Premium rate numbers | Premium rate scams | Premium rate telecom

What's New today

2010-10-01T04:41:00.001-07:00

google is very useful to me.... we have question and google have answer!!! isn't awesome guys/gals

in reference to: Google (view on Google Sidewiki)

09 rate numbers targeted to UK landlines

2010-04-16T06:20:00.000-07:00

.	.	Outpayment in pence per minute (ex VAT)
5p per minute	Day	2.83
	Eve	3.01
	Weekend	3.22
10p per minute	Day	6.31
	Eve	6.50
	Weekend	6.64
13p per minute	Day	8.78
	Eve	9.12
	Weekend	9.22
14.81p per minute	Day	10.06
	Eve	10.60
	Weekend	11.01
15p per minute	Day	10.20
	Eve	10.45
	Weekend	10.61
18p per minute	Day	12.65
	Eve	12.79
	Weekend	12.90
20p per minute	Day	14.23
	Eve	14.48
	Weekend	14.60
25p per minute	Day	18.17
	Eve	18.44
	Weekend	18.86
30p per minute	Day	21.39
	Eve	21.46
	Weekend	21.97
35p per minute	Day	24.75
	Eve	25.03
	Weekend	25.13
40p per minute	Day	28.72
	Eve	28.95
	Weekend	29.04
45p per minute	Day	32.28
	Eve	32.50
	Weekend	32.62
50p per minute	Day	36.17
	Eve	36.98
	Weekend	37.15
55p per minute	Day	39.67
	Eve	39.90
	Weekend	40.01
60p per minute	Day	46.01
	Eve	46.44
	Weekend	46.53
65p per minute	Day	47.11
	Eve	48.32
	Weekend	48.26
70p per minute	Day	51.34
	Eve	51.75
	Weekend	51.87
75p per minute	Day	55.97
	Eve	55.99
	Weekend	56.32
80p per minute	Day	58.85
	Eve	59.74
	Weekend	62.05
85p per minute	Day	62.47
	Eve	62.88
	Weekend	63.01
90p per minute	Day	65.31
	Eve	66.76
	Weekend	65.73
95p per minute	Day	70.26
	Eve	70.51
	Weekend	71.73
£1.00 per minute	Day	73.62
	Eve	75.75
	Weekend	75.09
£1.10 per minute	Day	81.01
	Eve	81.44
	Weekend	81.57
£1.20 per minute	Day	88.37
	Eve	89.02
	Weekend	89.15
£1.25 per minute	Day	92.14
	Eve	92.57
	Weekend	92.70
£1.30 per minute	Day	95.91
	Eve	96.28
	Weekend	96.35
£1.40 per minute	Day	103.83
	Eve	103.95
	Weekend	104.23
£1.50 per minute	Day	110.54
	Eve	111.04
	Weekend	111.12

For international destinations other than the UK, please enter in the format: 00 followed by the international dialing code followed by the destination number.
Existing user click here to Sign in

ALL PREMIUM RATE SERVICES require registration on PhonepayPlus website.
Source:- uknumbers4u

08 rates for numbers targeted to UK landlines

2010-04-16T06:14:00.000-07:00

The out payments you can earn on 08 & 09 numbers targeted to UK landlines destination numbers are shown below.

For 0800 and 0845 numbers, you will need to pay a per minute cost to international premium rate number.

		Outpayment in pence per minute (ex VAT)
0870	Day	4.50
	Eve	2.75
	Weekend	0.52
0844 2p per minute	Day	0.42
	Eve	0.55
	Weekend	0.64
0844 3p per minute	Day	1.30
	Eve	1.41
	Weekend	1.52
0844 4p per minute	Day	2.08
	Eve	2.25
	Weekend	2.34
0844 5p per minute	Day	3.05
	Eve	3.33
	Weekend	3.43
0871 5p per minute	Day	3.05
	Eve	3.33
	Weekend	3.43
0871 6p per minute	Day	3.80
	Eve	3.91
	Weekend	3.93
0871 7p per minute	Day	4.61
	Eve	4.78
	Weekend	4.89
0871 8p per minute	Day	5.34
	Eve	5.49
	Weekend	5.74
0871 9p per minute	Day	6.12
	Eve	6.20
	Weekend	6.32
0871 10p per minute	Day	7.21
	Eve	7.81
	Weekend	7.74

Free SIP Account Provider List

2010-02-22T09:55:00.000-08:00

Latest and tested Free SIP Provider List is here.

There seem to a renewed interest in free SIP Accounts. The First Free SIP Accounts, upcoming articles regarding Free SIP Accounts.

So this will bring all the information that I have on Free SIP Accounts together so you can view them without having to run about reffering to multiple articles. This post will be updated and will be mentioned so with a new post in the blog.

So This will be "The Free SIP Account Provider List"

1. IPTEL, IPtel gave me the first taste of SIP a long time ago, at a time when people were asking what VoIP was. Register for an Account here.
2. Free World Dialup Pulver.com has been providing SIP accounts under the name Free World Dialup for a while as well.
3. Sip Phone Provided by SIPPhone. Sign up here to create an account on the SIPphone network. Once you have an account, you will be able to configure your SIP-based VoIP adapter, or software phone
4. SIP Simple Testbed provided by AG Projects(Really check these guys out)
5. OSIP also provides Free accounts via, AntiSIP, company created to provide services around SIP and telephony.
6.....

This list will grow as I test new services with hardware SIP Phone, Software SIP Phone and also From My new iPhone 3G that I will be getting on July 11th. (It is reserved so I will not stand on line!)

Leave a comment if you have a service or if you know of a free SIP account provider. I will be happy to add.

International premium rate solutions

2010-02-09T23:50:00.000-08:00

Maxtis Telecom provides a large portfolio of International Premium Rate Numbers; a popular method of charging end users for a variety of services and content. In countries which do not offer domestic Premium Rate Numbers, International Solutions provides a gateway to charge customers by calling on your Premium Rate Number. International numbers can be used for voice and data services, voting, live chats, call TV, quiz shows, horoscopes, voice internet access and much more.

