Released on: June 10, 2010, 03:46 am
Author: QueryCLick LTD
Industry: Telecommunications
A UK based call provider has pledged to help football fans and their families avoid extortionate mobile bills with cheap international calls to South Africa during the World Cup.
Following a report by the Telegraph and mobile phone analyst Billmonitor, it was revealed that fans using British mobiles in South Africa could expect to pay a staggering £410 for just two week's worth of calls and texts.
Even using the UK's cheapest mobile phone network – Virgin Mobile – could result in a bill of around £201 due to 'roaming' fees.
Despite being thousands of miles away, friends and family could also suffer the cost of keeping in touch with South Africa but this needn't be the case when using an affordable direct dial access code with the likes of Firstnumber.
Firstnumber.co.uk currently offers over 250 access codes that allow consumers and businesses alike to make cheap international calls at a heavily discounted rate.
Firstnumber.co.uk spokesperson Andy Steele hopes the service will allow football fans and those trying to contact them make drastic savings.
“Since UK mobile phone aren't protected by price caps outside the European Union, there's no limit as to how much someone can be charged for phone calls, texts and data transfer.
“A great way to avoid bills of hundreds of pounds is to pick up a cheap South African sim card. This lets you communicate with other people in the country at local rates but also allows friends and family back in the UK to get in touch for as little as 4p a minute with Firstnumber's direct dial access code.”
Direct dial access codes work by placing a designated code in front of the number you wish to call.
The code then applies a discounted rate allowing users to call destinations such as Argentina, Canada, Thailand and Argentina for as little as 1 pence per minute.
Watchdog Consumer Focus, newspapers and a raft of telecoms companies are currently in the process of raising awareness amongst travellers about the potentially crippling cost of mobile phone use outside of the UK.
Despite the warnings, Andy Steele says some fans will still be caught out by sky high fees:
“When you're on a set monthly mobile package you can easily become unaware of how much prices fluctuate. Using your phone abroad can quickly see call costs jump to£1.50 a minute or even 50p a text message.
“For phone users right across the board, the easiest way to slice hundreds of pounds off your bill when calling back home is to get the person you're contacting to call you via a dialling code – the cost is literally pennies and leaves you with extra funds to make the most of your time in South Africa.”
For more information on Firstnumber visit http://www.firstnumber.co.uk
About Firstnumber:
Firstnumber.co.uk is an online phone directory offering direct dial access codes that reduce the cost of making international calls from a UK landline.
Firstnumber.co.uk was launched in 2004 and is a trading style of Wavecrest.
Contact Details:
First Number / WaveCrest, 1st Floor, Bishopsgate Court, 4-12 Norton Folgate, London
E1 6DB.
Enquiries: 0870 801 7800