Ok, Here it is everyone!!
I got my 1st bill associated with Tele-Net.
The phone bill for the local number telenet got me was 39.00. I had collect calls on there for every other day from Oct 29th to 12/15/02 :)
The SBC bill for long distance was get this 60.00.
SO TOTAL I owe oh what 100 bucks? :) :) GOD I'm in Love !!
I'm going to sit down and write Tele-Net a big THANK YOU since they saved me well over 200 dollars a month.
Merry Christmas Everyone!!

That is wonderful!!! :)

How incredible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so happy for you. What a relief!! I wish they could help me. Robert Owen said they can't do it in Michigan as CBS charges so much it wouldn't save us anything.

Deb

WOW...I'm totally excited for you! Now go spend a little of your savings on yourself!!

Pammie:D

yippeee!

Now this is the type of feedback I was hoping for. I'm very glad to hear the guys at Tele-Net are providing a great service to inmate's families and friends.
Thanks Richard & the rest of you at TeleNet, Inc.

That is always good hear. Money being saved in a positive way. Was it that banner on here that we saw that said it can save you money from collect calls. I don't know who the company I didn't pay that much attention to it.

Cherrie,
Yep that is the company!! Tony and I are both so excited over my phone bill NOW I gotta make him STOP calling me so much......He has gotten to where he calls just to see what I'm doing :) God Lovem!!

That is wonderful news!!!

That's really good to hear. I have just sent in my application to Tele-Net, with my luck it won't be available for my sweetie's institution in Alabama but what the hey, I'll try anything... I am sick to death of those $19 fifteen minute phone calls!!

If anyone knows of any pending/attempted legislation efforts regarding the phone system in the Alabama (or any Southern state for that matter) state prisons, do PM me and let me know... talk about criminal, those phone charges certainly are!!!

Lys

Lysbeth - I know what you mean! :(

When Wayne was at JO Davis in Atmore, Tele-Net could do the phone thingy there. So good luck with you! :)

He was moved before it was set up and hopefully will be moved again soon!

Danielle - Oh, that's good to know! Keep your fingers crossed for me! If I am ever able to get more than one lousy phone call a week (sometimes every two weeks) I'll be so happy I won't know what to do with myself! :)

Lys

Renee,
Does the department of corrections, not kick about this. That is cutting money off from them and I would be afraid that they would stop my phone callse from my loved one. Has this issue ever been addressed by them. Here in AL they check out the phone numbers before putting them on the lists. They have to be approved. Would they approve a number like that? Hope to hear more from you about this soon.
Thanks,
Pam

hey renee. do you have local service through them too? or is it just the number for him to call you. i need to do that so tyrone can call me but i have to start working first. and what if i owe my other phone company money? pm me and get at me about this. i am really interested. i filled out the form and all and got the quote back but i cant find it now. but i thinkit was like the call was going to be 1.20 but after their taxes and all its a little over $4 a call for 20 minutes. get at me please.

wow, now that is good news.....

Well, although it looked good I don't have much hope now after receiving the documentation and application. It basically says if you have a negative credit rating (and oh boy, I do) you will not only be denied service but will lose the $39 unrefundable processing fee. No matter I suppose that I've paid my phone bill unfailingly for 15+ years... I'm sure there's plenty of inmate families and loved ones in just as crappy financial shape as I have been, I don't know why they want to turn that potential customer base away right off the bat. My problems are with the $40K in credit card debt my ex ran up, not my stupid phone bill which has ALWAYS been paid. Oh well.

I'm also a little leery of signing something that says I am turning over my local and/or long distance calling to this company. There's one box to sign that says that and another to sign RE the prison collect calls.

Pam - I'm kind of with you there too (and I hear from Danielle you are a fellow victim of the backwards Alabama DOC - :) ). I am a little afraid of losing what little phone privileges we have if the State were to crack down on such phone thingys...

Anyway, gosh, $4.25 per call does sound wonderful (which is what they quoted me for Limestone). But it doesn't look like they'd accept me anyway due to my credit rating (and wouldn't refund my processing fee) so I guess I'll have to pass. :(

Lys

Hello all...I am interested in this phone business of course..my first phone bill was over $300.00
You see, my man is in Lunenburg Correctional Center, and they call to verify that you own the phone service and you have to answer a few questions. It is a recorded call. I don't know if tele net would work in this case, does anyone know?
Marsha

Marsha, why don't you give them a call to find out about the recorded call that you get... I also, have the same set-up and I'd be curious to what tele-net tells you!!

Pam

Ok Pam - They said that they already have a few people who use Tele net at Lunenburg, so I guess it must work. But then there's that post I read about someone who got their visitation cut off for 3 months for trying to use some service like this? That is what scares me. I am going to wait until I see Joseph next in person to ask him about this before I do anything. I don't want to do ANYTHING that would cut off our visitation or phone calls. It would kill both of us! I'll let you know when I find out.

Marsha

i saw that too and am debating on the 39.....lee said it sounded like a scam but i knew too many on here have it........i have filed bancruptcy in the past year, i wonder if that would halt it........guess i'll call Mr. Owen tomorrow and see..........good luck!!

Well, it's true...you do get two separate phone bills.

One will have all the "first minute/connection charges" (anywhere from $3 to $4 for each call), plus the $3.95 monthly Telenet fee, and the montjly fee for whichever service provider TeleNet goes through (in my case, I have Southwestern Bell of Kansas). My "local" number (from an exchange center near the prison's 316 area code) is forwarded to my home phone here in Providence....it is apparently seamless, as TeleNet has some longtime customers in the Kansas DOC, and even a few besides myself, at El Dorado CF.

The other bill is from PowerNet Global, and it is the "per minute" charges for each call....I am paying 14.9 cents a minute.

Even with the taxes (varies by state and the size of the bill), I am saving a bundle. In my last billing cycle (31 days), we talked for a total of 537 minutes (9 hours!!!), and the total amount for both bills was just over $135.00....If I still used AT&T, that same bill would have been $550.00+++!!!!

$125.00 is still a lot for someone in my financial situation, and we are trying to keep it "in hand" LOLOL....But what a difference from AT&T!

Leesfire, I was worried about my credit at first (and I owe EVERYONE!), but it was never even mentioned....they just called me one day, and read a list of instructions, asked if I had any questions, and...Voila! Hooked up :D

Oh, and remember this tip...LOL....Just in case the prison you are using TeleNet for decides to call the new number you submit (to see if it's legit)....CHANGE YOUR ANSWERING MACHINE MESSAGE!!!!! Oh my....I almost got pinched---my machine was still saying "Hi, this is Sue, at 401-351-XXXX, leave a message..."

So, if El Dorado would have called the Kansas #, they would have gotten my Rhode Island message! Thank God the rep at TeleNet called me at work to tell me to change it! Acccck!!!

Whew!

Susan in Providence

Susan!! WOW don't ya love Tele-Net? I sure do!!
I just got my powernet bill and its like 78 dollars. Thats it!
I forgot how many hours we talked but its about like yours I think. Each call WAS costing me 17.50. Tony and I talk every day now!! It's so good to hear his voice every day!

God Bless Tele-Net :)