Advertisement:
Welcome to our little section of POL. Our name is Eyer's World. We offer a very comprehensive US and Foreign PriceList, and we have issued 22 pricelists so far. We plan to issue over 100 of them, to overtake the 111 we have issued in the foreign coin and foreign banknote fields since 1970. We'd like to send you a copy of our latest: Telecard PriceList 22. Send name and postal address to seyer@midwest.net. Add a short list of areas you are interested in; we will return a printout of available cards. I look forward to meeting you. Steve http://www.cardmall.com/eyer
Advertisement:
Michigan Bell 402 Telephone Card (An historic rare telephone card at a bargain price) - Recognised as the first telecard for general use in the USA. These Michigan Bell 40 cents notched phonecards were distributed gratis to students at the University of Michigan in 1987/8 as part of a field trial. These
historic cards were produced by Landis & Gyr of Switzerland to be used at special pay telephones at Ann Arbor, Michigan. Most of these complimentary phonecards were used and discarded by the students at that time and very few specimens have survived. Powell Associates offers the above card in unused (mint) condition with it's original leaflet at $137.00 each postpaid. We only have a very limited quantity available and probably will never be able to find another lot again. These and many other rare and interesting telephone cards are available from our extensive inventory by mail order (send for free catalog).
Powell Associates has been in business and dealing in collectible phonecards since 1992. We recently moved our offices from Manhattan to Morganville, New Jersey. All major credit cards are accepted.
Email luisvigdor@compuserve.com Internet http://www.powellpm.com
I have to applaud the staff at Moneycard Collector for their dedication to the hobby and the publication. From Randy Mosser and Murray Church, to Tom Williams and Kathy Utz, they all did a terrific job with the publication. I receive many hobby magazines each month, and this is the one that I really looked forward to receiving. I will definitely miss it. I think the biggest void will be the lack of an updated price guide, and a place to show off new issues. Two years ago, there were two price guides in the US, today there are none. Collectors like to know the value of their collection, even if they never plan on selling anything. The hobby will survive though, as I remember a time where there were no price guides. Moneycard Collector started publishing without a price guide, they only added it about a year later.
With Moneycard Collector now gone, I hope to fill part of the void with this newsletter. Its been published for over three years now, and has a subscription base of over 3,000 people. The following are new features that will be added to the newsletter with the help of various dealers:
Hot Cards - This will continue Moneycards section of a list of cards that are actively being sold, and pricing information. A number of dealers have agreed to supply this information to be compiled. This will be a monthly feature, probably the first newsletter of each month. This section will also be available on-line to view, and to look at archives. It wont be anything close to a price guide, but at least it will provide information on cards being actively bought and sold.
Most Wanted - This was a very popular feature in Moneycard Collector, and I plan on continuing that on-line with the newsletter and on the web site. Again, several dealers have committed to supplying this information on a monthly basis. If possible, I will have scanned images of the cards on the web site.
New Releases - Every issuer is welcome to send information about a new card issued, and several do for this newsletter. Again, I welcome issuers to submit this information so the new cards can be promoted. There will be a separate web site area for new issues as well, which will eventually work out to contain a valuable archive. Collectors and dealers can submit the information to me for publication as well, if they are aware of any new cards.
I also welcome dealers and collectors to contribute to this newsletter. Please contact me if anyone wishes to contribute any written material.
ATLANTA, Dec. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- BellSouth Long Distance, Inc. (BSLD) today introduced its prepaid phone card. Easy to use from any phone, the new BellSouth(R) Prepaid Phone Card lets customers make local, long distance and international calls without the hassle of coins or credit cards.
The card is available in $10, $20 and $30 denominations. The BellSouth Prepaid Phone Card, with its competitive domestic rates, is a low cost alternative to payphones, traditional calling cards and collect-calls. Consumers can purchase the card by calling 1-800-280-1964, or visiting BellSouth Long Distance on the Internet at www.bellsouthld.com.
Additionally, BellSouth Long Distance has created a holiday version of its prepaid card. The festively designed card, which comes with a beautiful greeting card and envelope, makes a great gift idea for those far away friends and loved ones on your holiday gift list.
