99cent/month in 2012.

[psycon]

so reading the new products and services page on FREEPHONELINE.com it appears that _FREE_phoneline will COST 99 cents a month. apart from the blatant false advertising in the company name, will current customers, who have paid for their SIP login and ported a number over, under the assumption that it would be free for life (AS advertised), remain free?

[FONGO_steve]

I think you may have mis-read this page

The page states that for 99c/month you'll be able to buy an add-on DID for your account in other Canadian (and even some American) cities. This DID will function in addition to your main DID which is - and always will be - free.

[TheHardy]

http://www.freephoneline.ca/optionalServices#

I read this the same way that Steve explains it ... text from that page says:

"Coming 2012

99¢ per month

Your friends call your Vancouver or New York phone number and reach
you anywhere on your freephoneline.

Add additional Canada & USA phone numbers
to your existing account."

---

Seems pretty clear to me --- that is, that it is 99c/mo for ADDITONAL #'s.... a feature that ppl have been asking for for a long time.

On that note, Steve (or other FPL/FonGo rep), is there any preliminary list of which cities will be offering DID's??? Am I safe to guess that it may be a correlation to the coming calling area update???

[Jake]

It could easily have been read as separate 'Coming Soon' items, especially as they are separated in paragraphs.

Someone could have read it as 3 separate announcements.

1. The service will cost 99cents a month.
2. There is going to be a new advanced follow me system, or call forking system.
3. We are going to be able to add additional numbers to our account.

Now I know FPL well enough to know how that was supposed to be read, but separating it in paragraphs and not really linking them together could leave to different interpretations.

If they had written it something like this-

Coming soon in 2012
Add additional Canadian & USA phone numbers to your existing account.

Now your friends can call a Vancouver or New York phone number and reach you on your existing FonGo!

Coming soon in 2012 for just 99cents per month, per addition phone number.

As I said, I knew what it was supposed to say, but new people to the site (or existing members) could read it differently - as they have already. If the heading was 'Additional numbers on your FonGo account' rather than 'Coming 2012' or 'Quick Overview' may help also.

just my 2 (99?) cents.

[TheHardy]

Fair enough and I can fully see that too -- re-re-reading it leads to the conclusion you came to. All I can say is that whomever is writing stuff for FPL needs to be a bit better at it -- just read the ConFee announcement on the softphone --- it has two typos in it as well .... Not only that, but the wording is also awkward ....

[psycon]

I am glad I was wrong. But It is a little confusing.. i mean you click on products and services , the overview just says 99cents per line, and all the other tabs mention addon services. nowhere does it mention the main product, free service..... a first time visitor to the site would assume it costs money just to get a basic account... someone should probably reword that page.

[FONGO_kris]

This would most likely be an earlier product we are working on adding in the new year. The first TN is free with all the same perks you get now, and for those of you who want another TN from another city or apparently a TN from the US you can get one for $0.99/month!

[TheHardy]

This would most likely be an earlier product we are working on adding in the new year. The first TN is free with all the same perks you get now, and for those of you who want another TN from another city or apparently a TN from the US you can get one for $0.99/month!

Would it be letting the cat out of the bag to speak to whether or not that means that a standard regular FREE FPL/FonGo account would be able to select a DID/main number from the new rate centres once they are implemented? IE more local numbers to chose from, or will the additional cities only be available as ADD-ONS/PAID option?

[FONGO_kris]

I don't think the feline would be removed from the particular fabric container in which it is being held if I said just a little more.

It would simply be a regular FPL/Fongo number you'd have the same control over; much like Bell's Identi-Call, without the destictive ring (as far as I know for the ring...), except you could have it in a different city!

[Jake]

I don't think the feline would be removed from the particular fabric container in which it is being held if I said just a little more.

It would simply be a regular FPL/Fongo number you'd have the same control over; much like Bell's Identi-Call, without the destictive ring (as far as I know for the ring...), except you could have it in a different city!

I think the point might be that is we are able to select US numbers as an additional number, then will we be able to 'normally' select this as our FPL number, when signing up for example, and also call to local areas to the US numbers we can add on. IE, will the US areas be 'on net' (is that the right term?) for us when this rolls out?

[FONGO_kris]

This makes a whole lot more sense than what I wrote - I apologize for the misunderstanding - It is Monday after all...

