1-800-COLLECT
Phone number used for reverse charge calls
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Key Takeaways
- 1-800-COLLECT (1-800-265-5328) is a 1-800 number, owned and operated by WiMacTel, which provides fixed rate collect calling in the United States.
- History Launch Prior to 1993, collect calling was a virtual monopoly held by AT&T as people were accustomed to dialing "0" to place collect calls.
- By dialing 1-800-COLLECT, customers could connect with an automated MCI system which would directly place a call to a designated receiving party for a fraction of the cost of the AT&T service for its operator-assisted collect calling.
- Launched with a large marketing budget, within a year New York Magazine reported that MCI had "stamped 1-800-COLLECT onto our consciousness with a mammoth marketing blitz" aimed largely at Generation X consumers.
1-800-COLLECT (1-800-265-5328) is a 1-800 number, owned and operated by WiMacTel, which provides fixed rate collect calling in the United States. The service was launched by MCI in 1993.
History
Launch
Prior to 1993, collect calling was a virtual monopoly held by AT&T as people were accustomed to dialing "0" to place collect calls. MCI moved aggressively to insert itself into the market by launching 1-800-COLLECT that year. By dialing 1-800-COLLECT, customers could connect with an automated MCI system which would directly place a call to a designated receiving party for a fraction of the cost of the AT&T service for its operator-assisted collect calling. According to Advertising Age, 1-800-COLLECT went from concept to launch in less than three months. Launched with a large marketing budget, within a year New York Magazine reported that MCI had "stamped 1-800-COLLECT onto our consciousness with a mammoth marketing blitz" aimed largely at Generation X consumers.
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