The capabilities of a class 5 switch and what the owner of that switch makes available (with regard to features) are two different things. ALL current CO switches can pretty much do anything you can imagine, but only if the owner is willing to give or sell these features.

It's not a matter of what the switch can do: It's a matter of what the owner will ALLOW it to do.

Verizon owns the former GTE and Bell Atlantic territories around here in Virginia. We have customers literally across the street from each other that are now Verizon customers, but can't get the same features. We have boundaries that literally "zig-zag" along a single street. After the merger, Verizon now owns about 75% of Virginia's exchange territories, but they still operate under the old rules when they were two separate companies.

Verizon was very careful in their merger to keep Bell Atlantic and GTE running as separate entities. They did this so that any state-mandated agreements, rules, rates, etc. would remain untouched. This is why they are one company, but act like many.

Remember: It's not the switch, it's the owner that determines what's available to the subscriber.

Ed Vaughn, MBSWWYPBX