Illinois Business Journal - Telecommunications changes call for informed consumers

Rapid technological advances in the telecommunications field have done more than make our heads spin. They've created a distinct overlap.

"We're getting to the point where the computer and phone are merging together with cell phones, video phones and wireless, growing a new breed of service experts," said Gary Hursey of Hursey Telecom in O'Fallon. "At some point in the near future, your phone, television and computer will all be connected."

Hursey said his company has found that customers do not wish to call four different people to assist with their service problems. Hursey Telecom considers itself one company to fill the niche of providing service and packages based on the merging of many technologies.

"What we're seeing is that your telephone line could be, in the near future, a number of sources, such as wireless, or even a personal phone number, which is mobile," he said. "The number would be forwarded to anywhere you are, and possibly keep your cell phone number, even if you switch services."

Laptops can be connected wirelessly to the Internet, even from automobiles, Hursey said.

"If you're traveling, you can pull into a rest stop and hook up to the Internet right there to check your e-mail, with laptops or a palm pilot," he said. "And that technology is already here."

Businesses are learning the advantages of new technology as well, he said.

"We can tie locations together with the Internet, providing the ability to connect offices in different cities as if they were in the same building," Hursey said. "Calls can be made at one location, allowing the operator to intercom or see if that person is already on the line, even if he's not at the actual location."

As an example, Hursey said his company just installed a phone system linking Texas, Indiana and Illinois locations based on Internet connectivity.

"Those phone systems in Texas are now able to intercom over the Internet to their offices elsewhere," he said.

In addition to businesses with multiple offices, Hursey said this type of technology has been applied to school districts, banks and city government. And although the new concepts require new equipment such as high-speed data lines, it is affordable for small companies.

"If you are talking on the phone a lot between offices, the only costs are the hardware," he said. "You'll pay that off by saving on your phone bills."

Barbra Davis of Phone Masters Limited in Wood River agrees that the buzzword in telecommunications today is Voice Over Internet Protocol, in which telephone and computer are on the same wires and talk to each other.

The many choices in technology become more complicated with choices in phone service providers, Davis said.

"Phone Masters strives to serve as a liaison between our clients and the phone company, setting up the packages and services needed so clients can make better choices," she said. "We don't charge for this liaison service. We feel it benefits us in the long run. If we're installing a phone system for a customer and we have a handle on what Ameritech is doing, it has helped us manage the installation for that customer. We know what the phone lines are and when they will be there because we deal directly with the people that install the phone lines with the phone company."

There is a lot of competition now for long distance and local toll service, competition that can create confusion for businesses. Davis said her firm gets calls all the time from companies with "deals." She and her staff make an effort to educate clients, helping them understand what it all means.

Davis said enjoying a direct relationship with the phone companies helps her clients learn about programs the phone companies offer. As an example, Davis said phone companies offered volume discounts in the past, but no longer offer the same discounts.

"However, the phone companies still offer discounts on those calls, discounts which are very beneficial for the customers because they can save 20 percent on their phone calls if they subscribe to these programs," she said.

Competition, Davis said, is the main motivator for phone companies to offer such deals, sometimes with commitments from the customer in order to gain the benefits of such special programs.

"We bring that information to the customers and make them aware of the programs so they can make their decisions with all the information, rather than just taking a phone call from a provider company's representative who is trying to get them to switch their service," she said.

Davis said phone systems have also changed dramatically over the past few years.

"Now you can package a new phone system with voice mail for around $3,000," she said. "A few years ago, voice mail systems were outrageously priced."

Some of these small companies don't have an information technology or telecommunications person available to keep up with all of this and to make sure the business is privy to the best options.

"That's where we come in," Davis said. "We play that role so business professionals don't have to hire a consultant or do the research on their own."