``The BellSouth Prepaid Phone Card makes a perfect stocking stuffer, and is an ideal way for family and friends to stay in touch during the holiday season,'' said Barbara Watson, product director, BellSouth Long Distance. ``Additionally, we've made it convenient for consumers to purchase the holiday card by calling our 1-800 number, visiting us on the Internet or stopping by one of our participating retail outlets.''
Both cards are available at any of the 300 BellSouth Mobility and BellSouth Mobility DCS stores located throughout the BellSouth nine-state region.
BellSouth Long Distance is planning to have the card available early next year in retail outlets such as convenience stores, chain stores and service stations both nationally and across its nine-state territory, which includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
``The BellSouth Prepaid Phone Card is attractive to a large variety of customers - those who frequently make calls away from home, or those who are just looking for a way to control their monthly telephone expenses,'' said Watson. ``Prepaid phone cards are especially suited for anyone on a budget, such as college students and retirees, frequent travelers, truckers, vacationers, and business professionals on the road. Additionally, the BellSouth Prepaid Phone Card offers a convenient, affordable solution for parents who want their children to be able to call home anytime from anywhere.''
BellSouth Long Distance is acting as marketing agent for U.S. South Communications, Inc., an independently owned facility-based inter-exchange carrier based in Atlanta providing carrier and card fulfillment services for the BellSouth Prepaid Phone Card. Its phone card division, InComm, is a leading provider of prepaid phone cards for the retail, premium/incentive and wholesale markets. Telecard World Magazine recognized U.S. South/InComm as 1997 ``Company of the Year.''
``We're excited about our association with BellSouth Long Distance and the opportunity to bring quality service and unmatched reliability to the prepaid calling card marketplace,'' said Brooks Smith, president and CEO, U.S. South.
Developed in Australia, Deluxe Visa Cash Service uses the Visa Cash message formats and protocol to acquire smartcard transactions and forward them for authorization. The system is also capable of reloading card value.
St. George's South Australian division, BankSA, will issue the stored value cards (SVCs) jointly with Visa International. The Bank announced its first commercial implementation of Visa Cash technology, commencing in October. The SVC is being offered to 16,500 members of the South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) who will be able to use it to gain entry to the Adelaide Oval and to make purchases inside the cricket ground.
The enterprising SACA is not a newcomer to smartcard technology. It has used smartcard ground access for the past two years. Now cricket fans will be able to use their cards for purchases of food, drinks and souvenirs inside the ground, once they have transferred money to the Visa Cash electronic purse. The card design features a distinctive view of the Adelaide Oval under lights.
Ray Webster, St. George business manager, emerging technologies, electronic channels and payment systems, says: ``SACA should quickly benefit from the advantages of smartcards. This system should lower cash handling costs. It also increases security because, with less cash held on the premises, there is less risk. From the consumer perspective, the product represents a significant breakthrough by allowing them to carry one card for all their card-based transactions. It also adds value to their membership of SACA and use of the Adelaide Oval facilities.''
Making a purchase transaction using the smartcard is simple. The customer initiates the sale by inserting the card into the point of sale terminal. The salesperson enters the amount of the transaction, which is displayed on the terminal reader. The customer presses a button to confirm the amount. The purchase value is deducted from the card's value and stored in the terminal for settlement. Purchases are made off-line as a direct withdrawal of funds from the card and do not require a PIN or other authorization. However the SVC can be reloaded online using a PIN at the same POS device inside the Adelaide Oval complex; not only from St. George or BankSA accounts, but also with funds accessed using an EFTPOS debit card issued by other banking institutions.
There have been a number of smartcard pilots in Australia using SVCs in limited, closed environments. The St. George smartcard breaks new ground in combining a number of applications on one card -- Visa Cash, membership, access to the ground and the option of a Visa credit card. This means cardholders can use the Visa Cash services available at the ground, and use the same card to obtain cash at any ATM, for general EFTPOS transactions at other retail outlets.
Until Next Time,
Alan
2) Direct e-mail. Send a message to: phoneline@cardmall.com
If you wish to unsubscribe from POL, you need to send a message to the following address: pol-request@ListService.net
In the Body of the Message: address, just type UNSUBSCRIBE