)
192 Reserved
193 Cable Control (Satellite Avoidance) - Grenada
194 points not on an NPA - Tijuana, Mexico
195 AT&T Advanced 800 (4)
196 AT&T International 800 (4)
197 Reserved
198 AT&T International City Service Center (ICSC)
199 Cable Control (Satellite Avoidance) - Alaska
199 AT&T USA Direct (4)

4 or 5 digit codes (8)

1150,11501 Universal or Coin Callback
1151,11511 Conference Operator (11)
1152,11521 Mobile Service / Air-Ground
1153,11531 Marine Service (12)
1154,11541 Toll Terminal
1155,11551 Time and Charges callback
1156,11561 Hotel / Motel callback
1157,11571 IOTC access trunk
1158,11581 Inward- completion assistance (BOC)
1159,11591 Inward- busy line verification (BOC)
1160,11601 Calling Card Validation - dial pulse equipment (13)
1161,11611 Calling Card Validation - DTMF equipment
1162,11621 Calling Card Validation - MF equipment


Notes:
(1) The Rate Quote System is a voice response system used by operators to obtain routing information. The system, now being phased out, was used as an alternative to calling the Rate and Route operator. Operators would key-in required routing information and a synthesized voice would respond. Though the RQS is still operational, operators now obtain routing information from COMPIS (See note 10).

KP+DD+ONPA+NXX+TNPA+NXX+ST to get the "rate step" for:

DD = 00 Now
DD = 01 Day Call (08:00-17:00)
DD = 02 Evening Call (17:00-23:00)
DD = 03 Night Call (23:00-08:00)

KP+04+? Something with Mexico, unclear.
KP+05+NPA+NXX+ST Gives the routing for a BOC inward (See note 9)
KP+06+NPA+NXX+ST gives the routing for an AT&T inward operator (See note 9)
KP+07+XXXXXXX+ST Reads back the numbers you just typed
KP+08+? Something with Enterprise and Zenith numbers, unclear.
KP+09+NPA+NXX+ST Gives you the current time for the area and exchange just dialed.

(2) When a code is marked spare, that means that there is no current or planned network wide usage. It still may be utilized as a non-standard POTS exchange for WATS service by local companies.

(3) When a code is marked reserved, it means that there may be planned network wide usage.

(4) This code is used by an AT&T custom service. It may be thought of as acting like a special area code and takes the following dialing format: KP+XXX+YYY+YYYY+ST where XXX is the code in question and Y can be any number 0-9.

(5) All "points not on an NPA" and "Cable Control" function as pseudo area codes and are followed by a telephone number.

(6) Calls to the IOC are dialed as follows: KP+160+CCC+ST CCC=Country Code (i.e. 044 or 144 for the UK).

(7) These are special codes used with Equal Access. They are as follows:

KP+138+PIC+ST then KP+CC+cc+xxxxx+ST
KP+158+PIC+ST

Where PIC is the primary carrier code, CC is the country code and cc is city code. xxxxx is subscriber number. We are not sure exactly when and where these are used.

(8) All four and five digit codes are dialed as follows:
KP+NPA+XXXX+ST or KP+NPA+XXXXX+ST.
Keep in mind that not every code is in use in every NPA.

(9) The format for an AT&T inward is usually KP+NPA+121+ST -- In some small cities there is an extra code used called a Terminating Toll Centre (TTC) or sometimes just a city code. If a TTC is used, the format is KP+NPA+TTC+121+ST. To get an inward with most BOCs you dial KP+NPA+11591+ST but there are some which use a format of KP+NPA+TTC+121+ST. To get the inward routing for a particular exchange, use the Rate Quote System (RQS).

(10) The number for Rate and Route was 800+141+1212 but this was discontinued sometime last year (1987) when the TSPS operators got a computer terminal called COMPIS. In each there is an inward which acts like a Rate and Route operator. In New York it is 716+121.

(11) With the advent of Alliance Teleconferencing, use of the conference operator dwindled. There are currently four operator handling conferences. They are as follows: Atlanta 404+11511, Minneapolis 507+11511, New York 212+11511 and Oakland 415+11511. 800-225-0233 translates to the conference operator closest to you.

(12) The Marine Operator is used in calling ships that are close to the United States. There is an operator called the "High Seas" operator who can be reached by dialing 800-SEA-CALL (800-732-2255). The High Seas operator is a service of AT&T, while Marisat is an independent company. A High Seas call can go to any ocean for $14.98 for the first 3 minutes and $4.98 for each additional minute. A Marisat only to three oceans and costs $10 a minute.

(13) 116X and 116XX are used to verify an AT&T Calling Card number. You dial KP+NPA+116XX+ST when you hear a "bong" you dial the calling card number. If you use 11611 you enter the number in Touch Tone and if you use 11621 you enter the card number in MF using KP and ST.

(14) These ISC codes are used to provide alternate routing for electro-mechanical switches. Some older electro-mechanical switches, for example #5 Crossbar (5XB) cannot outpulse 011+CCC (CCC=Country Code) for international dialing. AT&T has set up these special codes to handle international calls. A 5XB can dial KP+18X+ST. They would then receive a wink (short blast of 2600 Hz) and would proceed to dial the country code and number. If you want to make an international call you dial KP+(NPA)+18X+ST where the NPA is optional. After the wink dial the country code, city code and number. The "," after the city name is the switch number if there is more then one 4-ESS in that city.
(15) The 187 code was assigned to Atlanta until up to the end of February 1988. AT&T is in the process in routing the calls to the Sherman Oaks Office in California.

(16) To make international calls dial KP+011+CCC+ST where CCC is the country code; and then dial KP+CC+XXXXXXX+ST where CC is the city code and XXXXXXXX is the telephone number.