0870 Call Charges - Confirmation of Changes
Mon 03 August 2009
Any business that does not review their use of 0870 non-geographic numbers may find a substantial increase in their telecoms costs on their August billing.
0870 numbers are used by many businesses and organisations to provide a single non geographic number for responses to their marketing and telemarketing campaigns. However, consumers are charged more for calling these numbers than they would if they called a 'geographic rate' (01, 02 or 03) number. And because they cost more, businesses and organisations are able to take a cut of the call charges - a practice known as revenue sharing.
However, the new rules mean that callers to 0870 numbers will now pay only about 1.95 pence per minute (down from around 7 pence), while companies will pay around 1.95 pence per minute to receive the calls. If you currently have 0870 numbers with revenue sharing this is the perfect time to review them, as from the 1st of August you will start to pay for every call you receive, rather than making a small income.
The alternative non-geographic numbers available allow either free calls to callers, or avoid paying a fee for receiving the calls. The new 03 range of numbers allows callers to make calls using their bundled national rate minutes - even from a mobile - while not costing anything to receive.
Our sister company Synergy Mobile Solutions offers a range of non-geographic numbers, mobile contracts, land lines or call charges, please contact them for a free review.
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