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A Massive 56% Of Consumer Who Make International Calls Are Looking To Switch Services According To New Survey

San Francisco, USA & Stockholm, SWEDEN – September 28, 2010 – Rebtel, the world’s largest independent mobile VoIP company, today announced part one of a two-part September 2010 survey conducted on their behalf by Harris Interactive online, which measured consumer sentiment on long distance calling services and providers.

According to responses, a strong majority (56%) of U.S. adults who make intertional phone calls would switch the way they make them. The study also found that more than 2 in 5 of these adults (43%) say they would switch to using their mobile phone to make those calls. “The message seems clear, consumers want to change their existing provider and change to calling from a mobile hand-set,” said Andreas Bernstrom, CEO of Rebtel.

According to responses, a strong majority (56%) of U.S. adults who make intertional phone calls are would switch the way they make them.

Of the adults who said they would switch to their mobile phone, 19% said they would switch to using special long distance packages, while 16% said they would switch to using their mobile phone using regular carrier calling rates. A surprising 11% said they would use a VoIP service/application.

“This signals a major opportunity for calling companies and services to capture a majority of the U.S. consumer market. Our findings demonstrate that international calling is a wide open market for innovative and inexpensive calling services, and will allow services like Google Voice to pose a real threat to operators.”

In terms of video calls, 14% of Americans said they currently make them, with a staggering 34% of respondents saying they would be willing to pay a monthly fee. “This opens up a new, non-ad based revenue model for providers like Skype who are looking to monetize on their video services”, said Bernstrom. Of those that replied ‘yes’ to paying for these calls, 15% said they would be willing to pay under $5, with 7% stating they would be willing to spend between $5 and $10 a month. 6% said they would spend more than $10, and another 6% said they would be willing to pay no matter what the cost.

In terms of video calls, 14% of Americans said they currently make them, with a staggering 34% of respondents saying they would be willing to pay a monthly fee.

Of those that replied ‘yes’ to paying for these calls, 44% said they would be willing to pay under $5, with 21% stating they would be willing to spend between $5 and $10 a month. 18% said they would spend more than $10, and 17% said they would be willing to pay no matter what the cost.

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Rebtel from September 1 – 3, 2010 among 2,258 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated. For complete survey methodology, including weighting variables, please contact Eric Gonzalez at eric@vscconsulting.com.

By: Alex Drewniak, September 28th, 2010 Tags: harris interactive, international calling behaviour, internet telephony, rebtel, VoIP

Widespread Fraud By Calling Cards Exposed In First-Ever Report On U.S. Calling Habits To Trinidad And Tobago

San Francisco – September 7 – People in the U.S. who use international calling cards to stay in touch with family and friends in Trinidad and Tobago said they almost never get all of the calling minutes purchased, and that calling card fraud has cheated some of them by as much as $1,000.

The first-ever report on calling habits to Trinidad and Tobago from the U.S. revealed that 75.3% believe they received fewer minutes than promised by calling cards.  The average loss due to fraudulent cards was $90, the study found, but many respondents said the total sum lost was far greater.

Conducted during August 2010 by Rebtel, the first-ever research uncovered fascinating facts and findings on U.S. calling habits to Trinidad and Tobago.

Nearly two-thirds – 61.2% – of Rebtel calls to Trinidad and Tobago that originate in the U.S. go to family members; 36.5% go to friends; only 2.4% go to business associates. Calling rates are hands-down the most important aspect of international calling among survey respondents, with call quality second.

Among survey participants, 73.2% said Rebtel rates are better than alternatives for calling Trinidad and Tobago.  Almost 71% said Rebtel offers superior call quality.

For calling Trinidad and Tobago, 96.5% of survey respondents said they would recommend Rebtel to friends.

Release of the study coincides with dramatic rate reductions by Rebtel on calls to Trinidad and Tobago: a 72% cut on calls to landlines and up to 22% on calls to mobile phones.

Founded in 2006, Stockholm-based Rebtel was established to give people around the world an alternative to rip-off phone cards’ rates for making international calls.

By: Alex Drewniak, September 9th, 2010 Tags: "calling cards", cheap calls, international calling, internet telephony, rebtel, Trinidad and Tobago, VoIP

Liberians And Ivoirians In U.S. Cheated By Calling Cards, Rebtel Study Reveals

San Francisco – September 10 – Liberians and Ivoirians in the U.S. who use international calling cards to stay in touch with family at home, said they almost never get all of the calling minutes purchased, and that calling card fraud has cheated some of them by as much as $2,000.

The first-ever report on calling habits to Liberia and the Ivory Coast from the U.S. found that 90.9% of Liberians, and 82.2% of Ivoirians believe they receive fewer minutes than promised by calling card providers.  The average loss due to fraudulent cards was $125, the study found, but many respondents said the total sum lost was far greater.

Conducted last month by Rebtel, the first-ever research uncovered fascinating findings on U.S. calling habits to Liberia and the Ivory Coast.

Nearly 80% of Rebtel calls to the Ivory Coast from the U.S. go to family members. Calling rates are most important to Ivoirians when it comes to international calls.  But call quality is No.1 for Liberians.

Of the Ivoirians participating in the survey, 62% said Rebtel rates are better than alternatives for calling home.  Approximately 89% of the Liberians who took the survey said Rebtel offers superior call quality.

Release of the study coincides with dramatic rate reductions by Rebtel on calls to the Ivory Coast and Liberia: a 20% cut on calls to landlines and up to 40% on calls to mobile phones.

Founded in 2006, Rebtel was established to give people around the world an alternative to rip-off rates for making international calls.

By: Alex Drewniak, September 9th, 2010 Tags: "calling cards", cheap calls, international calling, ivory coast, liberia, rebtel, VoIP