U S West Says It Needs State To Level Playing Field Company Says Foes Have Advantage And Are Taking Away Its Customers

U S West Communications Inc. must be allowed to respond more quickly to competitors in Washington state’s urban areas, the company says.

As many as 31 companies are snatching away valuable business customers, in part because U S West must notify the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission of proposed rate changes 30 days before they take effect, according to a company petition filed Wednesday.

Other companies only need to provide 10 days’ notice.

“It provides our competitors a lot more time to respond to our promotions with their own promotions,” said spokesman Michael Dunne.

U S West wants its notification period shortened to 10 days in Spokane, Seattle, Tacoma, Auburn, Kent, Renton, Issaquah, Bellevue and Vancouver.

The change would cover business local exchange service, Centrex services, and a variety of feature services from call forwarding to caller ID to three-way calling.

Competitors such as AT&T, Electric Lightwave, GST and NextLink offer almost all the same services, the company says, adding that it continues to lose customers to those and other providers.

Dunne said U S West could not provide an estimate of the amount of market share competitors had claimed.

In December, the commission allowed U S West to implement new rates on high-speed telecommunications services 10 days after the paperwork was filed in Olympia.

The new petition will be heard by the commission July 12.