Long-distance service in Alaska: providers offer telecommunication packages to businesses that are competitive and tailored to each company.

Not to overstate the obvious, but we live in a big state. It is a remarkably long distance to and from just about everywhere in Alaska. In state, out of state, out of country. It's a long distance.

That is especially so when making a phone call. And, nowadays, long-distance service is not simply about talking. The concept of long-distance service includes data, high-speed data via frame relay, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM), virtual private networks (VPN), video, as well as audio service, private-line networks and incoming toll-free (formerly known as 800) service, just to name a few.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

In Alaska, one company pioneered long-distance service. And now lots of companies are selling it. Discussing long-distance telecommunications in Alaska first requires a little history about Alascom, the original interstate and international common carrier in the state. Alascom started out as the Washington-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System back in 1900. The congressional act establishing WAMCATS contained a provision leading to the eventual building of a civilian system. The first year, service was from Nome military headquarters to the Port Safety outpost. All of 25 miles.

In 1903, the Norton Sound radio link became the world's first permanent radio-telegraph link for public communications.

The law had a little bit to do with WAMCATS' growth. San Francisco and Washington military headquarters were connected, by telegraph, to Alaska outposts to support law-enforcement problems linked to the discovery of gold.

Interestingly, the military allowed commercial and non military traffic on the system. In 1936, Congress renamed the company the Alaska Communications System.

Congress, forever holding a stake in the state's communications, passed the Alaska Communications Disposal Act in 1936. ACS was put on the block. RCA won the bid at $28.5 million in cash and poured an additional $30 million into the outdated ACS. About that same time, RCA's long-distance communications debuted, via satellite. Alaska communications was on the map. RCA renamed the company Alascom in 1973 when it purchased the Bartlett Earth Station-one, sole satellite link with the outside world.

It was back in 1979 when pacific Power and Light Company purchased RCA Alascom. In 1982, Alascom launched its own satellite. Aurora I was the only satellite of its kind and the only satellite in the heavens devoted exclusively to a single state. Live television debuted in the state courtesy of Aurora I. Aurora II was launched in 1991. Then in 1995, the company merged with AT&T to become AT&T Alascom.

The progress didn't stop there. Today AT&T Alascom boasts more than 200 earth stations, bringing worldwide telecommunications to the cities and Bush of Alaska. (In fact, most of those earth stations are in the Bush.)

This bit of Alascom history was largely gleaned from "The Alascom Story," originally posted on the Internet by Mike Riddle in 1992. Riddle credits the story as originally from Don Kimberlin.

EVOLVING DYNASTY

The Federal Communications Commission's Telecommunications Act of 1996 opened the door to competition in the long-distance arena in the Last Frontier. Now, when a business signs up for local telephone service, the options for long-distance tops out at a half dozen or more.

GCI, an Alaskan-owned company, jumped into the interstate and international telephone business in 1982, the same year Alascom put up its first satellite. The company laid an oceanic fiber-optic cable from Alaska to Washington and Oregon in 1999. It ran a spur into Juneau and continued the main fiber all the way to Prudhoe Bay, making the company a major competitor in long-distance business.

A CALL AWAY

Long-distance rates for Alaskans are very competitive with the Lower 48. Unless considering the intra-state rate. It costs significantly more to make a non-local call within the state than to call Outside, anywhere from 2 cents to 6 cents more. The Regulatory Commission of Alaska approves or rejects rate requests, with the goal of providing affordable utilities services to those living in the state. Originally established as The Alaska Public Utilities Commission in 1970, the State Legislature changed it to its present status in 1999. In all interviews conducted for this article, there was not a single complaint from any of the providers regarding the instate rates. Possibly it is the in-state calling that keeps the bottom line black.

SERVICE AND CONVENIENCE

AT&T Alascom and GCI are inter-exchange carriers. They provide long-distance telephone and data service pretty much everywhere in the state.

Most of the state's smaller and more humble companies resale inter-exchange services for long-distance service to their customers, says Steve Merriam, a customer service manager for Arctic Slope Telephone Association Cooperative. Merriam notes that members who subscribe to the company's long-distance service do so because they enjoy the convenience of one bill for all their telephone and related services. Many also do so to support the member-owned cooperative.

SAVINGS ON SERVICES

Jamie Smith, sales manager of AT&T's Business and Marketing, says, "Competition is good. It makes us think out of the box." The variety of rate plans and options is definitely "out-of-the-box."

