Shopping for local phone service.

• Position: Indiana

Learn what a "SONET ring" is

The local telephone service sales force may not have come knocking on your door yet, but come they will. And consumer advocates say to prepare for an avalanche of confusing and often conflicting advice.

So what should you demand as an absolute minimum level of service from the companies wing for your business? One thing you needn't worry about is whether or not you'll be able to access emergency 911 service from a local-service provider. Any company certified to offer local telephone service in Indiana must include 911 access. That's the law.

Similarly, free directory listings and number portability are not issues in Indiana, says AT&T spokesman Oriano Pagnucci.

Beyond that, there's not much unbiased help available, since the companies and the services they plan to provide are diverse.

"It's going to be similar to long distance in terms of price competition," warns Cheryl Bickel of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. "At this point, without any real hard evidence, customers just need to be sure they know what they are getting into."

The commission has no consumer information prepared to assist in that investigation, but Bickel says her office will be happy to talk with people if they have questions.

Companies planning to offer services say the best bet is to be an alert and aware consumer. Decide what's important to you as a customer, and shop those issues. Is price your primary or even only concern? Then be sure you're comparing apples to apples when you price shop. With companies packaging services differently, it may take some diligence to narrow down the...