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Sistem News
November, 2003
- Telephony Edition
Telecommunications Auditing
By Andrew Fioretti
Many businesses are paying thousands of dollars in error to telecommunications
carriers. This can be due to billing errors, tariff violations,
overcharges, overlooked unused services, expired contracts and
so on. Don’t wait to find out that you are still being invoiced
for locations which have been closed for years.
In many cases financial experts are responsible for approving
telecommunications bills. This might result in overlooked charges
since many people do not take the time necessary to properly review
their telecommunications bills.
Here are some basic pointers to catch overcharges:
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Understanding
Terms: Take time to jot down unknown terms and call the
customer service numbers listed on the bill to inquire. Most
people do not know what half the verbiage and buzz words mean.
The phone company banks on this.
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Carefully Review
Your Bill(s): Depending on the size of your establishment,
plan on spending a minimum of one hour when looking at a bill.
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Dead Line Charges:
Charges for dead lines result in thousands of dollars a year
spent doing nothing more than lining the carrier’s pockets.
Often businesses are paying for services they no longer use,
are being billed incorrectly for services they do use, or are
not taking advantage of special options available from their
telephone company. It is not unusual to uncover unused lines
that have been billed for years.
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Compare your
phone bills to your local phone company’s tariffs. Make
sure you are only being billed for those services you are using.
Additionally, more and more companies have reduced the number
of trained telecomm professionals on staff. With this in mind
it may be advisable to engage the services of outside sources
that specialize in telecommunications auditing. Often this is
performed on a contingency so there is no charge out of pocket
to the company. This also gives key company individuals necessary
insight into where overcharges may exist and such information
can be re-applied in later studies.
In conclusion it is fair to say that most people do not understand
their telecommunications bills. By taking steps necessary to clear
up some of the mystery to the charges, a company is taking a vital
step to reduction the of unnecessary overcharges. Call Andrew
at (585) 475-9180 x222 to schedule an audit today!
AltiWare 4.6 for
AltiGen Available Now!
AltiWare 4.6 is the latest AltiGen software version and contains
many upgrades and changes to AltiAgent and AltiView. Monitor and
Barge-In features have been added to the personal calls of workgroup
member for closer monitoring. In 4.6 AltiServ Contact Center replaces
Contact Advantage (4.5) with additional features. The AltiServe
Contact Center will be available in a 10 agent starter package.
There are many more features available in this upgrade. It is
available free to current 4.5 users. For upgrade costs from other
versions call Rick at (585) 475-9180 x211. Installation of free
upgrade is not included.
Year
End! Capital Equipment Tax Law Changes
The end of the year is fast
approaching and Genesistems wants to remind you of some
important changes in the tax laws concerning capital
equipment.
If you are looking at year end
and budget money is still available or planning for next
year’s budget, don’t forget that Genesistems can provide you
with all of your business technology needs! We can provide a
PC or a complete network, a telephone or a complete phone
system, or anything in between. Here are some general rules
about depreciation that have changed due to the tax law
changes enacted this past spring. As always, check with your
accountant or tax advisor to see if you qualify.
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The part of the tax law
entitled Section 179 deductions that lets you take a
specific amount of immediate depreciation on qualifying
purchases has increased four fold. Prior to 2003 you could
deduct up to $25,000 of first year depreciation on
qualifying goods. In 2003 this limit is increased to
$100,000. That means if you bought a phone system for
$90,000 in 2002 you could deduct $25,000 as Section 179 and
the rest got depreciated over time. In 2003 you can deduct
the entire $90,000.
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The additional first year
depreciation is increased from 30% to 50% for any amount
over the Section 179 deduction.
To sum up, you can write off up
to $100,000 in capital equipment in 2003 and 50% of any amount
over $100,000 (up to $400,000) before some limitations kick
in. In 2002 it was $25,000 and then 30% of the excess over
$25,000. If you are thinking about capital purchases, talk to
your accountant or tax advisor and remember that Genesistems
is your source for quality products on time and on budget!
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