By Peter J. Howe, Globe Staff | March 28, 2005
As Verizon prepares to nearly quadruple the price for calling 411 Friday, to $1.25, a North Carolina company that sells a discount directory-assistance alternative plans a big promotion: free calls for everyone in Massachusetts for the day.
Starting Friday, barring a highly unlikely last-minute intervention by state regulators, Verizon is raising the price for calling 411 to $1.25 from 34 cents. Customers will, however, continue to get 10 free calls a month before they start paying the fee.
In response, 411Saver, a company based in Maggie Valley, N.C., plans to offer unlimited free directory assistance calls to Bay State residents between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Friday. It is setting up a special number for the day: 1-866-MASS-411 (1-866-627-7411).
DIRECTORY ASSISTANCE JUST 65 CENTS ONE OR TWO INQUIRIES CHARGED TO YOUR CREDIT CARD! REAL TIME, UP TO DATE! SPONSORED BY TELECOM DIGEST AND EASY411.COM SIGN UP AT
Just as an example of how it works, at the above link, you register the telephone number or numbers you normally call from. Then ANI is used to capture that number each time you use the toll free number. It is a real, live, up to date service bureau, meaning changes and new additions are updated at least once per day. To hear a sample directory assistance call, listen to