LUCRATIVE BUSINESS

                                                   
                PUBLISHED IN EL NUEVO HERALD OF MIAMI ON SEPTEMBER 14, 2011

The late fees and reconnection fees are no longer fair warning to consumers and have become a lucrative business. The costs of delay in payments and reconnections are very high, sometimes 30% of the value of service. The question that arises is: What bank charges interest of 30% financing?

What is the cost generated by this reconnection?  We believe that late fees should be collected only by banks or credit cards, and reconnection fees should reflect the same interest rate prevailing in the market, otherwise business would remain a very speculative indeed.

It is common to notice a marked sacrifice in the face of consumers when they line up to pay the reconnection and the high costs of basic services and cell phone, which often is the only means of communication they have and this should be also considered a basic service.

Many monopolic companies have merged and created centers of power to impose prices and conditions at will while hiring influential political lobbies to set the standard of "deaf ear" to many complaints. In addition, the most feasible way of communicating with these companies is phone to make a purchase.  If the call is for other reasons, hardly communication is achieved.

We believe in free enterprise and Democracy, so we a make public call to politicians with real vocation of service to regulate the costs associated with delays in payments and reconnections, especially now in rampant unemployment and economic crisis in full effect.

BENJAMIN F. DeYURRE

Miami