Hello,

I apologize in advance if these questions are silly or tedious, but I have been receiving many conflicting responses from both direct and indirect dealers and Verizon CS. I'd appreciate if I could receive some clarification for these specific scenarios.

I am signed up with the Local Digital Choice Plan with Free Local IN-Network Calling plus Unlimited Night and Weekend Minutes.

I also added Nationwide Long Distance for $5/month.

My phone number is activated within the Greater Los Angeles, CA area. Area code (626).

I have the following questions for clarification:

1) Calling area:

Where can I travel with my cell phone and make a call without 69cent/min ROAMING charges?

Is it only the Coverage Area where it shows Greater Los Angeles, CA area?

Or can I travel to lets say Sacramento or Las Vegas or San Diego and NOT incur any ROAMING fees?

2) For IN-Network calling, if I were to call within the Greater Los Angeles, CA area, and my phone shows that I am on the Verizon Wireless network, can I call ANY Verizon Wireless customer for free?

For instance, can I call a friend in New York who has Verizon Wireless service with area code (212)?

Or does the Verizon Wireless number I call have to be within the Greater Los Angeles area codes such as (818) (213) etc.?

Also, if I call my friend's Verizon Wireless number that has an area code within the Greater Los Angeles area codes (818) (213) etc., as I mentioned earlier, and my friend is vacationing in New York at the time, will the minutes still be considered IN-NETWORK?

If I travel to Sacramento with my cell phone and make a call to my friend who has Verizon Wireless service in (626), are the minutes still considered IN-NETWORK?


Thanks!

IMHO for $5.00 more bucks you could have gone with Americas choice 500 and not worried about any of this......

In hindsight though that coverage map for CA LDC is confusing at best.

Call CS and ask them to explain it to you then come back and explain it to me.

Northern California Local Calling Area
Greater Los Angeles Local Calling Area
San Diego County/Imperial County Local Calling Area

And all that light blue / dark blue runs together geez what a mess

Mike
Oxford GA

Does anyone else have the Local DigitalChoice plan? Can you comment on how you have been billed? Or answer any of our questions?

Verizon CS answers are different every time you call.

Thanks!

The entire states of CA & NV.



Yes. Your first two examples are calls that would be included I-N.

Not for you, you are outside your Local I-N calling area. The call would go to your regular minutes. They would for the called party, though.

I'm in LA - (310) and been on the local digital plan now for
the last year and half.

there are no roaming charges anywhere in california and parts
of nevada (las vegas). I've used the phone on this plan
driving from LA up to san fran and LA to vegas and never
had a single roaming charge.

so unless you travel back east a lot, there is no reason to
sign up for america's choice - and get less minutes for the
same money.

The "in" network stuff is only good in the greater los angeles
area (where you can call another verizon phone w/o using
minutes). As for calling a LA area code verizon user who
is say back in NYC.. i'm not sure. I'd suspect it's free and falls
under the "in" network because your call is originating from
LA.

I've basically got the same plan you do - 1000 anytime minutes,
IN calling, free LD and unlimited nights/weekends. Hard to beat
that plan in california for $55 bucks.

So you will not receive any roaming charges as long as your are on the Verizon Network within the ENTIRE CA/NV? It is not just limited to the Greater LA area.

The IN-Network calling, however, is limited to the Greater LA area.

Is that correct?

Edamon,

How did you get your plan?

From what I can tell from the website, the $39.99 plan includes only 1000 anytime. No N+W, no IN-Network.


Is it possible to do the following?

$39.99 plan with 1000 anytime.
$5 long distance
$5 N+W
$5 IN-Network?

Is that what you did?

Thanks.

Email from Verizon.

1) In-Network and roaming only apply while you are in the Los Angeles area. To view coverage for IN-Network Calling with Local DigitalChoice, please visit the "Plans" tab on the top the www.verizonwireless.com homepage. Then, after you have entered your zip code and chosen a Local Digital Choice plan, click on the link entitled "Local Enhanced Services Map."

--- OK Agreed.

2) If you travel to Sacramento, Las Vegas, etc you will incur roaming charges.

--- Bill? Can you comment on this statement?

3) While in the Los Angeles area you will be able to call anyone
that has Verizon Wireless using your In-Network minutes. This includes anyone that has Verizon Wireless in all of the US. If you travel to Sacramento In-Network minutes will not apply. We hope this answers all of your questions.

--- OK Agreed.

Thanks.

pretty much.

you can build your own with verizon.
-d

with that plan you only get 1000 m2m and 1000 m2m correct. You know i called verizon and asked these same questions and i was tolg the 39.99 ldc promo plan can add $10 for 1000 nw and $10 1000 IN minutes. This came out to the same as the $59.99 ldc plan with 1000 anytime minutes and unlimited IN and m2m. I must have had an unknowledgeable rep.

TCUSR

I'm pretty sure Verizon's reply to number 3 is not correct.
"3) While in the Los Angeles area you will be able to call anyone
that has Verizon Wireless using your In-Network minutes. This includes anyone that has Verizon Wireless in all of the US."

This would be true if you were on an Americas Choice plan but since you are on a local plan the in-network only applies to other people that have service within the same local network as you. That is why they call LDC in-network "Local In-Network Calling."

Doesn't the America's Choice plan make more sense? I never understood why they even kept the local plan. It doesn't seem to be that much cheaper and it has some major disadvantages.

mark959022,

Yeah that's what I thought initially and that is what the text on the website seems to specify. However, I'm HOPING that that is not the case and that Bill as well as that particular Verizon Wireless rep is correct.

I think all that matters is how the billing bills it. I would very much prefer that I can call any verizon phone number, and from what I've heard from other users, that seems to be the case.

Can anyone else comment?


iceneedle,

The reason I have the local plan is that I use more anytime minutes and I rarely travel outside CA/NV. So for the same price, I get more anytime minutes and that is a huge plus for me.

Maybe I'm reading something wrong, but I just compared the Local and the National Digital Choice plans. I looked at the $59.99/month plans. The America's Choice plan is 800 minutes, unlimited N + W, unlimited IN and no long distance charges. The Local plan is 700 minutes, IN Network only to people who are in your local region AND long distance charges of .20/minute!!!. I don't get it. The America's Choice plan is better AND cheaper.

Note that this comparison was for Northern New Jersey. The local plan could be different in CA.

You bet!
I would challenge them to look at the coverage map for the current Local plan on their web site:

Verizon Local coverage for Zip Code 90210

and ask, "since everything in blue is included in the Local rate and Coverage area, and Sacramento, Las Vegas, and the entire states of CA and NV are in blue, what parts of Sacramento and Las vegas are NOT included?" (The "Local Calling Areas" refer to those areas where a call would not be LD).

I often refer CS agents to a VZ web page, and often they reply, "by golly, you're right." Remember, these people aren't into the extent of research we are.

Also, keep in mind other people here on older plans do not necessarily have the same Rate and Coverage area that is being offered now. Their responses are correct for their plan.