[2069] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: NREN and the Economics of Mainframes Versus Workstations
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (SAM@CSI.compuserve.com)
Thu Jan 23 15:44:13 1992
Date: 23 Jan 92 15:30:31 EST
From: <SAM@CSI.compuserve.com>
To: <cook@tmn.com>, <COM-PRIV@psi.com>
> Date: 23 Jan 92 01:58:52 EST (Thu)
> From: cook@tmn.com (Gordon Cook)
>
>
> <<MESSAGE from>> Gordon Cook 23-JAN-92 1:58
> cook@tmn
> I had a very interesting conversation this evening witha com[putational
> scientist who uses compuserve to send and receive internet email. The
> reason why is fascinating. His university computer center charges his
> grant $250 a month for his VAX account and the only thing he used the VAX
> for was sending email. Compuserve costs far less..... even though I have
> heard that they now charge 15 cents per every 2 kilobytes for internet
> email. Is this true? If they have an email surcharge will attmail and
> mcimail be far behind?
The rates you mention are not entirely correct. The cost to send and
receive mail depends on what class of service you have. If you are a
standard user, you pay for the connect time to access CompuServe. There
is no surcharge to send and receive mail. This rate is $12.80/hr for
1200/2400 bps access via the CompuServe Network.
If the person has signed up for basic services, then they are charged
a flat fee of $7.95/month to access a subset of services. You also
receive a $9.00/month "Email allowance." Below is a snippet from the
basic service EMAIL help file describing the charges.
[...]
RATES FOR RECEIVING MAIL
*Receiving mail messages is generally free. Your basic membership
includes unlimited use of CompuServe Mail to read most messages.
However, charges can be incurred for accepting messages which arrive
"postage due", ie. from Internet. This type of message is subject
to the standard rate that applies to Sending Mail. These fees are
offset by the monthly $9.00 CompuServe Mail Usage Allowance. These
"postage due" messages are delivered into your mailbox by default and
the fees are charged to your account. Note that the postage due fee
is charged only once per message, even if it is read repeatedly.
MAIL USAGE ALLOWANCE
*As a basic member, you receive a CompuServe Mail Usage Allowance of
$9.00 each month. This allowance applies to the:
(1) first 15 cents and additional 5 cent charges for Sending Mail
(2) the 15 cent fee for the Receipt Requested Option
(3) "postage due" fees for messages from Internet and Automatic Forum
Rolloffs.
[...]
- Sam
--
Sam Neely, CompuServe Incorporated +1 614 457 8600 (voice)
5000 Arlington Centre Blvd, Columbus, OH 43220 +1 614 457 0348 (FAX)
Electronic Mail: InfoPlex: >CSI:SAM Internet: SAM@CSI.COMPUSERVE.COM
