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Cellular Telephone

  Cellular Telephone

[Print Version of SLA]

Service Description

The Cellular Telephone service plan provides cellular telephone service and equipment from a number of cellular telephone service providers. The plan is intended to cover the State’s normal requirements for cellular telephone service and equipment at attractive rates.  Coverage plans range from basic emergency only service to national coverage plans for as many as 6,000 minutes per month of usage.  The Cellular Telephone service plan is the mandatory statewide term contract for use by the State’s executive branch agencies and is available for use by non-State agencies.

Six national companies provide service plans under the Cellular Telephone service plan.  All are listed below with coverage area and minutes available.  All service providers include a minimum one-year parts and labor warranty on phone instruments.

 

Vendor

Plan Types

Max Minutes

Broadband Data

Phone Price Range

Alltel Communications

National / Regional

     4,000

           Yes

$0.00 to $349.99

AT&T Wireless

National / Regional

     4,000

           Yes

$0.01 to $499.99

Sprint/Nextel Wireless

National / Regional

     4,000

           Yes

$0.01 to $408.00

Sun Com Wireless

National / Regional

     4,000

           Yes

$0.01 to $479.00

US Cellular

Regional

     3,600

      Limited Area

$0.99 to $434.30

Verizon

National / Regional

     6,000

           Yes

$0.00 to $569.99

 

Most service providers include a number of standard and optional features in their respective plans. Many providers also offer high-speed Internet and eMail access.  Listed below is a sampling of commonly available features:

             

  • Free night and weekend calling
  • Voice mail
  • Three-way calling
  • Call waiting
  • Call forwarding
  • Caller ID
  • Free nationwide long distance
  • Broadband access for Blackberry devices
  • Free mobile-to-mobile calling

 

For details on all plans click here

 

General Information:

 

Please Note: Effective October 1, 2007, several changes have been made in the general policies and order processes for obtaining cellular services and accessories under the new contract agreement. Please read the following procedures carefully to ensure you are familiar with the new processes.

  • A new method of securing cellular services information and pricing is being implemented under the new Cellular Telephone contract--the use of secure web sites that are maintained by the respective vendors on State contract.
    • These secure web sites will provide all the information pertaining to the State contract for the respective vendor
    • Customers will select one of the vendors on the State contract (URLs listed below) to obtain information and to place orders
      • Customers will be able to provision services, to include adds, disconnects, changing service plans, and porting of services
      • Customers will also be able to purchase equipment and accessories from these secure web sites
    • To ensure proper pricing and service plan utilization, all orders must be placed through the respective vendors secure web site
    • Pricing and program plans are subject to change at any time
    • Shipping is available by standard mail and delivery and free on board to any location within North Carolina
    • Delivery - Service providers will complete delivery within five (5) consecutive calendar days after placing order through the vendor's web site
    • Repairs - If repairs are required during the equipment warranty and the unit will be out of service for more than forty-eight (48) hours, a loaner unit of similar type and function will be provided until repairs can be accomplished. Please refer to the vendor's web site for further instructions.


Hours of Availability

    • This service is available to 24 x 7
    • Network availability is determined by geographic areas covered by the selected plan(s)
    • Access to service in all geographic areas is not guaranteed by all service providers
    • Service providers guarantee 99.999% network availability (domestic USA calls only) for calls within the calling plan's geographic service area
 

Customer Responsibilities

  • Before placing an order through the vendor's secure web site, the customer must have the following information:
      • Requestor
        • Name
        • Telephone Number
        • Email Address
        • Fax Number
      • User's Name
      • Charged Department Code
      • Shipping Address
        • Number / Street
        • City / Town
        • Zip Code
      • Supervisor's Email Address ( Approving Manager)
    • Be sure to accurately assess the projected calling volume by users to get the best rate plan match
    • Make sure that a true need exists and that adequate budget is available for service plan and hardware costs
    • Standardize phone types to minimize user confusion and enhance cross training

  • Access the selected vendor's secure web site and follow instructions to request the following services:
    • New activations
    • Disconnects
    • Porting of telephone numbers
    • Equipment
    • Accessories


    How Do We Charge?

    Rates charged by the individual service providers include all required ITS fees.  Billing is monthly and is provided directly to the customer.  ITS recommends that customers review their charges quarterly to check for correct user accounts and excessive use.

    The costs associated with the pricing of service plans, features, equipment, and accessories is predicated on discounts off of the original pricing plus administrative fees. All pricing can be viewed on the respective vendors' web sites. The pricing on the vendors' web sites does not include regulatory fees and taxes.

    The discounting schedule of the authorized vendors is as follows:

    Alltel Communications Service Plans - 25% Equipment - 25% Accessories - 25%
    AT&T Wireless Service Plans - 20% Equipment - 50% Accessories - 25%
    Sprint/Nextel Service Plans - 25% Equipment - 39% Accessories - 20%
    Sun Com Wireless Service Plans - 15% Equipment - 20% Accessories - 25%
    US Cellular Service Plans - 15% Equipment - 50% Accessories - 10%
    Verizon Wireless Service Plans - 22% Equipment - 25% Accessories - 25%

    International:  ITS does not have a specific per-minute rate for international calls.  The cost is the same as the contracted vendor’s FCC approved tariff rate.  The cost is based upon factors such as the rate to the country being called, the length of the call, and the rate for the time of day that the call is being placed. 

    NC State Government Contract Vendors - Secure Web Sites:

    These rates are provided for informational purposes. Please see ITS Billing Rates - Telecommunications Services - Voice Services for the approved ITS rates.

     

    Release: 2.1.1, Date: 03/05/2008