The press release
PRESS RELEASE
THE FIRST “INTERNET
PHONE IN YOUR POCKET” SIGNALS THE END FOR HIGH MOBILE ROAMING
CHARGES
LAUNCHES TODAY IN SELECTED TESCO STORES
Consumers will save an average of 30% on mobile charges thanks to free calls and no roaming charges
Basingstoke, 6 November 2006 – Mobiboo Mobile, the UK’s first WiFi mobile VoIP operator, announces the launch of tovo – the first-of-its-kind mobile Internet phone that will save consumers hundreds of pounds a year in phone charges. Mobiboo Mobile estimates that consumers can save an average of 30% on their mobile charges and up to 50% on fixed line charges if they switch to the new tovo service – which for some people will equate to savings of £360 a year*. Two new tovo handsets are available from today, initially at 19 Tesco stores nationwide, and online at http://www.tovo.com.
The new Mobiboo offerings are the tovo t450g PocketFone and the tovo t1000 HomeFone Plus. Both tovo phones combine the freedom of a mobile with the quality of a landline, doing everything mobile, Internet and home phones do; but much cheaper and with the added bonus of free calls. Using tovo, even an average-use customer can save £168 per year on their mobile and fixed line usage; and an above-average user (twice the number of average calls) can save £360 per year.
Anyone with access to WiFi at home, at work or a WiFi hot spot can use a tovo phone to call any other phone anywhere in the world at low rates. All calls between tovo and Mobiboo customers are free; there are no roaming charges when abroad; and incoming calls are received for free from any phone worldwide.
tovo makes communication borderless - bringing an end to unnecessarily high roaming charges while travelling. The service also significantly reduces home and office call costs, with rates from as little as 2p per minute locally and internationally. And tovo customers benefit from the same UK tariffs wherever they are in the world
“This is a major breakthrough for smart consumers who are tired of paying huge phone bills, and who want to find a cheaper and more flexible communications solution. And it’s the beginning of the end of outrageously high roaming charges” says Martin Heath, CEO of Mobiboo Mobile:
“Most people are familiar with the Internet phone,” adds Heath, “but they are cumbersome to use, need to have the PC turned on, and can only be used in one location. Mobiboo’s tovo service offers all the convenience and mobility of a mobile, but with the quality of a landline and the low price of VoIP. It’s literally like having your Internet phone in your pocket .”
Cheaper calls when at home or abroad are not the only way customers can benefit. As Martin Heath adds: “These phones not only save consumers money but also provide them with an additional home phone number without paying any extra line rental. And it's all done with a pay-as-you-go or one month only package so you're always in control. It’s great news for Tesco customers who once again can benefit from Tesco’s low prices.”
With both tovo offerings there are no restrictive long-term contracts, but a choice of pay-as-you-go or monthly packages to suit your lifestyle. For example, if you’re planning to go abroad or on a business trip you might choose an international package for one month to ensure that you get free calls or the best worldwide call rates. The very next month customers can choose a lower price package to suit their needs. Accounts can be checked and managed online so users are always in control.
Consumers can easily top up their phones either with a free call direct from their handset, online at http://www.tovo.com, at any Tesco store or at e-top up locations (from 2007). For a basic UK pay-as-you-go package there is no monthly charge and local calls are 2p per minute with international tier 1 calls at 5p per minute. Monthly package customers can benefit from free UK, mobile and international calls.
tovo customers can also choose to have a geographic landline number as well as a mobile number connected to them. The handsets will receive calls to either number wherever you are, at home or abroad. When using tovo at home or in the office, you don’t need to turn on your laptop or PC as it will connect to your WiFi network.
For anyone concerned that they might not always have access to WiFi, the best option is the tovo PocketFone t450g dual mode phone. You just insert your ordinary mobile SIM card into the tovo handset and it will automatically switch between the normal mobile network and WiFi, ensuring that you always have coverage.
This solution enables the use of mobile features such as e-mail and Internet browsing through WiFi broadband connections, with the added benefit of greater bandwidth and cost savings. Text messaging will continue to work through the normal mobile network, although Mobiboo Mobile plans to launch text messaging between its’ customers at very competitive prices during 2007.
“Our target customers include WiFi broadband users who want mobile access to high quality, good value phone services; multi-occupancy households who want to be able to make low cost calls at the same time; and business and leisure travellers who dislike high mobile call and roaming costs. tovo is the answer to all their cost concerns and brings a new, borderless freedom to their communications,” concludes Martin Heath.
