Bell Customer Sale Label - Not following directions, 80s style....

[RotarDad]

I just saw this on a ho-hum black 500 on Ebay.  Interesting to see the entire label with directions for install.  The person who didn't follow those directions back in the 80s gives us a better look at the complete label.  Thought it was worth posting.  For reference the phone is here (and overpriced):

https://www.ebay.com/itm/202259005534

[twocvbloke]

Maybe they'd done several that day and got sick of trying to peel off the tiny label off and just slapped the whole thing on in protest at such a fiddly job...

[paul-f]

The statement above the label does add some valuable info that the buyer should know.

The wording is interesting. Contrary to the statement, the label doesn't prove ownership by a particular buyer, but it does establish that the phone is no longer owned by Pacific Tel.

[poplar1]

The "embedded base" or leased phones were offered for sale by the Bell operating company to existing customers under the "SIP" (Sold In Place") Plan. Price for a 500 was typically about $19.00. Phones in the homes of company employees got a similar "E.T.E." (Employee Telephone Equipment?) sticker.

Note the date of sale. After 12/31/83, ownership of leased telephone sets transfered from the baby Bell operating company to AT&T. Sold in Place sets after 1/1/84 had blue AT&T stickers.

The stickers were probably mailed to the customers after completion of sales agreement, so the whole sheet containing the sticker on this 500 set was probably attached by the customer at home, rather than by a careless phone center store employee or ST (service tech).

[RotarDad]

Thanks Poplar1 for the background - that makes sense that a homeowner installed the sticker incorrectly.  I've seen lots of these on Ebay phones, but never the whole sheet.  Great insight into the history of these.....

[compubit]

I have a nice white 558 with the full sticker - on the front of the phone!!!

J