The next meeting of the Washington DC phonecard Collector's Group will be Wednesday, August 19th at 7:00pm in the Pentagon City Mall. It is easily accessible from the Washington metro, and features a variety of food choices for those who eat on the run. You'll find us near the gazebo with MC catalog in hand. Any phonecard, cash card or casino card collector is welcome. In fact since there are no bylaws, anyone is welcome. Bring cards to trade or one for a end of meeting lottery/kitty. Everyone is a winner. I'll be bringing some spare teenie beanies to trade too. Does anyone have the 1 or 2(Doby or Bongo) baby? Ulf Helmke, a serious phone card collector from Germany will be at the meeting. In all that will be our third European visitor. I am not counting the two California collectors. Some of you may want to stop by on your way to the Telecom '98 conference in New York on August 31st through September 3rd.
A number of players have entered the remote access market, with one in particular selling cards through a supermarket chain, at prices well below those of Telecom. Are people buying these cards in preference to Telecom cards? And does this explain the lack of good used general issue cards from the latest Farmyards release? Details of the issue are:
Farmyard animals general issue
Listing: $5 It's a dogs life, $5 Pigging out, $10 Chewing the cud, $20 Just horsin' around.
Background: This fun card set of our favourite farmyard friends is ideal for animal lovers and phonecard collectors.
Distribution: $5 cards - 101,900, $10 card 81,900, $20 card - 21,900.
The latest releases are:
Winnie the Pooh part 1
The first of a five part series, based on the well known stories written by A.A. Milne in 1926. The 4 card set features Winnie the Pooh and friends on their usual adventures in Hundred Acre Wood. These cards have just been released.
Distribution: New Zealand agent Event Masters with receive 1000 cards of each design. 750 cards will be inserted into numbered presentation sets and 250 cards available as loose phonecard sets. 100 cards will be available for sale through authorised phonecard dealers. Total production of each card is 1100.
New Zealand Orchids Limited Edition Presentation Pack
The first release of a limited edition series. The cards feature two award winning cymbidium hybrids showing full form and intense colour. The cards also carry the "Limited Edition 1998" logo.
Distribution: Each of the $20 cards will be sold in a presentation pack, and total production is 500 sets.
Mickey Mouse part 5
This issue concludes the Mickey Mouse series that began in 1994. Featuring the simply divine Mickey Mouse on his own, in contemporary form ready to dazzle many more generations into the next millennium. These are truly stunning cards.
Distribution: New Zealand Disney agent Event Masters will sell 750 cards of each design in presentation folders, 250 cards of each design will be available as loose cards and 100 will be available through phonecard dealers. Release date is July 1998.
Homesick
To celebrate an International calling price reduction, Telecom are releasing a special $5 "Homesick?" phonecard at the end of June. Only 10,000 cards have been produced.
Sean Fitzpatrick Commemorative Issue
To be released in July, this limited edition card pays tribute to a truly great New Zealand All Black rugby football player.
Circle K convenience stores are expanding customer choices in the fast- growing telecommunications market with the introduction of three new services: prepaid cellular phone cards, residential phone service and local pay phone smart cards.
Circle K has teamed up with AirTouch Cellular to offer PrePaid Circle K CellPhone cards, a new innovation that allows customers to purchase prepaid cellular airtime in 30-minute increments for only $45. The program will be test marketed in Phoenix, Arizona starting June 24, 1998. The cost of the card covers the cellular service and airtime eliminating lengthy service contracts, deposits, activation fees and monthly service fees.
``PrePaid Circle K CellPhone cards allow customers who either can't afford a cellular phone contract or don't want to make a year or two commitment, the opportunity to take advantage of simple, affordable cellular phone service,'' said Pat Fitzpatrick, in charge of category development for Tosco Marketing Company.
Customers can have their own cellular phone reprogrammed for free or purchase an Audiovox Analog cellular phone for $50. PrePaid Circle K CellPhone cards are also an opportunity for customers who need a cellular phone on a temporary basis for work or family needs.
For the 18 million households in the United States who currently do not have local residential phone service, Circle K and Phones For All, Inc. have teamed up to test market a new service starting July 1, 1998, in Louisiana and Pensacola, Florida. The program provides customers with local telephone service activation, installation and one month's service for $69.99.
Customers must provide their own telephones. Customers can renew their service monthly for $49.99. To sign up customers can visit their local Circle K and purchase an activation card. Customers then call an 800 number, provide information such as name and address and arrange for local service installation and activation. Each month before the service is due for renewal, Phones For All, Inc. will contact the customer and encourage them to renew their service by returning to Circle K.
``Customers who can't afford or qualify for phone service with their local carrier, will now have access to phone service for everything from job interviews to emergencies,'' Fitzpatrick said.
For customers who use the pay phone on a regular basis, there's no need to scrape for change for calls anymore. Circle K has joined US West to offer Telecard, a ``smart card'' used for coin free payphone calls in Arizona starting July 1, 1998. The card replaces the need for coins at US West advanced payphones. The ``smart'' part of the card is an embedded microchip, which can be programmed with ``electronic'' money. Each time a card is used, the cost of the call is deducted from money stored on the chip. The cards are $5 plus tax and provide 20 local calls, making each call 27 cents (25 cents plus 2 cents tax) for a savings of 8 cents per call based on the current price of 35 cents.
``The Telecard is a great way for parents to be sure their kids can always call home, even when they don't have change,'' Fitzpatrick said.
Circle K first entered the telecommunications market with sports-themed long-distance phone cards. Circle K is continuing this program offering Major League Baseball phone cards now available in Circle K stores nationwide and college football rivalry phone cards due in August.
DataWave's presence on AutoPilot will allow consumers to purchase AT&T Prepaid Calling Cards from the Internet while making other travel arrangements. With a link from the AutoPilot site, consumers will directly connect to DataWave's website for the purchase of virtual AT&T Prepaid Calling Cards
DataWave Systems Inc. distributes prepaid products including AT&T Prepaid Calling Cards through its automated network of intelligent prepaid electronic merchandisers.
From: Charles Irvin Frisinger
Until Next Time,
Alan
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