International Premium Rate Numbers are based on a Pay per Minute system, where the content provider can decide the amount to charge the customer by making him hold the line for a defined period of time.

We are constantly launching new international solutions. Please contact our sales team to get the most up-to-date price and access lists.

Lithuania
370

Estonia
372

Austria
438 2

Austria NEW
438 1

Sierra Leone
232

Liechtenstein
423

Zimbabwe NEW
263

Sao Tome
239

Congo
243 42

Congo
243 123

Madagascar
261

Niger
227

Togo
228

Congo NEW
243 127

Burkina Faso NEW
226

Somalia
252

Wallis&Futuna
681

Cameroon
237

Nauru
674

Liechtenstein
423 7

Solomon
677

Zimbabwe NEW
263

Central African Republic
2367 - mobile

Bulgaria
359

Georgia
995

Switzerland Mobile
417

UK
44

Central African Republic
236

Premium rate number checker

2010-02-09T23:22:00.000-08:00

Do you want to check what a premium rate number (starting '090' or 4, 5 or 6 digit shortcode) on your bill is?

You can check a number on your phone bill by following this link to go to the PhonepayPlus website: http://www.phonepayplus.org.uk/consumers/ncd/default.asp. PhonepayPlus will tell you what the service is and if there has been a complaint about it. Normally people use this because they have forgotten who they have called but if you need to make a complaint about a premium rate service, PhonepayPlus can help too.

Got a problem with a premium rate service and want to report it?

All consumers should be able to use premium rate services with confidence if they choose to do so. If you believe that there is a problem with the content, promotion or operation of a premium rate service then call PhonepayPlus for free on 0800 500 212 between the hours of 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday (but not Bank Holidays), staff have been trained to help you report your problem.

You might not be able to get your money back but by reporting your concerns you will be able to help PhonepayPlus with their investigations and help others from having the same experience.

low international call rates | international calling plans

2010-02-05T03:57:00.000-08:00

Cheap low cost international call rates

Find out the costs and rates for international calling with juvino. We offer low per minute rates anywhere in the world, Do relax while making international long distance calls and no worry about the bill? We offer super low (Cheap)international long distance rates - 24/7!

Country Name	To Landline	To Mobile
AFGHANISTAN	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
ALBANIA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ALGERIA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
AMERICAN SAMOA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
ANDORRA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ANGOLA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
ANGUILLA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
ARGENTINA	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
ARMENIA	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
ARUBA	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
AUSTRALIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
AUSTRIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
AZERBAIJAN	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
AZORES	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
BAHAMAS	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
BAHRAIN	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
BANGLADESH	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
BARBADOS	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
BELARUS	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
BELGIUM	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
BELIZE	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
BENIN	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
BERMUDA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
BHUTAN	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
BOLIVIA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
BOTSWANA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
BRAZIL	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
BRUNEI	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
BULGARIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
BURKINA FASO	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
BURUNDI	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
CAMBODIA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
CAMEROON	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
CANADA	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
CANARY ISLANDS	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
CAPE VERDE	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
CAYMAN ISLANDS	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
CHAD	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
CHATHAM ISLANDS	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 790 9503 ->2p
CHILE	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
CHINA	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
CHRISTMAS ISLANDS	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
COCOS ISLANDS	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
COLOMBIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
COMOROS	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
CONGO	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
CONGO DEM REP	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
COSTA RICA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
COTE D'IVOIRE	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
CROATIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
CYPRUS NORTH	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
CYPRUS SOUTH	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
CZECH REPUBLIC	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
DENMARK	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
DJIBOUTI	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
DOMINICA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
ECUADOR	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
EGYPT	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
EL SALVADOR	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
EQUATORIAL GUINEA	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ERITREA	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ESTONIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ETHIOPIA	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
FAEROE ISLANDS	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
FIJI	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
FINLAND	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
FRANCE	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
FRENCH GUIANA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
FRENCH POLYNESIA	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
GABON	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
GAMBIA	0905 643 9503 ->20p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
GEORGIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
GERMANY	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
GHANA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
GIBRALTAR	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
GREECE	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
GRENADA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
GUADELOUPE	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
GUAM	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 790 9503 ->2p
GUATEMALA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
GUINEA	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
GUINEA BISSAU	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
GUYANA	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
HAITI	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
HONDURAS	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
HONG KONG	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
HUNGARY	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
ICELAND	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
INDIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 790 9503 ->2p
INDONESIA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
IRAN	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
IRAQ	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
IRELAND	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
ISRAEL	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
ITALY	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
IVORY COAST	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
JAMAICA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
JAPAN	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
JORDAN	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
KAZAKHSTAN	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
KENYA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
KOREA SOUTH	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
KOSOVO	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
KUWAIT	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
KYRGYZSTAN	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
LAOS	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
LATVIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
LEBANON	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
LESOTHO	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
LIBERIA	0905 643 9503 ->20p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
LIBYA	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
LIECHTENSTEIN	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0904 960 9503 ->30p
LITHUANIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
LUXEMBOURG	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
MACAO	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
MACEDONIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
MADAGASCAR	0905 643 9503 ->20p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
MALAWI	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
MALAYSIA	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
MALDIVES	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
MALI	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
MALTA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
MARSHALL ISLANDS	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
MARTINIQUE	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
MAURITANIA	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
MAURITIUS	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
MAYOTTE	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
MEXICO	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
MICRONESIA	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
MOLDOVA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
MONACO	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
MONGOLIA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
MONTENEGRO	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
MONTSERRAT	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
MOROCCO	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
MOZAMBIQUE	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
MYANMAR	0905 643 9503 ->20p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
NAMIBIA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
NEPAL	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
NETHERLANDS	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
NETHERLANDS ANTILLES	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
NEW CALEDONIA	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
NEW ZEALAND	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
NICARAGUA	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
NIGER	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
NIGERIA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
NORTHERN MARIANAS	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 790 9503 ->2p
NORWAY	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
OMAN	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
PAKISTAN	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
PALAU	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
PALESTINE	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
PANAMA	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
PARAGUAY	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
PERU	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
PHILIPPINES	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
POLAND	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
PORTUGAL	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
PUERTO RICO	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
QATAR	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
REUNION	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0905 643 9503 ->20p
ROMANIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
RUSSIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
RWANDA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
SAN MARINO	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0844 590 9503 ->3p
SAUDI ARABIA	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
SENEGAL	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
SERBIA	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
SEYCHELLES	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
SINGAPORE	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
SLOVAKIA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
SLOVENIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
SOUTH AFRICA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
SPAIN	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
SRI LANKA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
ST KITTS AND NEVIS	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
ST LUCIA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
ST PIERRE AND MIQUELON	0911 789 9503 ->15p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
ST VINCENT AND GRENADINES	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
SUDAN	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
SURINAME	0904 888 9503 ->13p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
SWAZILAND	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
SWEDEN	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
SWITZERLAND	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
SYRIA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
TAIWAN	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
TAJIKISTAN	0871 537 9503 ->6p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
TANZANIA	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
THAILAND	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
TOGO	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
TONGA	0904 095 9503 ->25p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
TUNISIA	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
TURKEY	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
TURKMENISTAN	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0871 635 9503 ->8p
TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS	0871 635 9503 ->8p	0911 789 9503 ->15p
UGANDA	0871 679 9503 ->7p	0871 679 9503 ->7p
UKRAINE	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
URUGUAY	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
USA	0844 759 9503 ->1p	0844 759 9503 ->1p
UZBEKISTAN	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0871 537 9503 ->6p
VENEZUELA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 497 9503 ->5p
VIETNAM	0844 639 9503 ->4p	0844 639 9503 ->4p
VIRGIN ISLANDS UK	0871 654 9503 ->9p	0904 888 9503 ->13p
VIRGIN ISLANDS USA	0844 790 9503 ->2p	0844 790 9503 ->2p
WESTERN SAMOA	0905 643 9503 ->20p	0904 095 9503 ->25p
YEMEN	0871 913 9503 ->10p	0871 654 9503 ->9p
ZAIRE	0904 469 9503 ->18p	0904 469 9503 ->18p
ZAMBIA	0844 590 9503 ->3p	0871 913 9503 ->10p
ZIMBABWE	0844 497 9503 ->5p	0904 095 9503 ->25p

