It's been said that phonecards are a hybrid of coin, stamp and trading card collecting. You have the currency value of coins and stamps, the thematic and used/new collecting aspects of stamps, and the similarities in size and most recently themes for trading cards. Phonecards seem to be something that can be collected quite easily. It is possible to gather a collection of expensive and hard to find cards, proofs, errors, etc. It is also possible to collect just by using cards, and trading them. You can spend as much or little as you want
to collect phonecards, and this is what makes phonecard collecting such a popular
worldwide hobby.
Worldwide, it is safe to say the number is in the millions. It's been estimated that there are a million collectors alone in Japan. The hobby is still small in the U.S., but there is growth. In 1995, it appeared that phonecards were going to be the next major hobby in the U.S. This did not happen, and many phonecard companies went out of business. The hobby is on the rebound, but most people now predict a long period of slow growth as opposed to rapid growth. Unlike the early 1990's, the most often heard question from non-collectors has changed from "What is a phonecard" to "Why collect phonecards"
The modern phonecard has its roots in Italy in 1976. Phonecards were introduced as a way of reducing theft from public pay phones. The phenomena spread to the rest of the world. (Except the U.S., where we were using charge calling cards and collect calls) Although trial cards were in the U.S. as early as the mid 1980's, it was not until the 1990's that collectors would start knowing what phonecards were. Companies like AT&T (Yes, they make prepaid cards too!), NYNEX and Amerivox were some of the early pioneers in the U.S. phonecard industry. The phonecard industry has gone through rapid growth and decline in the US. Many of the multi-level marketing companies (i.e. Amerivox, Destiny, STS) are no longer in business. Companies are producing fewer phonecards for the collector market, and more for
the user market. This is a healthy step.
There are four major types of telecards - remote memory cards, magnetic, optical, and electronic.
Remote memory cards are used by the majority of U.S. telephone companies. The time is not stored on the card itself, but rather in a central computer which is accessed by the cardholder. Using a toll-free number appearing on the card, the user calls the central computer and enters a unique identification number (often referred to as a PIN - personal identification number). Remote memory cards are different than the other types of cards as they do not require any physical contact with the telephone. Many of these cards are renewable and can be "recharged" with additional time.
Magnetic cards have a built-in memory of the telephone time remaining on the card stored in a magnetic stripe (or stripes) appearing on the card (similar in concept to the magnetic stripes appearing on bank credit cards). The card is inserted into the telephone which then reads the amount of time available on the card and reduces this amount as the phone call progresses. Some magnetic cards have a scale along which holes are punched by the telephone at the end of each call to give the holder an indication of the time remaining.
Optical cards have the telephone time remaining on the card stored in patterns in a foil strip on the card. When the card is inserted into the telephone, an infra-red beam is reflected off of the patterns, telling the electronics inside the telephone the amount of time available. As the time is used, the patterns are destroyed, reducing the remaining time available. Some optical cards have a white strip along which black marks are placed by the telephone at the end of each call, again to provide a measure of the time remaining on the card.
Electronic cards actually have a silicon chip embedded in the card. This chip stores the amount of time remaining on the card. The chip is connected to a set of contacts appearing on the card surface. When inserted into the telephone, these contacts connect with the electronics of the telephone, thereby allowing it to obtain a reading of the time available.
Rates can vary on U.S. prepaid phonecards, so it is a good idea to check out different companies. On the high end, which usually runs around 35-50 cents per minute are the more established companies like Sprint, MCI and AT&T. They seem to believe that name recognition will get people to purchase their cards to use. Companies that charge between 20 and 40 cents per minute tends to be RBOC's (Regional Bell Operating Companies, like Pacific Bell, Bell South, NYNEX, etc.) and entertainment or novelty cards. There are then companies that sell time for less. It's a good idea to check around and see what card is best for you. If you are not going to use the card and keep it new, rates won't matter as much. If you use the card, you may be influenced by card design and just pay more for phone time (See section 3, Used vs. New)
Thankfully this is a term of the past. Amerivox charged $10 to "activate the card" - It was their special way of claiming 29.9 cents per minute (which in 1992 and 1993 was a great rate) while really charging 70 cents per minute. Perhaps one of the reasons they are out of business?
Recharging is placing more calling time on a phonecard, usually done by calling an 800 number and using a major credit card. It only affects remote access cards, as once a magnetic or laser card is used up, it can not be recharged. Cards can either be permanently attached to a credit card and automatically renew (See previous section) or you can recharge a card for as much as you want as a one time transaction. If you recharge a card this way, and decide not to recharge again, there will be no permanent attachment to your
credit card.
