Regulators OK Verizon’s Bid to Cancel OneSource

State regulators approved a Verizon subsidiary’s plan to cancel its all-in-one phone service, which had nearly 200,000 customers in California.

The subsidiary, known as Verizon Select Services Inc., will formally discontinue its OneSource service at the end of July. The service already has been eliminated in eight other states, and most of the California customers have switched to new carriers.

However, the California Public Utilities Commission also ruled that Verizon misled its OneSource subscribers by threatening to turn off their service March 19. The selected date was more than three months before the PUC had even approved Verizon’s plan to halt service.

The PUC ordered Verizon to offer restitution to customers who were misled about the changeover deadline and switched to higher-priced plans prematurely. Affected OneSource subscribers will be notified of their right to be paid the cost difference, which is expected to be between $3 and $6 a month.