international calling rates countries list

Spanish Country Calling Code

2010-01-05T00:28:00.000-08:00

Question: What is the Spanish Country Calling Code?
Answer: The international code for calling Spain is +34.

Calling Spain from the United States
Dial 011, followed by 34, followed by the telephone number. So, if the number in Spain is 912345678, from the US it would be 01134912345678.

Calling Spain from Elsewhere in Europe
Dial 00, followed by 34, followed by the telephone number. So, if the number in Spain is 912345678, from Europe it would be 0034912345678.

Calling Spain from a Cell Phone
Dial +, followed by 34, followed by the telephone number. So, if the number in Spain is 912345678, from Europe it would be +34912345678.

Calling Spain from within Spain
Unlike many other countries, Spain does not add a 0 to the number when calling a number within Spain. If you are given the international version of a number, say +34 923232323, the number you dial from a Spanish phone will be simply 923232323.

Area Codes in Spain | international dialing area codes

2010-01-05T00:20:00.000-08:00

The area codes in Spain are as follows

Question: What are the Telephone Area Codes in Spain?

Answer: All telephone numbers in Spain are nine digits long. The first few numbers denote where the number is located.

A Coruña - 981
Alava - 945
Albacete - 967
Alicante - 96
Almería - 950
Asturias - 98
Avila - 920
Badajoz - 924
Baleares - 971
Barcelona - 93
Burgos - 947
Cáceres - 927
Cádiz - 956
Cantabria - 942
Castellón - 964
Ceuta - 956
Ciudad Real - 926
Córdoba - 957
Cuenca - 969
Guipuzcoua - 943
Girona - 972
Granada - 958
Guadalajara - 949
Huelva - 959
Huesca - 974
Jaen - 953
La Rioja - 941
Las Palmas - 928
Leon - 987
Lérida - 973
Lugo - 9829
Madrid - 91
Málaga - 95
Melilla - 95
Murcia - 968
Navarra - 948
Orense - 988
Palencia - 979
Pontevedra - 986
Salamanca - 923
Santa Cruz de Tenerife - 922
Segovia - 921
Sevilla - 95
Soria - 975
Tarragona - 977
Teruel - 978
Toledo - 925
Valencia - 96
Valladolid - 983
Vizcaya - 94
Zamora - 980
Zaragoza - 976

More Spain Travel Q&A

What are the Special Rate Telephone Numbers in Spain?

2010-01-04T23:30:00.000-08:00

Question: What are the Special Rate Telephone Numbers in Spain?
Answer:
Low Price Telephone Numbers

800 y 900: Free
901 and 904: Shared cost (between caller and receiver). Caller pays about 4c.
902: Between local and provincial. 4c-7c, depending on time of day.

Note that these numbers may not be cheaper from a cell phone and may actually cost more than a standard call.

Premium Rate Telephone Numbers

All other numbers that begin with 90 or 80 are expensive, with prices running into at least 1 euro per minute!

Be especially careful when calling these from a cellphone.

Many of these numbers have standard 'geographical' numbers too. See No Mas Numeros 900. Put the name of the company or phone number in the top search box and click on "Buscar directamente" to find an alternative, cheaper number.

Beginners Guide To Starting a Premium Rate Number Business

2010-01-04T22:54:00.000-08:00

It’s really easy to get started in the premium rate industry. There are now loads of readymade services out there for you to get started with. These are the best option for people who are new to the business as they are low risk, low maintenance and easy to get started.

