Wrong International Premium Codes

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: May 08, 2006 Posts: 2

I’ve been trying to resolve a problem with how Vonage has coded their international codes for Italy. I have spent hours on the phone and I went through 3 levels of support until they said that there was no possibility to escalate this issue.

Here is the problem:
According to Vonage web site some numbers to Italy are considered “premium numbers” (cell phones) and subject to a rate that is 10 time the rate for regular land lines.
The problem is that they coded those “premium” numbers wrong.
According to their web site the following are Italy premium numbers:
393, 3903, 3932, 3938, 30389, 39168, 39310, 39313, 39320, 39322-23, 39327-31, 39333-41, 39343, 39346-49, 39360-63, 39366-68, 39370, 39377, 39380, 39383, 39387-93, 39397, 39563, 39881

Some of you might already see a portion of the problem… by stating that all number that begin with 393 are premium you don’t really have to state that the following are premium numbers: 3932, 3938, 39310, 39313, 39320, 39322-23, 39327-31, 39333-41, 39343, 39346-49, 39360-63, 39366-68, 39370, 39377, 39380, 39383, 39387-93, 39397 since they all begin with 393.

Therefore the list could be simplified to the following:
393, 3903, 30389, 39168, 39563, 39881

And here is the problem: Only the first code is correct! All cell phone (premium) numbers in Italy begin with 393 whereas all land line numbers begin with 390.

The number 30389 does not even call Italy, its country code being 39 while the other numbers might refer to premium services (like 168) that are no available if called from outside the country (Italy that is).

My specific issue was with number 3903 that is stated to be a premium number. This number does not terminate to a cell phone (all cell phone begin with 393), terminates on a land line (since it begins with 390) and I don’t see any reason for it to be premium.

Vonage customer support, instead of helping to resolve the problem argued that not all premium numbers are cell phone numbers but that there are also premium number that are classified as such because “they are hard to reach”.

That would make all people living in Monza (39039), Como, (39031) and Brescia (39030) “hard to reach”, over 5 millions land lines. Clearly those are not “hard to reach” number, at least not according to the other long distance providers that I used so far: AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and MCI.

I even went as far as explaining the origin of the problem, which is related to a change in the telephone system, occurred in Italy in 1998. Prior to 1998 numbers beginning with 3903 could, in fact, be cell phone.

In conclusion the rule should be:
393 = Cell phones
390 = Land lines

A last note. The number 392 Vonage has listed for Milan and the 396 number for Rome will not work (guess what they don’t begin with 390).

Is there anyone who can recommend a way for having Vonage correct this problem?

Posts: 476

maurobinda wrote:

Is there anyone who can recommend a way for having Vonage correct this problem?

It sounds like you definitely know what you're talking about. I would suggest calling the "magic number" and leaving a message for Jeffrey Citron, the CEO of Vonage. Detail out what you have written here in clear, precise language. Hopefully you will get a call back from someone who can actually get the changes that need to happen in motion. Here is the magic number: 732-528-2600.

Posts: 2 · New Forum Member Joined: May 08, 2006 Posts: 2

blakadher,

Thanks for the magic number! Is there a magic email as well?

Mauro

Posts: 476 · Posted: Mon May 08, 2006 2:11 pm Post subject:

maurobinda wrote:

blakadher,

Thanks for the magic number! Is there a magic email as well?

Mauro

I seem to remember Citron's email address floating around before, but I don't know it off hand. Maybe jeffrey.citron@vonage.com?