The tovo services
tovo t450 PocketFone combines the best of your home phone and Internet phone with the best of your mobile service. It’s a new generation mobile phone that uses WiFi where available and your normal mobile network everywhere else via a single handset. Calls are free or at a low price and can be made and received worldwide. It’s your Internet phone in your pocket, and also a fully functional mobile phone with camera, text and email. The innovative dual mode handset, which will work worldwide, is manufactured for Mobiboo by Pirelli Broadband Solutions. It can be purchased from selected Tesco stores as a pay-as-you-go boxed set complete with desktop charger and other accessories for £159.95.
tovo t1000 HomeFone Plus is a next generation mobile phone for use at home, in the office, or when abroad. The handest offers the capabilities of a traditional landline phone but with the added benefits of free calls to other tovo users and mobility within WiFi areas. It’s the internet phone in your pocket - essentially replacing your old world fixed telephone line and internet phone with a low-cost “mobile landline”. The high quality handset is manufactured for Mobiboo by UTStarcom, and is sold as a pay-as-you-go boxed set for £79.95.
In summary:
- An average user can save £15 month (or 30%) on their current mobile and fixed line usage by switching to tovo. This equates to £168 a year
- A high usage customer (who makes twice the average calls) can save £30 month or £360 a year
The 19 Tesco stores stocking tovo at launch are:
LAUNCHES TODAY IN SELECTED TESCO STORES
Consumers will save an average of 30% on mobile charges thanks to free calls and no roaming charges
Basingstoke, 6 November 2006 – Mobiboo Mobile, the UK’s first WiFi mobile VoIP operator, announces the launch of tovo – the first-of-its-kind mobile Internet phone that will save consumers hundreds of pounds a year in phone charges. Mobiboo Mobile estimates that consumers can save an average of 30% on their mobile charges and up to 50% on fixed line charges if they switch to the new tovo service – which for some people will equate to savings of £360 a year*. Two new tovo handsets are available from today, initially at 19 Tesco stores nationwide, and online at http://www.tovo.com.
The new Mobiboo offerings are the tovo t450g PocketFone and the tovo t1000 HomeFone Plus. Both tovo phones combine the freedom of a mobile with the quality of a landline, doing everything mobile, Internet and home phones do; but much cheaper and with the added bonus of free calls. Using tovo, even an average-use customer can save £168 per year on their mobile and fixed line usage; and an above-average user (twice the number of average calls) can save £360 per year.
Anyone with access to WiFi at home, at work or a WiFi hot spot can use a tovo phone to call any other phone anywhere in the world at low rates. All calls between tovo and Mobiboo customers are free; there are no roaming charges when abroad; and incoming calls are received for free from any phone worldwide.
tovo makes communication borderless - bringing an end to unnecessarily high roaming charges while travelling. The service also significantly reduces home and office call costs, with rates from as little as 2p per minute locally and internationally. And tovo customers benefit from the same UK tariffs wherever they are in the world
“This is a major breakthrough for smart consumers who are tired of paying huge phone bills, and who want to find a cheaper and more flexible communications solution. And it’s the beginning of the end of outrageously high roaming charges” says Martin Heath, CEO of Mobiboo Mobile:
“Most people are familiar with the Internet phone,” adds Heath, “but they are cumbersome to use, need to have the PC turned on, and can only be used in one location. Mobiboo’s tovo service offers all the convenience and mobility of a mobile, but with the quality of a landline and the low price of VoIP. It’s literally like having your Internet phone in your pocket .”
Cheaper calls when at home or abroad are not the only way customers can benefit. As Martin Heath adds: “These phones not only save consumers money but also provide them with an additional home phone number without paying any extra line rental. And it's all done with a pay-as-you-go or one month only package so you're always in control. It’s great news for Tesco customers who once again can benefit from Tesco’s low prices.”
With both tovo offerings there are no restrictive long-term contracts, but a choice of pay-as-you-go or monthly packages to suit your lifestyle. For example, if you’re planning to go abroad or on a business trip you might choose an international package for one month to ensure that you get free calls or the best worldwide call rates. The very next month customers can choose a lower price package to suit their needs. Accounts can be checked and managed online so users are always in control.
Consumers can easily top up their phones either with a free call direct from their handset, online at http://www.tovo.com, at any Tesco store or at e-top up locations (from 2007). For a basic UK pay-as-you-go package there is no monthly charge and local calls are 2p per minute with international tier 1 calls at 5p per minute. Monthly package customers can benefit from free UK, mobile and international calls.
tovo customers can also choose to have a geographic landline number as well as a mobile number connected to them. The handsets will receive calls to either number wherever you are, at home or abroad. When using tovo at home or in the office, you don’t need to turn on your laptop or PC as it will connect to your WiFi network.
