Press Release

HARRISBURG – The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) and the Council for Utility Choice (CUC) today announced a new TV public awareness spot and billboard ads in the Harrisburg, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh regions. The campaign is part of the CUC’s integrated consumer-education initiative to educate Pennsylvanians about local telephone competition.

“As the dynamics of the utility marketplace evolve, it is important to find innovative ways to continue to educate and remind consumers of their opportunity to shop for and choose a local telephone service provider,” said PUC Commissioner Kim Pizzingrilli, who showed the new ads today to state regulators at a meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Conference of Regulatory Utilities Commissioners (MACRUC). “We recognize the need to educate Pennsylvanians by providing them with the resources they need to shop for a local provider.”     

A new 30-second TV public awareness spot, “Predictions,” spoofs unusual predictions people have forecast over the past several decades. The ad shows a group of scientists who predict children will be picked up from school on jetpacks; an astronaut who talks about colonizing Mars by 1970; a trade show promoter who claims a person will be able to eat a whole turkey by swallowing a single capsule; a ‘70s game show host predicting we’ll be able to choose a local telephone company; and a voiceover that says, “Hey, at least one of them came true.” The ads are now running in Harrisburg and Philadelphia and will begin airing in the Pittsburgh region on Sept. 8. 

In addition to the TV advertisements, a series of billboards – which include various calls to action such as “Use Your Voice,” “In PA, You Call the Shots,” and “Speak Up” – will emerge in high-traffic areas in Harrisburg, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh beginning July 1. The billboard campaign will conclude at the end of October.

“Pennsylvania is a leader in utility restructuring and effective consumer- education,” Commissioner Aaron Wilson Jr. said. “It’s vital to continue to provide consumers with information on how to shop for and choose their utility providers.”

The educational program includes a Web site (www.utilitychoice.org) featuring a, first-in-the-nation Web-based shopping information tool called “PA TeleChoice”; easy-to-read brochures; an extensive grassroots effort comprised of consumer workshops and partnerships with community-based organizations; and a toll-free customer service hotline (1-888-PUC-FACT or 1-888-782-3228). All materials are available in English and Spanish, and can be easily accessed or downloaded from the CUC’s Web site. 

The campaign will also feature the three ads shown throughout 2002 and early 2003:  “Runway,” "Essay" and “Lawn Guy.”

This campaign won the Art Directors Creative Awards, for the Philadelphia region, for best TV campaign and swept the TV category in awards. Each spot took top awards – winning a gold, silver and bronze. The campaign also won a silver and bronze in the ADDYS competition, for Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.   

The Council for Utility Choice is a non-profit corporation working in conjunction with the PUC. The Council is comprised of individuals from the following entities: the PUC; the Pennsylvania Rural Development Council; the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Latino Affairs; the Governor’s Advisory Commission on African-American Affairs; the Office of Consumer Advocate; state utility associations; public education; and community-based organizations.

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission ensures safe, reliable and reasonably priced electric, natural gas, water, telephone and transportation service for Pennsylvania consumers, by regulating public utilities and by serving as responsible stewards of competition.