“[New York C]ity is being cheated out of millions of dollars a year in advertising revenue generated by street pay phones, Comptroller William Thompson has charged in a new report. “…the biggest offender was Telebeam Telecommunications Corporation which owes 1.5 million of the total. “Telebeam and other franchise owners hired media sales companies Vector and…
I was asked to comment for this story, but unfortunately my travel plans interfered with my ability to do so. My apologies to Jason, and kudos on a fine story about the enduring place for payphones in modern life. Read more at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
“There was a time when payphones were one of the only ways that New Zealanders could access the telephone when they were away from home or the office. Today, there are nearly as many mobile phones in New Zealand as there are people…” Read more at Cellular News
This article implies that payphones are irrelevent in the African communications revolution being brought about by cell phone service. In fact satellite powered community payphones are changing whole communities throughout Africa where most citizens can not afford personal or business phone service. Nevertheless, this is a good story showing the signal changes happening in Africa…
The New York Times reports: “[T]ownspeople were determined to keep the phone when the telephone company, Verizon, said in 2000 that it planned to remove the device because it was not making enough money. “With the proliferation of cellphones, BlackBerries and other devices that operate on digital technology rather than dimes, pay phones are a…
Internetnews.com reports: “It seemed like a great idea: own fee-based, public Internet terminals located in malls and rake in the cash. Too good, in fact, according to the Federal Trade Commission. “The FTC’s complaint names as defendants Transnet Wireless Corp. of Plantation, Fla., and its president Bradley Cartwright; Nationwide Cyber Systems of Hollywood, Fla., and…
Growing phenomenon in Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods: Payphones locked by chains on weekends and holidays ‘to prevent Sabbath desecration by Christians’ Read more at YNetNews.com
The Wickenberg Sun reports: “According to Benner-Nawman President Ed Kientz, the decline of the telephone booth business began with the deregulation of the telephone industry. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 deregulated the pay phone business to the point where its profitability was sharply diminished, and the need for the booths declined. “Globally, telephones are still…
“A jury found Charles Edwards, who founded ETS Payphones a decade ago, guilty of 83 counts of wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy.” Read more
“Charles Edwards was a failed entrepreneur who found gold in 1996 when the pay telephone industry was deregulated. “But Edwards’ success was merely a mirage built on deceit, federal prosecutors say. Edwards is accused of running a Ponzi scheme…” Read more (Registration required, but it’s free and this is an interesting story for the payphone…
“These phone boxes provide a lifeline in many rural communities, both for visitors and the people who live there. “In an emergency, the closure of these payphones could cause real problems. The phone box closure programme must be stopped before it is too late.” Read more
This memo from Sprint’s corporate intranet was sent to the Payphone Project by a Sprint employee. While the death knells continue to sound, Sprint sees a distinct and profitable future for the payphone. With this memo Sprint calls on employees to scout out locations for modest cash rewards. Sprint is giving employees a chance to…
“If telephones ever come to Stehekin, a lot of tourist brochures will need editing. Most locals use two-way radios to communicate within the valley, so you can’t say anything that you don’t want your neighbors to hear. But the modern world is encroaching.” Read more
“Councillor Keith Sharp said: “We have made a request for the phone box in Francis Gardens to be removed because we have been inundated with complaints about youths using it as a toilet and gathering around it and causing trouble.” Read more
“There are 6200 payphones in Scotland and over two-thirds of these no longer cover their costs.” Read more
“Sooner Telecommunication officials belief the thief is either a pay phone technician or someone who has worked in the field. The company says the equipment is being resold on the Internet and to other phone vendors.” Read more
The New York Times reports on Popa Media’s free public phones, paid for by advertising: “‘Verizon, they went to 50 cents for a phone call, and I didn’t get to talk for three minutes, then they wanted 10 cents more,’ he said, walking off down 10th Avenue. Told of the free phone nearby, he did…
“[T]here is still life left in pay phones because they serve a certain group of people, those who can’t afford or don’t want a cell phone. “Other users like the clarity of a pay phone better than a cell phone, use a pay phone instead of having a home phone or use them when their…
“During an era when women were only expected to fill the strict roles of nurse, wife or school teacher, these women arguably held more power in Morgan County than anybody. They controlled communication. They saw to it that wives got through to their husbands at work. They told the fire department to send trucks to…
“Mr. Evans stole pay phones by unbolting them from their bases, and smashed them open for the money inside.” Seems like a lot of work for a small amount of money… Read more
“There will always be a need for pay phones, said Willard Nichols, president of the Alexandria, Va.-based American Public Communications Council, which represents [payphone] owners.” Read more
Gannon said that for most affluent people today, pay phones have been replaced completely by cell phones. “The coin drop is a thing of the past for the middle and upper class.” Read more
“In March 2004, MTN Rwanda, the only mobile telecoms company in the tiny central African nation launched a community pay phone dubbed ‘tuvugane,’ meaning ‘let’s all talk.’ “It has since penetrated deep into the countryside, transforming the lives of thousands of rural people.” I love this company. MTN Rwanda. Read more
“Once deemed a necessary safety feature of any urban neighborhood, pay telephones are increasingly considered emblems of urban blight. In Toledo, that perception may speed the demise of a street-corner icon already threatened by the omnipresence of cell phones. “The Lagrange business district became the first neighborhood to ban the phones outright, but it might…
“People in Dunbeath are up in arms about the axing of a public phone kiosk in a remote spot which is very popular with hill-walkers.” “Freddy Mackay, gamekeeper at Glutt on Dunbeath Estate, is also unhappy at the demise of the kiosk. “‘It’s a damned shame they’ve taken it down,’ he said yesterday. ‘It was…
“To survive the mobile boom, the friendly local payphone has undergone a few changes. Sleeker, more sophisticated and multifunctional, a street payphone will soon offer Russian passers-by a whole new range of services.” Read more
“[David] Mack, who is chairman of the Legislative Black Caucus, said he remains concerned about the need for pay phones in places where there is less economic incentive to replace them. In remote areas, cell-phone users can find themselves stranded without useful signals, yet some rural phone utilities have removed pay phones too.” Read more
TMCnet.com reports: “Before 1996, only long-distance providers paid fees into the USF. “The Telecommunications Act of 1996 expanded the types of companies required to contribute to the fund. “Today, local telcos, wireless telcos, long-distance companies, international telcos and payphone providers all contribute to the fund.” Read more at TMCnet.com