European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 4, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 14 the stars and stripes sunday november 4,1990 business news foreign phone rates May soon drop acc ruling aids . Bargaining by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington a a recent . Government ruling that strengthens . Bargaining Power in negotiations with foreign Telephone carriers could Lead to lower International phone rates. The Federal communications commission ruling directs the three . Long distance carriers a at amp to Sci and sprint a to present a United front when dealing with other countries. It will prevent foreign Telephone companies from trying to keep International rates artificially High by playing the carriers against one another. It is hoped that the ruling will allow the three major . Carriers to begin bringing Down a . Payment imbalance that now stands at $2.4 billion a year at amp to officials said. Quot when americans Call France we collect the Money and give part of it to France a said David Bikle Public relations manager for at amp to International. Quot when the French Call America France collects the Money and gives part of it to us Quot the mechanism for How much Money flows Back and Forth is based on the volume of Calls and is known As the a accounting rate Quot Bikle said. A a it a what we pay for Access to each others customers. The accounting rate is negotiated separately with each country and paid on a monthly basis.�?�. But several factors have combined to keep accounting rates artificially High and that translates into consumer prices that Are More expensive than they have to be he said. Because . Telephone rates Are generally lower than in Many foreign countries the number of Calls flowing from the United states is much higher than the number coming in. A people in Hungary or Armenia will Call someone in the United states and say a Call me Back a and then hang up a Bikle said. A a that a a Large part of the reason Why we pay out $2.4 billion More to other countries than we take  Basic differences in the Telephone markets in the ads to remind employers to respect reservists rights by Kim Foltz new York times writer a Detroit based advertising firm has unveiled a nationwide Campaign that urges employers of reservists called to Active duty to Quot be a hero a give your employees the Freedom to protect  the Public service ads arc intended to remind employers of their Legal responsibility to give reservists Back their jobs when they return from duty in saudi Arabia said Andrew Lawrence the executive director of the National committee for employer support of the guard and Reserve which is sponsoring the Campaign. At last count nearly 50,000 reservists had been activated by president Bush in support of operation desert shield. When reservists leave their jobs for military duty their employers must under Federal Law treat them As if they were workers on unpaid leave who Are entitled to return to their old jobs or comparable work. The Only exception is if an employer can show that a reservists Job would have been eliminated for reasons unrelated to the employees Call up. One Public service spot delivers its message in a starkly dramatic Way. The spot created by Ross Roy advertising in Detroit begins with a synthesized version of Middle Eastern music mixed with the sound of helicopters in flight. Then in White letters on a blackened screen the following appears a a it a 119 degrees in the Shade and there Isnit any. Its 8,000 Miles from Home. Its one of the most dangerous places in the world. It might go on for months. Its not a training exercise. Its  Halfway through the commercial an announcer urges employers to do their duty during the crisis. A we know How Tough it is when your National guard and Reserve employees Are gone a the announcer says. A but just remember. Its even tougher for  once Large numbers of reservists return Home Lawrence said his organization will change the Campaign and run a spot intended to show How military training makes reservists better employees. United states and other countries also tend to keep the accounting rates High he said. While three companies Battle for the . Market Telephone companies in Many foreign countries Are government run monopolies such As the Deutsche Bunde Spost in Germany Bikle said. J the .-German accounting rates have not changed in years and $150 million . Payment imbalance to Germany is among the highest of any nation in the world said Charlie Meyers at amp to a manager for International policy development. A 10-minute Call from the United states to Germany can Cost As Little As $6.20, while a 10-minute Call from Germany to the United states can Cost As much As $20. At amp to has been negotiating with the German government in an Effort to lower the accounting rates without much Success Meyers said. Part of the problem is that . And German officials have very different opinions of the effect of currency fluctuations on accounting rate payments he said. German officials were unavailable for comment on the payment system. Out payment imbalances May look like a Windfall for foreign countries but Meyers said there is nothing underhanded about it. A we agreed on those accounting rates a he said. A they were fair 10 or 20 years ago. But that a not the Case  at amp to has made significant Progress in lowering accounting rates with Many countries. A your negotiations with various countries have brought accounting rates Down More than 300 times in the past five years a Bikle said. At amp to recently concluded negotiations with British telecoms to lower the .-British accounting rates by 50 percent Over the next three years. A that does no to necessarily mean consumer costs will go Down by 50 percent a he said. A but the accounting rate is a major aspect of  even so the accounting rates could be dropping faster Meyers said. At amp to expects the acc ruling to help in that regard because the three . Firms will present a United front in negotiations. For example if a foreign government insists on an accounting rate that at amp to As the Lead negotiator among . Carriers a considers too High the acc ruling will prevent Sci or sprint from stepping in and agreeing to pay that rate Meyers said. A we done to need the acc to negotiate for us a Meyers said. A but As a corporation we May not always have the level of influence necessary to Deal with a foreign government. 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