Judging by the number of ads on-line from people selling show cards, they seem to be very popular among collectors. Ideally, this would be a great thing. Collectors would go to a show, check out what dealers have to sell, and receive some samples from phonecard producers at the show. The current situation, however, is somewhat disturbing, as some phonecard producers pre-sold show cards to dealers at the show. This really eliminates their status as a "show" card and become another variety of cards produced. With the show card market heating up, I can easily see the phonecard producers taking advantage of the situation and of collectors. We need USTA (United States Telecard Association) guidelines for these types of cards. Some suggestions I have are
1) Show cards should be distributed for free or for a very nominal charge to get them in the hands of collectors.
2) Limit the amount dealers can acquire at the show (i.e. one per person) - Dealers of course could purchase or trade cards with collectors. No pre- selling to dealers!
3) Phonecard producers should not be selling cards at these shows. At a show last year in New York, a phonecard company was actually selling cards at a show at a price that was LOWER than the price they originally sold to the dealers! Small companies that are both producers and dealers would be exempt from this
The long awaited second edition of the Hiscocks and Girabaldi North American Phonecard Catalog is now out! Although I have not seen it yet (My order is in for it) I've heard good things about it. I do own the first edition, which was quite useful for a new collector. Act quickly, as a limited number of catalogs actually come with a specially produced phonecard! Many dealers have this catalog for sale, or you can request a copy from PCM Report
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When I first started collecting phonecards 18 months ago, they really were a novelty. Something I purchased over the computer and through the mail. They could not be found anywhere locally. Then, very slowly, they started to appear here in Ithaca. I would write a message to CompuServe each time I found a phonecard for sale. First it was Wegmans, a local supermarket. Then, it was a college bookstore, that sold phonecards and water bottles in the shape of a cellular telephone (That actually had a PIN Number on it and was good for phone time!) Now, they are basically available everywhere. All of the markets, drug stores, gas stations, book stores, mall stores, promotional giveaways, etc. Another thing that surprises me is that I actually find people talking about the cards, and hear about them using them. This seems to be a trend that has been occurring over the past couple of months. I don't know how many of these people will be collectors, but it is nice to know that people are actually using the cards. This, after all, is the primary purpose of having phonecards. I was involved in a conversation where someone said that they no longer have long distance on their home phone, they just use the prepaid cards. We now need more exposure to the hobby of phonecard collecting, but this will happen over the next year or two.
General Mills Cereal - Specially marked boxes have a 5 minute Sprint Spree phonecard enclosed. There are 4,000,000 of these cards available. I had yet another bowl of Oatmeal Almond Crisp this morning. After the promotion I may not want another bowl of this cereal for a very long time, maybe not until the next cereal promotion.
Bose Speakers - Go down to Circuit City and listen to a 10 minute demo. You then get a free phonecard to help make up for your lost time!
Are you interested in chatting with other phonecard collectors on a regular basis? Message boards are great, but it is nice to talk to other collectors in real time. There is a good way to do this. Every Sunday evening on CompuServe, there is a Telecard Conference. Any topic related to phonecards is discussed, from new issues, promotions, to controversies. Additionally, every first Sunday of the month is a trading conference. This weekly conference is held for about an hour starting at 10:00 P.M. Eastern. I strongly recommend that any serious or not so serious phonecard collector subscribe to CompuServe.
U.S. Telecard now has a phonecard homepage. You can check it out at http://www.uswest.com/payphone/tele/telehome.html
Andrea from Austria is interested in trading with other collectors out there. She can be reached at e8726057@student.tuwien.ac.at or via WWW at http://www.dbai.tuwien.ac.at/%7Erusch/telecard.html
Week One Question and Answer:
The year 1415 was a turning point in the Hundred Years War - A decisive military victory by the English eventually led to the temporary unification of the English and French Crowns. First, what was the name of that famous battle, and who inherited the English and French Crowns?
Answer: Agincourt, and Henry V. The winner was Frank Kolanko (Phonecards on the way, Frank!) There were three correct entries to this contest.
All correct entries will be placed in a drawing for a free used phonecard of my choice. This week’s question:
What was the name of the popular 14th century English heretical movement, and who was its leader? (Hint: The name was given to them because of the way some thought they talked)
Phonecards On-Line is available two way for now.
1) On-Line on the World Wide Web. The address is: http://www.idis.com/phonecards/phonecards/alan.htm
2) Direct e-mail. I'll be setting up a mail distribution system from my internet account. For those who have not already joined this mailing list, my e-mail address is: ahc3@cornell.edu
Until Next week,
Alan
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