Phonecards On-Line
Phonecards On-Line
This newsletter was created to help fill that need. Issue one was written, posted in many of the on-line forums that were acceptable, and placed on a web server that predated The Card Mall. E-mail solicitations for free subscriptions went out, and it did not take too long to reach 100 subscribers. That number exceed 3000 in 1998, and is still rising. Most of the magazines are no longer publishing, and fewer people seem to be posting messages on the various message boards. However, the hobby is still attracting new collectors, and this newsletter is attracting new subscribers.
Here is the mission statement all the way back from Issue #1:
I have three objectives in creating this newsletter. The first is to give a review of the latest news and information available on-line. There are currently many ways to get phonecard information on-line - The major on-line services, the internet newsgroup rec.collecting.phonecards, mailing lists, IRC, bulletin boards. It's only fitting that this high tech collectible has so many hi tech ways of collecting. The second objective is to provide information for the latest promotions and giveaways. Collecting promotional cards is a great way to increase your collection. Be it razors, cereal, video tapes or Big Macs, phonecards and promotions are here to stay, and will most likely expand. Being on-line is a great way to hear about the new promotions, and I hope to publicize many of them. The final objective is to analyze the current phonecard market.
I feel that this accurately describes the current issue, just as it described the earliest issue.
Concerning the newsletter, card issuers are welcome to send press releases to be considered for publication. They can be e-mailed, faxed (310) 734-1529 or sent via regular mail. Any samples will be scanned and published on the web. The mailing address is:
Alan Cohen
Phonecards On-Line
PMB 419
17216 Saticoy St.
Van Nuys, CA 91406
E-mail: alan@cardmall.com
Readers are welcome to submit any phonecard related question to the publisher. Due to time constraints, not all e-mail can be answered personally.
Here is a brief (very brief) biography of the publisher.
I have been an active phonecard collector since 1994. My first phonecard was given to me when purchasing an extra value meal from McDonald's - The AT&T 3 Unit card. (Currently worth about $100) - The card was used to make a 3 minute call to my wife, then thrown away! (Ouch!!) After doing that, I decided that maybe it was not such a good idea to do that. Dubbed "The Collector" by my junior high science teacher, anything that could be collected was (and still is) collected. Over the next few weeks, a couple more trips to McDonald's yielded two more cards, which this time were kept unused in their original cellophane. After logging onto CompuServe in 1994, I found the Telecard area of the Collectibles Forum. I was quite shocked to learn of the value. One of the cards was sold for $100, the other traded for various cards including a Hiscocks and Girabaldi Catalog. Things would never be the same.
In addition to this newsletter, I manage various internet businesses, some involved with phonecards. These include The Card Mall, The Coin Mall, Phonecard Central, and a few other mailing lists. I started this newsletter as a graduate student of Medieval History at Binghamton University, New York (the earliest newsletters had medieval history questions with prizes!) In 1996, I relocated to the Los Angeles, California area with my wife and three cats. In 1997, my son Aaron was born, and in 1998 we relocated to Upland, California (About 60 Miles from Los Angeles). In 1999, it was back to the LA area, where in 2000 my second child (Abigail) was born.
©Phonecards On-Line is published by Alan Cohen. Any use or distribution of any material is prohibited unless approval of the publisher is given