Qwest announced on Thursday that new customers in six states could receive deep discounts on its Qwest Home Entertainment bundle of telephone, satellite TV and broadband DSL service, with monthly prices as low as $77.97 for 12 months.

Call Block, also known as Call Screening or sometimes Call Rejection, allows you to block incoming calls from specific telephone numbers.

Back in 1898, Congress passed a levy of one cent per telephone call to help raise money to fund the Spanish-American War. The tax, while temporary, has been on-again, off-again throughout the years, and was reinstated in 1990. Now it is three percent (3%) of your overall telephone bill. And some people are refusing to pay it.

With VoIP telephone service growing in popularity, many people are finding that — once connected — the service is cheaper and more convenient than their old landline telephone. However, there are pitfalls, as one Portland, Ore., area businessman learned.

Qwest has been much quieter than Verizon about its plans for building fiber-optic plant to replace the copper wires which now provide telephone and Internet service to consumers. But this week we have learned that Qwest will build out the service, and begin offering television service, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Call forwarding lets you forward incoming calls to your phone to another telephone number. Most companies offer a wide range of call forwarding options, at varying monthly charges.

Verizon has moved into Chicago and begun competing with SBC for medium-to-large business customers there, marking the first time one of the former Baby Bells has competed directly with another in any market.

A report from the Center for Public Integrity reveals that the former Baby Bell telephone companies spent $56.8 million on political contributions over six years and at least $77.8 million on lobbying over two years.

Anonymous call rejection lets you block incoming calls from people who have chosen to block the delivery of their Caller ID information. In most areas, it’s included with Caller ID service.

Qwest employees on Friday ratified a new contract by a 66 percent vote, according to the Communications Workers of America.