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How to Cut the Beastly Cost of Digital Services If there was eve

游客2023-07-19  23
问题             How to Cut the Beastly Cost of Digital Services
    If there was ever a time not to procrastinate (拖延), that time is now.
    With the economy in poor shape, and many Americans pulling back on their spending for fear of what tomorrow (or even this afternoon) will bring, now is not the time to assume that the cost of some of your entertainment and communication expenses are set in stone.
    I found that out the hard way recently when I wondered if I could cut off my expenses. Off in the corner of my desk sat a fax machine. Once humming with activity, it had been quiet for most of the last three years, except for the occasional times it spit out an ad for a fake vacation or false health care plan. I gave it little thought. That was the problem.
    I canceled the fax’s rarely used, but just as rarely noticed, phone line and cut my monthly expenses by $30.
    Bitten with the savings bug, I rushed about, gazing over every bill in sight. Next on the chopping block: a third-party long-distance service once offered through Costco that was cheap at the time, but was now costing me much more than an all-in-one phone plan. I rearranged my telephone plan, originally ordered 15 years ago, to now include unlimited local and long distance. Total savings: another $32 a month.
    Seeing our newfound cash flow, my wife asked me to examine her business’s phone bills. We removed a separate long-distance plan in favor of an all-in-one service and saved $20 a month. For those keeping score, that’s $82 a month so far.
    With just a few hours of work, it became clear that it was possible to save hundreds of dollars, even thousands a year without decreasing the level of services we already received.
    Here are some more tips on how to do the same.
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
    Cable, satellite and telephone companies can only be overjoyed that millions of their customers take no action to lower their bills, and instead routinely pay much too much for overpriced plans they purchased a decade ago.
    Faced with increased competition, they will gladly tell you about better package prices if you ask, but they won’t be calling you up to tell you how you can save money.
    Pull out your bills and then call all your providers. Tell them you’re paying too much and you want to lower your bill. They can only say no.
    If They Say No, Threaten to Switch
    As in a teenage romance, your digital providers seem to care about you only when you’re about to break up. If you’re thinking about switching to another satellite, cable or phone provider, call your current one and let it know.
    And remember this: The regular customer service representative won’t be as powerful as someone in the cancellation department to cut you a better deal.
    "We will work with our customers to find a package that suits them," said Bill Kula, a Verizon spokesman.
    At their discretion (i.e. their ability or power to decide responsibly), Verizon sales representatives can cut the price of DSL service, offer free months of Internet access, increase the discount on voice service or give a $50 American Express gift card to customers returning to Verizon’s television service.
    AT&T gives its employees similar powers to make deals. Representatives are known to offer enhanced services for a basic price, and to lower the cost of one service to its bundled price even if you’re not buying the bundle. "If it’s a matter of keeping the customer, we’ll do the best we can," said Fletcher Cook, an AT&T spokesman.
    Satellite and cable companies are also quick to make deals once you tell them you’re thinking of bolting. Receiving discounted service, months of free-pay TV or low or no-cost DVRs is common.
Bundle Your Services
    With traditional landline (固定电话线路) ownership decreasing as more customers use only cellphones, the major phone and cable companies are filled with packages intended to keep you from leaving. AT&T, for example, offers local and unlimited long distance for $40.
    That price drops to $35 if you also get wireless (but you must tell the company to combine your bills). A $99 package includes unlimited landline service, a DSL connection and wireless service for $10 less than those services would cost if priced separately. The company will also pay new customers $100 to sign up.
    Verizon offers a package of unlimited local and long distance via landline, DSL and 150 channels of DirecTV starting at $80. Unlimited landline voice calling and DSL are $50 a month; depending on the plan, new customers can receive a $125 to $175 rebate (回扣). Comcast is reducing the price of some of its HD packages by $15 to $20 for the first year. And Time Warner is cutting the package price for its cable, DSL and phone service by $20 a month for one year in some regions.
Reconsider Third-party Carriers
    Once, third-party long-distance companies offered cheaper long-distance calling than you could get from your local provider, but that might no longer be the case. Some, like the dial-around service 101-6868 and the prepaid PennyTalk, charge low rates for each minute to Europe and North America, but that’s only half the story.
    They play down the fact that they add an additional 39 to 49 cents to a call for a "connection charge", raising the real rate substantially.
    Similarly, Internet calling services that allow you to use your traditional home telephone may not save you money.
    For instance, Vonage charges $25 a month for unlimited local and domestic long distance and free calls to five European countries. But the service still requires a DSL or cable modem connection. And because that service will not be part of a voice bundle, you may wind up paying the same or more than another phone company would charge if you went with one of its packaged deals.
Ask for Corporate Discounts
    Many corporations have discounts with the major wireless phone carriers. Bring your corporate business card to a wireless carrier’s store or check your company’s intranet site for particulars. Depending on the company, you can typically knock $10 off the monthly cost for a smartphone’s voice and data plans.
Monitor Web Sites for Deals
    Several Web site discussion boards trade secrets on the latest deals and how to get them. For cable and satellite, try AVS Forum (www.avsforum.com) and Satellite Guys (www.satellitegnys. us). Wireless deals can also be found at Fat Wallet (www.fatwallet.com).
If All Else Falls, Downgrade
    Do you really need hundreds of TV channels? If not, get rid of cable or satellite, and watch free digital and HD broadcast TV with an antenna (天线). Send faxes from your computer. Cancel your landline and use only your cellphone; if you keep within your allotted (分配) minutes you can call anywhere in the United States for no extra charge. And when times get better, you can always add back services one by one. You might actually find that an essential service wasn’t needed after all. [br] Before they switch to another digital provider, customers are suggested to contact the current one’s______.
选项 A、boss
B、employee in charge of cancellation
C、spokesman
D、regular customer service representative
答案 B
解析 该部分首段末句建议If．．．switching…call your current one(如果你正在考虑换服务提供商，先给现在的服务提供商打电话)，第二段接着提到regular customer service representative(普通的客服代表)没有someone in the cancellation department(取消部门的员工)的权力大。由此可推知，给现在的服务提供商打电话时应与负责取消的部门的人员联系。[B]employee in charge of cancellation是对原文的someone in the cancellation department的同义转述。
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