What you are wondering is if you get a local Toronto number, and a New York number, if the whole LCA of New York be local along with Toronto (and the entire free calling area in Canada) just as though you had a TN right in New York?

Unfortunately that's something I've not been informed about which and will likely be included with the officla announcment of the feature when it comes out.

[TheHardy]

This makes a whole lot more sense than what I wrote - I apologize for the misunderstanding - It is Monday after all...

What you are wondering is if you get a local Toronto number, and a New York number, if the whole LCA of New York be local along with Toronto (and the entire free calling area in Canada) just as though you had a TN right in New York?

Unfortunately that's something I've not been informed about which and will likely be included with the officla announcment of the feature when it comes out.

That is more along the lines of my inquiry, yes .... but more directly, seeing as how say VICTORIA, BC is now 'on-net' (and likely part of the planned expansion), will we be able to select a Victoria-BC-based FPL # as our primary/default # when signing up for a FREE account, or will these "NEW" cities/numbers ONLY be available as an ADDITIONAL CHARGE option???

As for LCA's, I think that Steve had some input into that (had info for me via PM when queried about it)... I would refrain from comment ATM.

[FONGO_steve]

More details about the expanded calling areas and add-on DIDs will be available in the coming weeks.

[TheHardy]

More details about the expanded calling areas and add-on DIDs will be available in the coming weeks.

w00t! Narrowed down to weeks now! Maybe I can manage to hold my breath without doing the Smurf impersonation ... if it is only a few weeks!

Thanks Steve, and I know that I was probably asking for more information than is currently available.

[Jake]

More details about the expanded calling areas and add-on DIDs will be available in the coming weeks.

w00t! Narrowed down to weeks now! Maybe I can manage to hold my breath without doing the Smurf impersonation ... if it is only a few weeks!

Thanks Steve, and I know that I was probably asking for more information than is currently available.

He said 'coming weeks' There are 52 weeks coming up I wouldn't go holding my breath if I was you

[TheHardy]

He said 'coming weeks' There are 52 weeks coming up I wouldn't go holding my breath if I was you

Unless we believe the Mayans, there are a lot more than 52 weeks coming up ... only a year has 52(+ a bit) weeks. I am taking Steve at his word that COMING WEEKS means soon ... and reading between the lines (which is dangerous on my part), I am inferring on my own that COMING WEEKS < 4, as that would be MONTHS ... I know, a silly assumption!

As for holding my breath, if I become too Smurf-like, maybe someone can test out their forum-CPR skills on my lifeless body! Either that, or there will be other forum members rejoicing and dancing in the wings that I have finally succumbed and am no longer able to post!

[Killian]

Unless we believe the Mayans, there are a lot more than 52 weeks coming up ... only a year has 52(+ a bit) weeks.

I believe 51 + 162hr would be the answer you're looking for. Being that one year has 365 1/4 days to account for the leap year... If we follow the Gregorian, and not the Mayan calanders...

As for you collapsing dead, I only presume the developers at phpBB have provided the community with a module for the purpose of reviving the deceased. But you may need root access.

[TheHardy]

Root-access may be the least of my problems ... luckily I cannot add a poll at this point to see how many users would like to see me remain UN-revived ...

Thanks for the specifics on the Mayan-end-of-the-world. I will make sure I am wearing my tin-foil hat when that date approaches ...

[Killian]

You're most welcome.

Don't forget your hip-waders; it's sure to be a rainy day!

[TheHardy]

Don't forget your hip-waders; it's sure to be a rainy day!

You musta missed that I am in Surrey, BC (suburb of Vancouver). I have gills and webbed toes already ... don't forget that Vancouverites don't TAN, we RUST! A day here without rain is like .... well, a day without oxygen!

The only time I would need hipwaders would be if I was within 10' of any politician to wade thru the endless supply of fertilizer that surrounds them.

[sncbhle18]

what does DID stand for? I don't get it? I'm quite worried that my FPL won't be free at all (I've signed up since November 2011 and I'm still testing out the softphone version)....

[Jake]

what does DID stand for? I don't get it? I'm quite worried that my FPL won't be free at all (I've signed up since November 2011 and I'm still testing out the softphone version)....

As stated by Kris and Steve, your main account number will always be free. So the account you have signed up for will not all of a sudden start earning you a monthly bill, UNLESS you get an add-on of some sort.

