The prepaid calling card industry has evolved into a more mature environment shaped by new technologies that enable exciting product development. Despite the recent economic downturn and increased government intervention, there are opportunities with enormous potential if you know where to look, keep an open mind to new products and services, and stay connected to the desires of the consumer.  What are some of these opportunities?  What are the revenue and profit potential? One such opportunity is based on ANI (Automatic number identification), a PIN-based service that allows PINless dialing.  Hassan Dabaja, EVP, Sales and Distribution, Encompass Communications, speaking at the recent conference at The Prepaid Press Expo in Las Vegas, emphasized that many calling card users are looking for other alternatives to make international calls. 

Market analysis shows that many customers are tired of hidden fees, low delivered minutes versus advertised minutes, and the huge penalty for short calls. In response, Encompass Communications launched the SimpleLD prepaid calling card, with no hidden charges. Using ANI (Automatic Number Identification), the need for a PIN every time the caller wants to make an international call is eliminated. The caller simply registers the phone numbers he uses most often and the next time the call is placed, the system recognizes the account and the call goes through.

Customers love access to online call records. “They can see all of their calls, nothing is hidden,” said Dabaja.  There are no maintenance fees, no rounding, no end of call surcharges, and no expiration to the minutes. If the card holder uses $2 on a $5 card, the remaining $3 stays until the next time it is used.  Another popular feature is speed dial, cutting out the need to dial a 16-digit international code.  A caller can simply mark “my mother’s number in Mexico” and put the number on speed dial.

So far, the market for this product has been professionals such as doctors, lawyers, accountants, and embassy employees. Dabaja said that on average, an ANI customer spends about $75 a month.  The top 10 companies that cater to this business segment generate about $30M per month in retail revenue.

With improved technology and a better platform, Encompass is going full force with the product.



International Mobile Top-Up an Exciting Trend

“International Mobile Top-up is the new wave in prepaid profits revenue,” says Osvaldo Rodriguez, President/CEO, iPayStation LLC.

Prepaid calling card customers can “Top Up” their family’s mobile phone back home from retail stores in the US. The customer chooses a card from the retailer’s selection, provides the mobile phone number of his mother back home, and she gets a text message telling her that she has 100 more minutes.

“Mobile is the glue that will connect the world,” said Bruce Burke, Director of Business Development, iPayStation, at The Prepaid Press Expo.  With providers as a conduit for sales, there is significant potential for revenues and profit, especially when servicing the unbanked global population.  Burke described International Mobile Top-Up as a worldwide airtime remittance service that puts money into the “Mobile Wallet.”

Airtime remittance is like sending flowers, with various ways to make a transaction. But in all ways, money is taken in and applied to an account. “Mobile flattens borders and brings countries together,” observed Burke. “People in huts in Africa can receive money on their mobile phones.”

Oscar Muñoz, CEO, Uni-Mas, said, “International Mobile Top-Up and money remittance are two applications that prepaid and mobile providers should consider.”

Muñoz pointed out that there are 50 million Hispanics in the US, making up 15% of the total population. By 2050, it is estimated that 30% of the population will be Hispanic.  Right now, about 16 million US residents are sending money home to Latin America. According to the Inter American Development Bank (IADB), remittance has doubled since 2003.

“Your phone card customer can also become a debit card customer,” noted Muñoz. “You use one platform for all remittance uses.”

Enrique A. Hirlemann, Director, US Sales and Marketing, ezetop Ltd, says that mobile phone penetration and usage has exploded over the last five years, creating significant opportunities. The International Top-Up opportunity is greatest where there are large money transfer volumes.  According to research, Mexico alone received $25 billion, followed by Brazil ($7.2), Colombia ($4.8), Guatemala ($4.3), and El Salvador ($3.7).

Ezetop is one of the companies that is enabling retailers in the US to sell mobile phone “Top-Up” from nearly all major mobile operators in Latin America and the Caribbean.



Opportunities in MVNO Space

Neil French, Solution Architect, DIGITALK Limited, talked about opportunities in the MVNO space, stating, “The MVNO implementation structure is now mature across Europe and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are looking for limited partnerships.” 

What MNOs offer is an understanding of the marketplace and ability to produce a business proposition that includes existing relationships.

As an example, Moreminutes, a top prepaid service provider in Spain, recently launched a new Prepaid Mobile service on the DIGITALK Multiservice Platform.  The Spanish provider is the first full MVNO to collaborate with a leading European Mobile Network Operator to offer international mobile calling. Started in the second quarter of 2009, the diameter integration was implemented with Orange MSC with international termination via Moreminutes network.

Moreminutes has been offering prepaid calling cards to its domestic and international markets using DIGITALK since 2001. The Moreminutes team was looking to offer their existing customers the same cheaper rates while recognizing the convenience and increasing use of prepaid mobile telephony, including support for mobile messaging and roaming.

Moreminutes has deployed the DIGITALK Credit Control Application, allowing them full control over customer billing and CRM as well as being able to exploit the Least Cost Routing capabilities of their DIGITALK Multiservice Platform.  This enables Moreminutes to support international call routing and so maximize call margins while offering a competitively priced service. The service operates under the LlamayA movil brand.

Mark Ashdown, Sales and Marketing Director of DIGITALK, explained the significance of the development: “It is important to note that this is the first fully integrated MVNO working with a leading European Mobile Network Operator. The DIGITALK Prepaid Mobile Solution enables service providers to differentiate themselves from resellers that do not have any control over rates and charging. Moreminutes now has the ability to respond very quickly to their customers which is a distinct advantage.”



Selling Phone Numbers

Voxbone, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, delivers high-quality call origination from 49 countries and 4,000 cities, as well as “iNum” numbers that enable billing as local calls when dialed through participating carriers anywhere in the world. 

According to Rod Ullens, CEO, Voxbone, the company’s main focus right now is selling large batches of DID (Direct Inward Dial) numbers to calling card companies, call centers, and conferencing companies. Such entities have offices all over the world and need access numbers to reach the conference bridge. Ullens, a veteran in the telecom industry, started the company four years ago and is expanding internationally to be a major player in telecom space, providing global “iNum” phone numbers, with the area code for Earth.

Ullens sees opportunity in global numbers, stating, “As the world population becomes increasingly migratory, phone numbers need to evolve to reflect users’ changing expectations. There’s a new geography being created that’s about local presence and global relationships rather than distance or national borders.  People no longer consider themselves tied down to a single location and don’t expect their phone number to be either.”

As the world gets flatter and connectivity is enhanced, prepaid is becoming the preeminent common denominator for the exchange of money to buy products and fulfill calling services.  Now is the time to grab the brass ring.