Firstly you should find a reputable Premium Rate provider. There are absolutely loads of services to choose from so be prepared, I will let you have some insider information on the most popular services.

Here are the types of services in order of popularity:

1. Live 121 adult services
2. Live non adult services like, psychic, horoscope.
3. Recorded adult / interactive adult services.
4. Recorded non adult services.

I would recommend you start your premium rate number portfolio with at least one live service. Normally you will need to complete a registration form and sign a standard contract, detailing the terms and conditions of the business. Be wary of companies that do not have contracts and strict processes. A good detailed contract is normally a sign that your provider takes this business seriously, will protect your interests and give good guidance.

Payments

Some companies charge simple one off payments and some have a monthly payment system, make sure you get all the information and choose the set up that works best for you. You should either be able to pay for your new premium rate services on their website or over the phone with a credit or debit card. And the majority of companies can have your services set up and ready to advertise within 72 hours from receiving your payment and documentation. You will normally have to provide the premium rate company with details of your bank account so you can have the revenue paid directly into your account. Most companies make their payments this way; however some will use PayPal or other similar system. Not many companies send cheques out now.

Advertising and Promotion

Once you have received your number(s), you need to think about advertising and promoting your new premium rate services. While you are waiting for your services to be made live and ready to use, get in contact with some advertising companies, agencies or try publications direct. Some of the places you can advertise are local newspapers, national newspapers, glossy magazines, free ads and on the internet. You may even choose TV advertising (this may be cheaper than you think too!). Whether you choose adult or non adult services you will need to go through most of the same companies to get your services advertised. Most of the advertising houses cater for adult and non adult publications although some only specialise in adult publications. You can do an easy search online for advertising agencies and get in contact to find out what their adverting costs and packages are. We can also advise on this if required.

If you are not happy creating the adverts / artwork yourself, you can ask the advertising agency to add it to your package, most of them will do it for free, so it’s worth asking, although some will charge you for this service. Alternatively your premium rate number provider may be able to offer you print ready adverts that you can just plug your number into and submit them directly to the magazine or newspaper.

When you get your numbers through from your company, check them. I know this may sound really obvious but just make sure they are working and the numbers are mapped to the correct service. Once you are happy that the numbers are live and correct you can give all the information to your advertising company to get the advert made into proofs. Please ensure you advertise all the correct terms and conditions on your promotional material as it is strict requirement from PhonepayPlus (formerly ICSTIS) regulations.

Make sure you check your advert proofs properly, as once they go through for printing, cannot be amended. And it will be a complete waste of time if something in the advert is wrong. The same applies to advertising in the newspaper; make sure you see your proof.

So now your services are live and your advertisments are out there, you are well on your way to generating your first month’s revenue. Now all you have to do is sit back and wait for the calls to come in.
source:- readymadetelecom

Top 10 wireless predictions for 2010

2010-01-04T05:35:00.000-08:00

Top 10 Wireless Predictions for 2010
Please see below for a full list of the top ten wireless predictions, with each prediction explained in more detail in the free report available to download from the Juniper Research website.

1. Mobile data traffic explosion to strain 3G Networks, spur data pricing overhaul.
2. Mobile ecosystem starts to go green.
3. Mobile heads for the cloud.
4. New category of smartbooks to emerge.
5. Apps stores all round.
6. Mobile social networking to integrate with other applications, including M-commerce.
7. NFC phones appear in the shops.
8. At least 10 LTE networks to be launched into service.
9. Smartphones to get augmented reality makeover.
10. Christmas Kindle sales expected to herald the rise of the connected embedded consumer devices.

1. Mobile Data Traffic Explosion to put strain on 3G Networks

Though 3G is less than 10 years old, 2010 could be the year when 3G networks begin to fall over under the burden of mobile data, due largely to some 33.8m IPhones that have been sold since launch.

There is a bit of an irony in this: for the last five years operators have been looking for ways to boost data traffic, and while IPhone Apps have boosted revenues as well as traffic for Apple’s selected carriers, they are also bringing the day closer when network’s need to be overhauled.

The silver lining for carriers may be that clogged up networks gives mobile operators a genuine excuse to charge more for premium traffic, something that Vodafone’s CEO seems to have been hinting at in recent weeks. It could even spur them into action on LTE roll outs.

2. Mobile Ecosystem starts to go green

A combination of continuing strong global subscriber growth and ever increasing voice and data usage levels means that the mobile industry is under increasing pressure to develop strategies which both embrace environmental sustainability and substantially reduce average CO2 emissions both in the usage phase and across the life-cycle of a handset.

We envisage that 2010 will see a surge in the deployment of high-profile “green” handsets, featuring recycled plastic casings, energy saving modes and preloaded “ecotainment” apps which promote sustainable lifestyles.

More handsets will come equipped with solar-powered chargers; there will be greater promotion of handset recycling schemes. On the network side, there will be an industry-wide movement to address inefficiencies, notably in base station power consumption, and a far greater emphasis in developing markets on migrating off-grid base stations to renewable energy.

3. Mobile Heads for the Cloud

The surge in the popularity of mobile applications – in large part due to the success of Apple’s App Store – has prompted a rethink on the optimal method by which apps can be delivered to end-users.

The emergence of cloud-based platforms- where thin clients reside on the handset and data is processed and stored primarily in the cloud- will be bolstered by the open standards BONDI OneAPI initiative and HTML5.

Increasingly, mobile IT resources – such as storage, platforms and software – will be sold and packaged as services on an on-demand basis. The model also presents a substantial opportunity for developers, who will be able to develop apps which are portable across mobile devices.

4. New category of Smartbooks to Emerge

Juniper believes that Smartbooks will create a new category of device, falling between smartphones and netbooks. Unlike a netbook however, the smartbook will be 3G+/HSDPA enabled, always on and have an impressive all-day battery life.

If they are cheaper than netbooks, as expected, they will be even more popular. The advantage over smartphones is clear- the larger screen and keyboard alone should make the internet and entertainment experience much more compelling.

