Rechargeable calling card
Encyclopedia
A rechargeable calling card is a type of telephone card
that the user can "recharge" or "top up" by adding money
when the balance is low. Introduced in the early 1990s the rechargeable calling card has become the most common telephone card
available after the original calling card was introduced in Italy in 1977. Calling cards introduced in the early 1990s had a set amount that could be spend and, once the credit was used, the card would be discarded. As the calling card began to gain popularity around the world it turned into a multi-million dollar industry. In an attempt to improve, the card companies started releasing rechargeable calling cards.
With the explosion of the internet many companies started to offer virtual rechargeable calling card making it possible to make calls from any phone anywhere in the world. In most cases the customer will call an access number, enter their pin and then dial the number. With the advent of rechargeable cards the customer is able to add credit at the same time as calling.
(NTT) introduced the phone card. It was an instant hit, selling thousands a day on the Metro in Tokyo and Osaka, various other companies began to get involved and released their own variants. In 2000 Brastel Telecom
released the first rechargeable phone card in Japan called Brastel Card, this time the card was sold in convenience stores across Japan. As the rechargeable phone card took off, more companies began to release cards. At the moment the top companies are:
Telephone card
A telephone card, calling card or phone card for short, is a small plastic card, sized and shaped like a credit card, used to pay for telephone services. It is not necessary to have the physical card except with a stored-value system; knowledge of the access telephone number to dial and the PIN is...
that the user can "recharge" or "top up" by adding money
Money
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...
when the balance is low. Introduced in the early 1990s the rechargeable calling card has become the most common telephone card
Telephone card
A telephone card, calling card or phone card for short, is a small plastic card, sized and shaped like a credit card, used to pay for telephone services. It is not necessary to have the physical card except with a stored-value system; knowledge of the access telephone number to dial and the PIN is...
available after the original calling card was introduced in Italy in 1977. Calling cards introduced in the early 1990s had a set amount that could be spend and, once the credit was used, the card would be discarded. As the calling card began to gain popularity around the world it turned into a multi-million dollar industry. In an attempt to improve, the card companies started releasing rechargeable calling cards.
Recharging
In many respects the card is now like a debit card. Money can be added when the balance gets too low, allowing the user to continue using the same card. Cards can be recharged or topped up in a variety of ways:- Credit cardCredit cardA credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services...
- CashCashIn common language cash refers to money in the physical form of currency, such as banknotes and coins.In bookkeeping and finance, cash refers to current assets comprising currency or currency equivalents that can be accessed immediately or near-immediately...
at convenience storeConvenience storeA convenience store, corner store, corner shop, commonly called a bodega in Spanish-speaking areas of the United States, is a small store or shop in a built up area that stocks a range of everyday items such as groceries, toiletries, alcoholic and soft drinks, and may also offer money order and...
s/corner shops - Swipe card machines
- InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
- Coupons
- Bank accountBank accountA Bank account is a financial account recording the financial transactions between the customer and the bank and the resulting financial position of the customer with the bank .-Account types:...
- Debit cardDebit cardA debit card is a plastic card that provides the cardholder electronic access to his or her bank account/s at a financial institution...
With the explosion of the internet many companies started to offer virtual rechargeable calling card making it possible to make calls from any phone anywhere in the world. In most cases the customer will call an access number, enter their pin and then dial the number. With the advent of rechargeable cards the customer is able to add credit at the same time as calling.
Japan
Even though the calling card was invented in Italy the country that took to the calling card most was Japan, introduced in 1982, 5 years after Italy, Nippon Telegraph and TelephoneNippon Telegraph and Telephone
, commonly known as NTT, is a Japanese telecommunications company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. Ranked the 31st in Fortune Global 500, NTT is the largest telecommunications company in Asia, and the second-largest in the world in terms of revenue....
(NTT) introduced the phone card. It was an instant hit, selling thousands a day on the Metro in Tokyo and Osaka, various other companies began to get involved and released their own variants. In 2000 Brastel Telecom
Brastel Telecom
Brastel Telecom ブラステル株式会社 or more commonly known as Brastel, is a Japanese telecommunications company based in Tokyo; they distribute international prepaid calling cards within Japan and Asia via convenience stores...
released the first rechargeable phone card in Japan called Brastel Card, this time the card was sold in convenience stores across Japan. As the rechargeable phone card took off, more companies began to release cards. At the moment the top companies are:
- Brastel TelecomBrastel TelecomBrastel Telecom ブラステル株式会社 or more commonly known as Brastel, is a Japanese telecommunications company based in Tokyo; they distribute international prepaid calling cards within Japan and Asia via convenience stores...
- Clonclom
- Nobel
- ComFiComfiis a telecommunications company that sells virtual products such as long distance phone cards and prepaid cell phone minute refills. The company is based in Wellesley, Massachusetts....