Charged for Talk1+World Calls!

phoneman44

In order for talktalk to stick a message stating 'this is a talktalk customer' would mean that your call would have to transfer out of their network, into a gateway to validate the bnumber and then back into their network. This process would take time of which talktalk are beinig charged an ingress fee from BT.

TalkTalk offer free calls to other TalkTalk customers as they make an assumption that the margin on your chargeable calls will more than cover the calls you make to TalkTalk customers.

Any company that offers free calls to other customers cannot be expected to give you an announcement as their Ingress charges would increase and therefore the risk of not making any money at all would also increase.

Something for nothing is not a mythe however i think it is a bit cheaky for you to expect a company to actively discourage you to help them increase their bottom line.

What would you rather pay - nothing for most and a little for some or more than a little for all.

I have a problem with the lets get everything for free attitude as I believe that it will kill competition in this industry. If as the experts predict there are only two or three providers left in a year or so's time do you think there will even be a concept of free calls?

Just look at the facts Just-Dial is almost no more, 11895 have put up their rates, the cheapest all calls package Tele2 High user is no more and why? Because rather than paying a little for a service people demand to pay nothing.

I hope you are saving for your future phone bill now!

Steve_xx

CrazyChemist wrote:

It's the same principle and therefore should be feasible.

I wouldn't rely on my customers' mistakes to make money because although a good money spinner in the short term, it would lead to losses in the long term through loyal customers leaving my business.

It is not the same principle at all. The company 18866 is advising you, as their customer, of the proposed tariff for the call you are about to make. It does not, and will not advise you of who runs the exchange line at the 'b' end of the call.

I don't follow your argument re relying on your customers making mistakes. When you call a number the leading digits indicate to you what the charge for the call is likely to be. BT don't make announcements to tell you that you are calling a mobile or a premium rate number or indeed whether you are calling one of its customers. If you use TalkTalk and the majority of your friends are on it, then you can speak to them for free. That's a bonus. Therefore TalkTalk will seek to recover the loss on that call somehow. This they do by a slight revision upwards in the tariff for a chargeable call.

It is reasonable to argue that the current plethora of revenue sharing numbers, like 0870/0871 have been heavily promoted by network service providers in order to recover some of their flagging revenue from normal 01 or 02 type terminations. They connect the call in more or less the same way yet they can derive revenues of about 600% more than they would had they terminated the call on an 01 or 02 number.

CrazyChemist_2

But seeing as TalkTalk sell the free calls to other customers as a major point of being with TalkTalk, I think they should let people know about this before the call connects. I'm not sure why 18866 can have an announcement but talktalk can't.

In order for talktalk to stick a message stating 'this is a talktalk customer' would mean that your call would have to transfer out of their network, into a gateway to validate the bnumber and then back into their network. This process would take time of which talktalk are beinig charged an ingress fee from BT.

What about the automated talktalk directory on their website? do they have to pay bt each time anyone searches for a number on there? No. Point proved.

And don't accuse me of getting something for free, they are the ones who say the whole nation should talk for free with talktalk so that's what I'm going on.

Steve_xx

CrazyChemist wrote:

But seeing as TalkTalk sell the free calls to other customers as a major point of being with TalkTalk, I think they should let people know about this before the call connects. I'm not sure why 18866 can have an announcement but talktalk can't

Phoneman44 has explained to you why there is no announcement.

If the whole nation moves to TalkTalk, do you believe that the cost of calling eachother will remain free? I think not.

Nobody here is "accusing" you of getting something for free. I think we are merely saying, just enjoy it while it is free, and understand that in order for it to be free that the cost of the freebie has to be borne elsewhere.

I suggest that each time you call a friend that you assume to be on TalkTalk that as soon as they answer the phone that you ask them if they are still with TalkTalk. That in effect will minimise any spend you had not budgeted for.