PUCO selects Sprint as statewide Telecom Relay Service provider

COLUMBUS, OHIO (April 1, 2009) – The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) has chosen Sprint to continue as the state’s Telecom Relay Service (TRS) provider.

The Commission selected Sprint’s Ohio call center proposal from among several other competitive bids – one from Sprint and two from Hamilton Telecommunications – for several reasons. Sprint’s Ohio call center proposal guarantees that up to 85 percent of all TRS calls made in Ohio will be handled at the company's Dayton relay call center. In addition, the winning proposal’s 88 cent per minute bid price was lower than Hamilton’s bid price and the current TRS rate of 90 cents per minute.

TRS allows individuals with a hearing or speech disability to use the telephone. TRS users dial the nationwide 7-1-1 dialing code to connect to a TRS operator who stays on the line to relay conversations. Calls can be laced from a standard telephone, a text telephone (TTY) or a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD). TRS is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with no restrictions on the number of calls placed or call length. 

Sprint has provided TRS in Ohio since 1998. The company’s new contract with the state of Ohio will run from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2013, subject to a biennial review in 2011.

For more information about the Ohio Telecom Relay Service, visit the consumer info section of www.PUCO.ohio.gov.

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