Is anybody please able to comment whether 0845 (local rate) telephone numbers are "revenue sharing" numbers?  i.e. the charge punter pays is "shared" between the number holder and the service provider.

Thanks.

rydaway wrote on Aug 7^th, 2006 at 6:21pm:



In short, yes they are revenue generating.

There are some telco suppliers that do pay for incoming calls on their numbers during the day, but at the most this is about 0.5p per minute.  I don't think any telco would pay for evening and weekend calls.

This is alot less than 0870 numbers.  However although many telcos don't pay out for customers receiving calls on the 0845 number, the telco certainly gets a slice of the profits, which means these numbers cannot be included in mobile inclusive minutes, or landline unlimited calls.

Also, any company that does say they don't receive revenue is not telling the whole truth.  Telcos use some of their profits to supply companies free voicemail, switching equipment, and telecoms equipment, which if they operated a normal geo number they would have to pay for.

Although its possible to get a Free 0845 number these days  with Free Connection,no call charges,no revenue share  and no line rental.
Its worth noting that some suppliers of 0845 numbers still charge the organisation using  the 0845 number  for  the 0845 inbound  call, as well as what the person dialling it pays.
EG. Good old BT.  http://www.bt.com/store/product/detail.jsp?oid=265426

Quote:


If you read the BT site mentioned by Orsonkart, it lists:

Benefits
Offering a BT 0845 number sends a clear message to new and existing customers: 'We value your custom so much that it will only cost you 4p per minute to contact us, wherever you are in the country.'

To put it an other way:
'Offering a BT 0845 number sends a clear message to new and existing customers: 'We think you're a bunch of mugs paying us way more than the going rate for a phone call. Welcome suckers!'  

Quote:
From the way I see it, it's misleading because:-

1. They make it sound like these calls are cheaper than ordinary calls because they "only" cost 4ppm.
2. Another point is the, "4p per minute to contact us, wherever you are in the country", is also misleading by making out that regardless of which teleco (including mobile) you use to call these numbers, you only pay 4ppm.  This is actually different from ASA guidelines that stipulate that companies most make clear that its only from BT lines and other teleco's (especially mobiles) will cost more.

If you look at the spiel for 0870 here, a similar line also exists:-
Quote:

jrawle wrote on Aug 9^th, 2006 at 12:30pm:

And when geographical numbers are charged per minute, many daytime calls to 0845 on Option 1 will be cheaper than geographical numbers as 0845 will be billed to the nearest second.

Dave wrote on Aug 9^th, 2006 at 12:38pm:


But geo numbers can cost as little as 3p per call,(when using 1899), whereas 0845 will always be racking up your phone bill while you wait in the queue, and you know what they cost from mobiles, (not included in most free minutes packages), and payphones.

Not like you Dave to fall for that one, or have I missed something?

derrick wrote on Aug 10^th, 2006 at 5:20pm:
I suspect Dave was only referring to when the call is made via BT and not the cheaper options available.

The thing about comparing 0845 to geographical calls is that they will only really be compared with BT as they (BT) are the biggest/well known teleco hence reason why during the daytime, 0845 is technically charged at the same rate (ppm) as a geographical.  Obviously, from other teleco's like TT, Primus, etc there is a difference and during the evening & weekend then there is also a difference.

Companies operating NGN's will generally comment that 0845 is charged at the same rate as geographical calls and then go on to say that its up to the consumer which teleco they choose.

The thing is that many companies and gov depts are not aware of the likes of Call1899, etc and are not aware that NGNs are not included in any inclusive tariffs us consumers may have hence the reason why gov depts/companies say its up to the teleco and for us consumers to choose a better/more suitable tariff.  This lack of knowledge I believe is down to the fact that 0845 was known as local rate for so long and they are not aware that it costs teleco's more when calling an NGN than it does to carry a normal geographical call - simply due to the underlying nature of how many teleco's may be involved in carrying the call and the revenue sharing between so many teleco's (including in some cases the end company/gov dept).