With the imminent launch of new smartbook devices from vendors such as Lenovo, and a possible launch from Apple, the industry is poised to make a big push into this segment. Qualcomm in particular has pronounced that smartbooks are “The smartest way to be mobile”. Smartbooks are likely to find a rich seam in 2010.

5. Apps Stores All Round

The sheer scale of downloads achieved by Apple’s App Store – 2 billion in less than 15 months – prompted operators, handset vendors and OS providers alike to consider emulating the Apple approach. There are now around 30 apps stores; this number will more than double in the coming year, with the majority of Tier 1 operators expected to follow in the wake of Vodafone and China Mobile.

As for the apps themselves: expect a plethora of branded apps at the forefront of advertising/marketing campaigns, together with a host of retail applications which enable consumers to view and purchase physical goods.

6. Mobile Social Networking to Integrate with other Applications including M-Commerce

With mobile access to the likes of Facebook, MySpace and Twitter commonplace, adding commerce capability is the next step. And its development will start in 2010.
Viral marketing is something that marketers aspire to achieve and there is no better way of reaching that goal for those younger than 35 than through social networking on the move, featured already in many phones.

For popular products such as MP3 downloads, beverages, food (especially fast food), brands and retailers will be looking to add apps and links to make commerce on the move a natural extension of social networking. Already in the USA, we are seeing this happen with social community sites for particular demographics.

7. NFC phones appear in the shops

Since the 1H09 launch of the Maxis FasTap service in Malaysia and Nokia’s 6126 Classic announcement, 2H09 hasn’t seen much significant news for NFC. This is despite Nokia telling Juniper Research in the spring that the 6216 Classic would start shipping in 4Q09 in select markets.

In fact NFC may be in a transition phase. Some people think there won’t be any NFC phones – because every phone will have it, just as nearly all phones have a camera now. The word is that other vendors are very close to shipping too. NFC holds the potential to make a real difference to one’s life.

So, Juniper is sticking its neck out, predicting that by the end of 2010 it will be possible to walk into the local phone shop and churn your regular phone for an NFC phone in a number of countries!

NFC combines smart card and contactless technology to enable transactions with mobile devices by waving them close to a reader. Applications include lower value retail purchases, transport tickets and coupons.

8. At least 10 LTE networks will be launched into service

The year 2010 will be when Super fast mobile broadband in the form of LTE, offering speeds up to 100Mb/s to the device could finally arrive- some 40 mobile network operators have committed to LTE build-out and Juniper believes that at least 10 will enter commercial service in 2010 in Japan North America and Europe.

Smart phones, flat rate data tariffs and sophisticated (often video) apps will drive the bandwidth demand, which will in turn drive the need to build the LTE networks.
But with the cost of an LTE build out coming in at $1bn plus for a medium sized country, some operators are understandably looking to use HSPA for as long as possible: after all, mobile broadband is commercially deployed in 285 HSPA networks in around 100 countries with approximately 170 million connections.

9. Smartphones to Get Augmented Reality Makeover

Augmented Reality (AR) is still in its infancy on the mobile: until Q2 2009, just a single AR app – Wikitude – was available for a single handset (the G1). However, with a raft of new Android handsets fitted with the key AR-enablers – cameras, Internet, GPS, accelerometers, digital compasses – and with the launch of the similarly-equipped iPhone 3GS and Nokia N97, new AR apps are emerging every week.

In 2010, these launches will accelerate dramatically as other smartphone vendors begin to incorporate digital compasses and accelerometers in high-end handsets. Meanwhile, more handsets will feature preloaded AR browsers to encourage consumer adoption of the technology.

10. Christmas Kindle sales expected to herald the rise of the connected embedded consumer devices

If Christmas sales of Amazon’s Kindle eReader are unlikely to grab quite as many headlines this Christmas as the IPhone managed to in 2008 and 2009, Kindle reaching the Christmas best seller-list in the US could be good news for operators, particularly if it heralds a new revenue stream.

A host of consumer devices with SIM cards embedded directly into the device itself could be on their way, from gaming consoles to cameras, but for the time being eReaders are all the rage.

As with most good ideas, it has not taken long for others to follow suit- eReaders are already on the shelves at the book seller Barnes & Noble, publishing house Hearst through (Spring Nextel), and a launch from Murdoch’s News Corp is round the corner.
The challenge for operators, of course, will be to cut themselves into some of the content revenues in an increasingly crowded market- it is unfortunate, then, that Sprint, Amazon’s carrier partner, cannot manage an international roll-out for Amazon for lack of GSM coverage. That honour will go to AT&T instead.

Payment Threshold/Minimum Payout(the amount you have to reach before you are paid)

2010-01-04T05:21:00.000-08:00

On this particular site, this meant that if my premium rate number failed to generate 25 pounds per month, I will not be paid a penny, nor will the amount be rolled over to the following month.

They will keep any earnings I make. Ok, this may not seem too bad, but beware: there are many premium rate number merchants who have much higher thresholds thus making it very difficult to earn any money at all.

New App Reduces Calls To Premium Rate Numbers

2010-01-04T05:17:00.000-08:00

One of the problems folks in the UK have is calling premium rate numbers. Well not any more.

Check out the details about this application that works on both the iPhone and the Android.

0870 turns 08* numbers — such as 0870, 0845 and 0800 — which cost 35p per minute to call (on top of what you’re already paying for your contracted minutes) into 01* or 02* numbers, which come out of your allowance or are very cheap on Pay As You Go.

What's more interesting is how it took Apple 429 days to approve the application.

Is Apple protecting it's carrier partner relationships and taking the hit on app store approvals?

Years ago in my days in sports, famed Flyers coach, Fred Shero, taught me and others about the way to examine the opposition. He called it "tendencies." Shero was a follower of even more famous Soviet hockey team coach named Anatoly Tarasov, the recognized father of Russian hockey in the modern era. The two were masters of understanding how tendencies and patterns seemed to replicate in teams and Tarasov used those approaches to wine world championships, just the same way that Fred Shero won back to back Stanley Cup championships. This leads me to a global perspective being needed to uncover what may or may not be a pattern and tendency on someone's part to always do things the same way.