All of Alaska's long-distance vendors, large and small, offer a multitude of pricing maps. The common theme is "consolidate." Bring as much of your service to one provider. In addition to savings incentives offered, the convenience of a single bill is a prime selling point, and important not only from the cost savings, but also because the accounting benefits is significant. A business can more easily track, categorize, evaluate and control costs with uniform information.

Alaska businesses save on instate overhead with the use of services like AT&T Alascom's Private Line. This product offers statewide, as well as worldwide, connectivity, direct PBX-to-PBX from one office to another. (PBX stands for Private Branch Exchange. This is a private phone switch used within a company that allows inter-company phone calls without using outside lines.) It's capable of voice, video and data. When a company in Anchorage calls its office in Juneau, for example, there is not a toll charge. Just one flat fee per month.

The concept of ATM was included in the list at the start of the article. Do not confuse the acronym with your local bank's teller machine. In the world of communications, ATM is a product that provides higher capacity down the phone line. ATM enables your network to effectively handle the highest bandwidth applications with low latency. Run video conferencing, medical imaging, global financial transactions and voice over data without loss of speed or quality.

Perhaps the most popular buzzword for the office or home right now is virtual private networks. Available from most of the state's telcos, VPN lets you build remote access, broadband and most IP applications.

Such competitive offerings make for a very competitive rate structure.

AT&T Alascom boasts its 2PIC program. Customize the service to fit your company's requirements. Costs and rates are based on your volume. Other service plans advertised on the company's Web site include: International Plan, Managed Internet Service and Simply Better Flex.

Matanuska Telephone Association's rate plans are monikered: Straight Talk for Business (in- and out-of-state rates 16 cents per minute), 10/16 for Business (10 cents out-of-state and 16 cents in-state), TrueBlue for Business (add a few more bells and whistles, but still 10 and 16 cents).

"Excellent customer service from your local cooperative, annual capital credits payments as a member-owner, one bill for both your long-distance and local services, competitively priced rates and TrueBlue savings" are what sets her company ahead of the pack, says Jacqueline Whitstine, public relations supervisor for MTA.

GCI also offers competitive rates for businesses. "Business long-distance plans continue to offer lower rates, but most importantly added value, proving that competition works," says GCI's Brad Spees, director of long-distance. He says his company has saved customers millions of dollars in long-distance fees.

Like other providers, many of the long-distance products for small business are also available to residential accounts. And there are countless incentives to consider. For example, GCI also offers Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan miles to both businesses and home account holders.

Key to many of GCI's plans is the toll-free or "800" number, a feature many businesses offer their customers. Free, unlimited dial-up accounts, featured in products like GCI's Miles Ahead and Real Deal for Business, save a typical business a minimum of $16.99 per month.

A word here about "incremental" billing. The process of how a long-distance call is billed can actually determine whether the caller saves or spends. A full-minute billing plan rounds up to the nearest minute. A plan that bills 30/6 rounds up to the next 6-second increment after the first 30 seconds. It may not seem like much, but GCI claims 10 percent to 12 percent fewer minutes billed than on the whole-minute plan.

Some other services that GCI considers important to its long-distance customers: conference calling, calling cards, custom invoicing and call accounting.

Today's Alaska Communications Systems-not to be confused with the Alaska Communications System of 1936-is Alaska's first full-service, statewide telecommunications company, boasting services to three-quarters of the state's population. ACS offers long-distance and facilities-based local telephone, wireless, data, network and Internet services throughout the state. One of its long-distance offerings for long-distance business customers includes a flat-rate-per-month program for direct-dialed out-of-state and in-state calls. Additionally, ACS offers plans described as Business Basics, the Alaska Plan, Direct, II, II Executive Team, Term Interstate and Term Intrastate.

THE BIG POINT

Today's long distance telephone service is competitive. All providers interviewed for this article boast customer service, quality products and the ability to customize a calling plan suited for any business.

When it comes to the bottom line, a business simply needs to determine its needs. There are lots of whistles and bells that may make a plan appealing, but if it is not needed on a regular basis for your business, consider the costs. The best rule of thumb: Buy what is needed, but only what is needed.

For example, 800 numbers are free for the customer, but certainly not for the business. Weigh the advantages. Flat-rate plans require serious review of business usage. Data, video, networks, speed-none come without a cost. When it comes to interstate and intrastate calls-know your market and what is required to serve it. Finally, consider single-source billing to track such costs.

A business client's success in the telecommunications realm is when the company knows its market and its customer and correctly and adequately serves them conveniently. All featured companies offer customer-relation professionals to help you research, review and evaluate your company's needs-and to make recommendations based on those needs. In today's competitive market, it also pays to get a second opinion.