For anyone concerned that they might not always have access to WiFi, the best option is the tovo PocketFone t450g dual mode phone. You just insert your ordinary mobile SIM card into the tovo handset and it will automatically switch between the normal mobile network and WiFi, ensuring that you always have coverage.
This solution enables the use of mobile features such as e-mail and Internet browsing through WiFi broadband connections, with the added benefit of greater bandwidth and cost savings. Text messaging will continue to work through the normal mobile network, although Mobiboo Mobile plans to launch text messaging between its’ customers at very competitive prices during 2007.
“Our target customers include WiFi broadband users who want mobile access to high quality, good value phone services; multi-occupancy households who want to be able to make low cost calls at the same time; and business and leisure travellers who dislike high mobile call and roaming costs. tovo is the answer to all their cost concerns and brings a new, borderless freedom to their communications,” concludes Martin Heath.
The tovo services
tovo t450 PocketFone combines the best of your home phone and Internet phone with the best of your mobile service. It’s a new generation mobile phone that uses WiFi where available and your normal mobile network everywhere else via a single handset. Calls are free or at a low price and can be made and received worldwide. It’s your Internet phone in your pocket, and also a fully functional mobile phone with camera, text and email. The innovative dual mode handset, which will work worldwide, is manufactured for Mobiboo by Pirelli Broadband Solutions. It can be purchased from selected Tesco stores as a pay-as-you-go boxed set complete with desktop charger and other accessories for £159.95.
tovo t1000 HomeFone Plus is a next generation mobile phone for use at home, in the office, or when abroad. The handest offers the capabilities of a traditional landline phone but with the added benefits of free calls to other tovo users and mobility within WiFi areas. It’s the internet phone in your pocket - essentially replacing your old world fixed telephone line and internet phone with a low-cost “mobile landline”. The high quality handset is manufactured for Mobiboo by UTStarcom, and is sold as a pay-as-you-go boxed set for £79.95.
In summary:
- An average user can save £15 month (or 30%) on their current mobile and fixed line usage by switching to tovo. This equates to £168 a year
- A high usage customer (who makes twice the average calls) can save £30 month or £360 a year
The 19 Tesco stores stocking tovo at launch are:
Bar Hill Cambridge Extra
Bournemouth Extra
Broadstairs Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Brooklands Extra
Bursledon Towers Extra
Coatbridge Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Eastbourne Extra
Gallions Reach Extra
Gatwick Extra
Hatfield Extra
Milton Keynes Kingston Extra
New Malden Extra
Newcastle Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Norwich Extra
Poole Extra
Reading Extra
Slough Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Stockport Extra
Swindon Extra
Bournemouth Extra
Broadstairs Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Brooklands Extra
Bursledon Towers Extra
Coatbridge Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Eastbourne Extra
Gallions Reach Extra
Gatwick Extra
Hatfield Extra
Milton Keynes Kingston Extra
New Malden Extra
Newcastle Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Norwich Extra
Poole Extra
Reading Extra
Slough Extra – Tesco Telecoms Centre
Stockport Extra
Swindon Extra
* Customer savings calculations are based on the following assumptions:
1. The user is an average customer in terms of calls made (figures from OFCOM)
2. The user’s fixed and mobile charges are based on standard price plans of BT and Vodafone
3. The user goes on the tovo £9.95 month package
4. 40% of mobile calls are now made on tovo wifi; 10% of calls are tovo to tovo;
5. BT user cancels current fixed line
About Mobiboo Mobile
Mobiboo Mobile Limited is the UK’s pioneer in the emerging mobile Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and the Content over Internet (CoIP) marketplace, with a global business focus. Mobiboo Mobile is the next generation of mobile internet telecommunications – providing all of the benefits of traditional cellular but at significantly reduced costs and vastly increased bandwidths.
Mobiboo Mobile’s high street brand of WiFi Mobile service in the UK, known as tovo, allows users to make and receive VoIP calls whenever they are within any open WiFi environment – whether at home, in the office or in the vicinity of a “Hotspot”. tovo is the mobile internet phone. It does everything a mobile or fixed phone does plus also allows free internet calls; low cost calling to other numbers from anywhere in the world and avoids the need to pay roaming charges. tovo customers can also choose to add a normal landline number to their tovo mobile phone.
Mobiboo Mobile launches its tovo brand in the UK in November 2006 and is planning to roll out across the US and Europe over the next 12 months.
Please see http://www.mobiboo.com or http://www.tovo.com for further details of the current range of handsets, services and call packages.