Line Reclamation(we reserve the right to reclaim your premium rate number)

2010-01-04T05:14:00.000-08:00

This meant that if my premium rate number failed to generate more than 500 calls a month, for three consecutive months they will reclaim my premium rate number and sell it on to someone else.

So, let’s say, my premium rate number gets 20 calls in month one, 50 calls in month two, and 490 calls in month three; and let’s say, each call lasts on average about 6 minutes at a rate of £1.50 per minute. My premium rate number would have earned £180 in month one; £450 in month two and £4410 in month three. But here this, I won't see a penny of my premium rate number's earning in month three because I failed to generate 500 calls a month for three consecutive months. Consequentially, my premium rate number will potentially be reclaimed and what happens to my revenue? You guessed it, they keep it!

A Quick Word on Advertising Premium Rate Numbers

2010-01-04T05:12:00.000-08:00

Advertising/marketing is crucial to the success of most businesses and in the world of premium rate number revenue, things are no different. That’s why you should bear in mind that advertising can be very difficult. Competition in the premium rate number sector (especially those offering adult services) is very fierce. Indeed, you only have to look at the back of a tabloid newspaper to see hundreds of competing premium rate number based adult services. So please bear the competition in mind when considering buying premium rate numbers.

Now, I mentioned two conditions earlier, and I’m sure that you will find more as you dig deep into those t&c’s on your travels. Incidentally, let me stress that the conditions aforementioned, may not necessarily pertain to every online premium rate number merchant; there are so many out there that it would require an investigative pursuit beyond my capacity as a layman with limited resources and time. That said, the essence of this blog is to encourage potential premium rate number customers to really scan those terms and conditions thoroughly, and thus calculate whether or not your new venture is really worthwhile.

Can I Make Money with Premium Rate Numbers?

2010-01-04T05:10:00.000-08:00

If you read my last blog on how to lose money with premium rate numbers you may have believed that the prospect of making money with premium rate numbers was an outright gloomy one. Not so:

In fact, the opposite is the case. More critically, the aim of my last blog was to encourage potential premium rate number purchasers to make sure that they have an understanding of what they are getting in to. If you haven't yet read my blog I recommend you read it first.

Now...

I in this post will try to provide you with some useful tips on how to make money with your premium rate number. In order to proceed, you first need to ask yourself the following question: what kind of service am I going to offer people? You may want to set up a premium rate number based advice line, where you offer people technical support or strategic guidance. You may want to setup a premium rate number service that helps people with problems be it in the family or at the work place and so on. You may want to set up a premium rate number service that offer gamesters tips on the latest video games. You may want to setup a premium rate number service which provides tips and advice on how to date the opposite sex. You may want to setup a joke, horse racing or even an adult chat line.

As you can see, there are many things you can do, many services you can provide people, with a premium rate number. If none of these ideas entice you straight off, I'd recommend you take some time to have a good think about it. Perhaps, you could invite some mates over to discuss potential avenues, and come up with more ideas for potential services to offer. Taking this quality to time out of your days to come up with viable, well-thought ideas will be beneficial in the long run.

Once you have found your idea, and are ready to per sue it, make sure you refer to my earlier blog (click on the link at the top of the this post). In my earlier blog, I gave a brief introduction on how premium rate numbers work, how you can earn money from owning one, and a whole host of things associated with the process in general. I also touched briefly on advertising premium rate numbers. Making money with premium rate numbers is certainly not for the faint hearted, it's requires a great degree of patience, persistence, innovation and most important of all hard work. But so do most things in life, work at it, stick with it, focus and reap the rewards.

There are many people in the country today who are making an absolute fortune via premium rate services, so why can't you? Well, the answer is: you can! The future of your venture in this sector resides with you. Only you can make it happen. Keep a close eye on my up and coming blogs. I will focus on topics like "how best to advertise your premium rate numbers" "how to make money from SMS premium rate services" "how to maximise your premium rate number/sms earnings" and much much more...

Nintendo DS hack for SIP VoIP service via WiFi

2010-01-04T05:00:00.000-08:00

A began a list of VoIP services for the Nintendo DS, which we know contains a WiFi connection and a microphone headset.

At that time, none of the solutions included support for the popular open SIP protocol. Now, a French developer has released an early version of SvSIP, which lets you make phone calls using your homebrew-enabled DS and a SIP provider. He seems to be actively updating it, and we should see some new versions available soon on his website.

To complete the list, another French developer has been working on DSiP, a rival alpha VoIP client for the DS. The author seems to no longer have time to work on it, but promises to release a working version.

Watch the how-to video if you'd like to see SvSIP in action, courtesy of pjsip.org, the stack upon which SvSIP was ported from:

Voice browsing technology is a rapidly-growing field

2010-01-04T04:49:00.000-08:00

Voice browsing technology is a rapidly-growing field. Whether or not it proves to be the next internet, it deserves a careful examination in its present form.
Level One: Voice Browsing

The easiest way to understand voice browsing and the voice web is to imagine the the Web itself. People visit websites and receive visual information. The voice web has voice sites where the information is conveyed through speech. The most basic example is calling up an airline or financial portal, where speech recognition software gives the caller a series of options - buy or sell stocks, book airline tickets - and the caller interacts with a computer system. Financially, voice browsing makes great sense for companies, as it costs around a dollar a minute for human operators to interact with customers but only around 10 cents a minute for an automated system.

Corporate use of voice browsing is primarily used at banks and airlines. SpeechWorks, a voice application provider, has over 70 partners including United Airlines, Continental Airlines, AOL, FED-Ex, and Hewlett & Packard. Internationally, SpeechWorks partners with E-Plus in Germany, Singapore Telecom, and Credit Lyonais in France. "We haven't scratched the service of corporate adoption," promises Pete Settles, Media Manager of SpeechWorks.