DID is Direct Inward Dialling - basically a phone number.

What is being discussed in this thread is if you ADD ON another DID (phone number) to your main free account. If you do this, there will be a 99cents/month charge.

If you just have a softphone account, nothing will change for you.

[TheHardy]

what does DID stand for? I don't get it? I'm quite worried that my FPL won't be free at all (I've signed up since November 2011 and I'm still testing out the softphone version)....

DID == (D)irect (I)nward (D)ial ... layman translation -- a "real" 10-D phone number that other people can call you on from a POTS (Plain Old Telephone System) or POTS-compatible phone (ie: they don't need to be using VOIP or a certain carrier/provider).

Jake took a swing at this already, the service that you signed up for, FPL (FREE), will continue to be the same -- if you choose to ADD stuff to it (which FonGo will be offering), then there will be an additional charge. As it has been explained, if you are not paying a monthly fee now, you won't after the transition either. If you paid for porting or an ATA or both, they will continue to function as before, and you will pay the same THEN as you do NOW (with the proviso that LONG DISTANCE rates are subject to change -- and apparently that includes Connection Fees) ....

Multiple DID's, which is where the fee may come in, would provide the added bonus of people in the city where the additional DID is based being able to call you for teh cost of a local call.

As an example of this, let's say you have as your main (FREE) FPL number a Vancouver, BC-based one -- should you have relatives in say Quebec City, PQ, you could add a QC, PQ-based additional DID to your account for 99c/mo so that your relatives would no longer be calling LD to your Vancouver, BC number ...

Clear things up a bit?

[sncbhle18]

what does DID stand for? I don't get it? I'm quite worried that my FPL won't be free at all (I've signed up since November 2011 and I'm still testing out the softphone version)....

DID == (D)irect (I)nward (D)ial ... layman translation -- a "real" 10-D phone number that other people can call you on from a POTS (Plain Old Telephone System) or POTS-compatible phone (ie: they don't need to be using VOIP or a certain carrier/provider).

Jake took a swing at this already, the service that you signed up for, FPL (FREE), will continue to be the same -- if you choose to ADD stuff to it (which FonGo will be offering), then there will be an additional charge. As it has been explained, if you are not paying a monthly fee now, you won't after the transition either. If you paid for porting or an ATA or both, they will continue to function as before, and you will pay the same THEN as you do NOW (with the proviso that LONG DISTANCE rates are subject to change -- and apparently that includes Connection Fees) ....

Multiple DID's, which is where the fee may come in, would provide the added bonus of people in the city where the additional DID is based being able to call you for teh cost of a local call.

As an example of this, let's say you have as your main (FREE) FPL number a Vancouver, BC-based one -- should you have relatives in say Quebec City, PQ, you could add a QC, PQ-based additional DID to your account for 99c/mo so that your relatives would no longer be calling LD to your Vancouver, BC number ...

Clear things up a bit?

Yup. That really helps a lot. Thanks for your clarification. I'm enjoying my FPL line so much. By the way, what's the difference between prepaid long distance credits and those so-called prepaid calling cards that you and I may know and commonly used today? Will the FPL service support prepaid calling card access numbers?

[TheHardy]

Yup. That really helps a lot. Thanks for your clarification. I'm enjoying my FPL line so much. By the way, what's the difference between prepaid long distance credits and those so-called prepaid calling cards that you and I may know and commonly used today? Will the FPL service support prepaid calling card access numbers?

Happy to hear that you are glad with your service. I am happy more or less also with it.

The difference is akin to: Do you like buying your milk in a wax-coated carton, or in a plastic jug. They are both methods of having PRE-PAID long distance. The FPL rate is relatively cheap for most North American locations (2c/min Cda, 3c/min USA) _BUT_ has a 4c/CALL connection fee.

One caveat about using pre-paid calling cards, the FPL softphone has some issues with sending TOUCH TONES properly -- and almost all pre-paid calling cards require you to enter a PIN or card # ... so you may have some issues with this.

As far as FPL supporting you USING a dial-around or pre-paid long distance provider, there is NOTHING preventing you from doing that at all; it is not against their terms of service. The only issue is the sending of the touch-tones, which is, IMHO a function of the actual softphone software provided by FPL. If you pay for the CONFIG file, you can use any 3rd party softphone software, or your own ATA, both of which will eliminate this software shortcoming.