Wireless Carriers, like QWEST, are building general portals, which will offer traffic updates, taxi services, pizza orders and movie reservations. In this field, BeVocal is the national leader with 10 million potential customers, as the exclusive voice browser for QWEST and Sprint. Worldwide, Phillips Speech Processing supports the largest voice portal, Italy's Omnitel mobile carrier. Phillips also supports voice portals for KG Telecom in Taipei - in Mandarin - and Cegetel, the second largest mobile provider in France.
Level Two: Voice Browsing the World Wide Web

The next level of technology is voice browsing websites that offer voice portals. In attempt to maintain customer loyalty, portals like myYahoo are offering voice browsing of personal content. AOL recently bought Quack.com in an attempt to claim this market too. Look for Excite and Netscape to become involved as they can not afford to lose customers to churn.

Europe has taken a more aggressive approach to the voice portal market. The United States, with over 40% of homes connecting to the web by PC's, has no immediate demand for web connection through phone. However, in Europe PC penetration rates are much lower and people are purchasing internet-ready phones at a rate of 5 to 1. Italy has only twenty percent PC penetration rates but over fifty percent wireless rates. If you are in Italy and you need to use the web, voice browsing is becoming the most common option. "The phone is the great social equalizer," says Kris Hopkins, CEO of NewFound, a company that offers voice browsing for search engines over wireless devices. "Everybody has a phone and everybody will have the ability to get on the Web." In Asia people are buying phones over PC's at a 9 to 1 rate.
Level Three: The Voice Web

The next big step in voice technology is the voice web - an entirely voice-based network of sites. To increase interest in voice browsing and speech recognition several companies have introduced forums for programmers to set up voice sites. These forums become voice webs, sprouting voice auction sites and voice based chat rooms. Nuance, BeVocal, and TellMe have all introduced forums. TellMe, builder of web-based voice applications for companies, pioneered the developers' forum with the TellMe Studio. At the studio programmers have their voice applications posted for free. Call up 1-800-555-TELL to voice-browse through the creations of 10,000 developers. BeVocal has its own active developer's program, the BeVocal Cafe, where third parties develop applications that BeVocal can host for their carrier customers (games, supposedly, are in big demand). In September Nuance, the premier speech recognition software manufacturer, waived its $495 membership fee for its developers network and has new members joining at a rate of 20 per day. Steve Elrich, spokesperson of Nuance, calls this, "The birth of the internet all over again." In the spirit of creating a voice community SpeechWorks has launched its Open Speech Web, with an open source voice browser based on the Linux model.
Voice Browsing Technology

The programming language responsible for connecting voicemail, live agents, and speech enabled sites is called VoiceXML, which was devised by Lucent, IBM, Motorola, and AT&T. Although there is one defacto programming language the software that converts text to speech and back varies. IBM has several patents on its natural language understanding engine which uses probability to guess what people mean if the words are unclear. SpeechWorks technology is based on research conducted at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Phillips offers Speech Pearl with a 200,000 word vocabulary, and Speechwave offers text to speech in 35 languages. The leader in this field is Nuance, working with around 1,500 application companies and 1,500 platform companies.

For another programming option VocalPoint converts regular HTML text into a voice platform. "If you've got a HTML structure on your web site - you've got a platform for our voiceplatform," says Kurt Losert, their CEO. VocalPoint needs a day to set up and about 10 hours of programming. VoiceXML takes 15 days to optimize a web site and over a hundred and fifty hours of programming hours.

How well all this technology works depends who you are talking to. Yahoo-by-Voice claims to be a voice portal but it requires touch-tone responses. Much better are the technologies like IBM's natural voice understanding engine, which converts complete sentences and can even ask for missing information. SpeechWorks and United Airlines recorded a 97%-99% accuracy reading for their service. The most fun I had with voice browsing was calling Phillips Speech Processing center and talking to their browser which did not recognize the words, "Public Relations," "Media Relations," or "Press." Finally, I asked for the operator.
The Future of Voice Technology

The predicted growth of the speech technology market is phenomenal: possibly too much so. Cahners In-Stat Group predicts a $1.2 Billion voice portal market by 2005. The Kelsey Group estimates that by 2005 the voice browsing market will be worth $6.5 billion and generate $5 Billion in e-commerce. UK-based OVUM predicts a world market of $26 Billion by 2005. And Allied Business Intelligence ups the figure to 56 million mobile voice portal users in North America alone by the end of 2005, with 250,000 voice sites and a $50 Billion v-commerce market!

The variation in these figures makes the actual growth of the voice technology industry anyone's guess, especially as the big three handheld manufacturers (Ericsson, Motorola, and Nokia) have recently down-graded their sales predictions. Forrester Research is now forecasting a lowly mobile retail revenue for 2005 in Europe at 5 billion Euros, exactly one percent of Lehman Brother's predictions of revenues of 500 billion Euros by 2005.

On the technology side, the future of voice browsing will be visual. Multi-Modal is the buzzword, naming the combination of voice direction and visual data. "Right now navigation is very difficult on a WAP phone, to scroll through a variety of lists," Peter Settles of SpeechWorks says, "It will be much easier to do hands-free interaction."

In the wireless world a phone is for two purposes: To relay data using sound and to relay data visually. Ignoring the visual or sound side of the phone is like amputating a leg and trying to run. Multi-modal is problematic however, getting the two legs to works together has been difficult. The multi-modal technology is not prevalent today for two reasons. Steve Elrich, spokesperson for Nuance, a manufacturer of speech recognition software in 22 languages, tells WirelessDevNet: "[Multi-modal] is not a constraint on the software side. It is a constraint on the networks. People say wait for 3G technology, but others say that bandwidth will be filled up as soon as the devices can use it. Also, most phones are not capable of supporting two channels at the same time, just one for speech and one for visuals." Nuance showcased their voice browser where a phone directed a PC browser in October of 1998.

Sunil Soares, Program Director of Product Management for IBM Voice Services agrees that multi-modal is the future, "Customers are going to start demanding this [multi-modal] functionality," he claims. "In two to three years time this will take hold." BeVocal is the first portal to enable "voice in/WAP out" directions with driving directions shown on WAP output by calling 18004BVOCAL. In January NewFound began beta testing direct voice browsing of Google, AltaVista, or Fast Search. The public launch of this technology is expected in 3Q.

Steve Elrich of Nuance pictures the future with an extended vision: Nuance is working on the Intelligent Dial Tone. "We will be replacing the dial tone with a voice - really a voice browser. For example it will ask what you want to do, and you can answer, 'Call Dad at home,' or 'Check email messages,' or 'Check sports scores.' This is a full blown ecosystem forming!" VAI

Create "Voice sites" on the Internet with Rs 1 lakh

2010-01-04T04:24:00.000-08:00

“Voice-based VAS”, sites in which we learnt how to create and run a voice-based content portal for mobile phones.

Sometimes introduction of a few pieces of detail makes you look at something you know - in a completely new way! Last month’s MoMo session changed the way I saw the Voice-based VAS opportunity.

Voice portals are the equivalent of Web portals, giving access to content and information through the voice channel on a mobile phone or landline.

Some Voice-portals runs by Operators and Media companies are:

543212 of Airtel
56789 of Vodafone
51234 of Reliance
55456 of Idea
5057827 of Star TV
5052525 of Sony TV
5056882 of MTV
5057272 of Dainik Jagran
5056776 of Manorama Online
5055454 of Big FM

Website = Voice site

One does not need VC funding to start a website today. Domain names and hosting are cheap, while designing and programming can be arranged in a bootstrap budget.

The economics of websites and Web 2.0 allowed proliferation of startups and encouraged innovation because it took little for a startup with an idea to do a beta launch, gather feedback from community and then invest in scale and product enhancements.

The lightbulb that got activated in my head was that - just like websites, Voicesite is “startup’s play”.

The VoiceSite - ApniAwaz 02218181818

Lets imagine a VoiceSite called ApniAwaz available on the number 02218181818.

Just like a radio channel has a brand name and frequency, a voicesite too has a brand name (ApniAwaz) and access number (02218181818).

So if a user comes to know of the voicesite, he will dial the number from his mobile/phone and listen to the content of his choice available on this voicesite.

So what does it take to start such a service.

E1 line from a telecom service provider
Asterisk - application box
Content

The E1 line will allow 32 simultaneous incoming calls on a number. This E1 line will be connected to an Asterisk box which will provide a IVRS-based menu that can be programmed to serve content from the content server/space.

So what does it cost to start such a service.

E1 line will cost around Rs 65,000 to acquire and roughly about Rs 8,000 per month to operate inbound calling
Low-end server to host Asterisk and content should cost around Rs 35,000
If you are a techie you can setup and program Asterisk
Assuming audio content is available and IPR owned

Here is a diagram explaining the broad flow.

Apache = Asterisk

LAMP (Linux/Apache/MySQL/PHP) played a crucial role in bringing down the cost of acquisition and operation of web servers. It brought the cost of websites within the reach of startups.

Without getting into the technical details, it would not be incorrect to say that the open source PBX & telephony engine Asterisk is to VoiceSites what the LAMP platform, (Apache in particular) was to websites.

Why the time for Voice Sites is now

Telephones have been around for more than a century. But the explosion of voice-based VAS and voice-portals happened only in the last 5 years or so. Why did it take that long for voice-based content services to take-off in India?

Some reasons that come to mind are to do with the readiness of the ecosystem and coming together of its entities.

There was no critical mass i.e. it wasn’t a sizable market before 2002.
Making STD or local calls was expensive for the user.
Billing systems of telcos were not advanced enough to charge for non-voice calling items.
Penetration of other payment instruments like credit/cash cards was low.

Three important hurdles have been removed from the growth path of Voicesites.

Potential market size as of May 2008 is around 275 million.

Open source technology like Asterisk makes it feasible for startups to launch innovative voice-based services. Therefore, lots of voicesites will get launched and the consumer will benefit from a choice of services at a competitive price.

Also, very recently most operators dropped national calling (STD) rates to Re 1. It means that by taking an E1 line from one telco, the service goes national. Users will access 02218181818 from anywhere in India and will only pay Re 1 per minute as call charges.

Business models

So how does one make money by running a voicesite? There are only two ways - advertiser pays or the user pays.

Charging the user for paid-content:
Credit card penetration is increasing at a good pace - India has close to 50 million credit card users. Cash-cards like ItzCash have also reached healthy usage levels. Therefore one way to charge users for paid content is via IVRS based online credit card or cash card charging. There are IVRS-based payment gateway companies ready to integrate with your voicesite.

Ad-funded model:
A voicesite can adopt the ad-funded model where the content is free and revenue is generated via audio-ads. Voicesites can be seen as on-demand radio. They are to radio what IPTV is to television. Therefore, radio advertisers would become the obvious target for advertising on voicesites.

But wait - voicesites are a better deal to advertisers than radio.

Measurable ad delivery
Captive listernership - user can’t fast forward or switch channel
Actionable ads - advertiser can ask for response via IVRS

Voice portals are extending the reach and introducing new categories of users to value-added services, becasue they are multi-lingual and can be operated through IVRS or spoken commands (speech-recognition) without necessitating complicated downloads or settings.

The navigation menu, content and ads can be multi-lingual - a boon in a language rich country like India. Voicesites are handset agnostic and can be made available across operators on both CDMA & GSM networks. Even an illiterate rural user with the most basic handset can use the service.

The only limiting factor is the entrepreneur’s ability to think of innovative services!

So is there a catch? Am I missing something here? Would love to know from knowledgeable readers whether my lightbulb is faulty or is it indeed true that VoiceSites are an opportunity for startups and not just a realm of large companies.