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CallBlue switching carriers
According to an announcement on their site (http://www.callblue.com) CallBlue seems to be moving away from the Manx platform.
All current SIM cards will be shut down April 20th, and replaced with new ones only in the middle of June. They claim the new cards will come 'with a new UK Mobile (non-premium) number'. I wonder if this marks the begining of the end for the Manx based roaming cards?! |
Well i'm curious about my CallBlue sim card...
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..then don't forget Cloud , the 2nd Man's network :)
http://www.prepaidgsm.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1372 |
Callblue, if they ever come back with a mainland UK mobile DID as they claim, could be a real winner if they also maintain the current rate schedule.
Soon IoM SIM users will face the same problem we faced with the Riiing and United Mobile SIM cards: skyrocketing termination rates. More and more wholesale termination companies have already increased the rate to call 7624 and 7629 numbers. |
UM also has a great problem thanks to Middle East services where +423663 is usually a "premium" number :wall: Check it on the satellite :cry: You can see already some RSM number (+378 ) so... :chair:
Never seen +447624/9...yet |
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UK Cellular Others 011447624 0.4380 |
simply a curiosity... and 3UK? :)
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UK Cellular Hutchinson 3G 011447883 0.3957 |
extremly expensive... as usual.
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Well, it seems almost cheaper to call a small island than a "big" network as H3G :lol:
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I think this provider is always very pricy to call mobile destinations. Thats why i dumped them some time ago... Chris |
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I checked other route tables and at the wholesale level there's a big gap in mainland UK vs IoM rates. |
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Chris |
Testing my callblue sim just now, I received an sms as below
"Dear CallBlueGSM-SIM customer. In order to continue our service pls visit www.callblue.gt-sim.com and read the announcement. Your password is xxxx." and a few minutes later a second sms, "We at CallBlue do NOT endorse the message received from GT. Anyone giving their personal details to GT does so at their own risk! Details at www.callblue.com". What's going on?! from what I can gather GT-Sim (the parent company?) has a way of letting CallBlue customers keep their existing sim's but effectivley switch providers to GT-sim, while CallBlue want to issue all new customers with a new sim. Anyone had any information from CallBlue? I let them know my current address however I got a standard reply back so I'm not sure if I'll get my replacement sim! |
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http://www.iomonline.co.im/ViewArtic...icleID=2692255 The Cable and Wireless network (branded Sure Mobile, like their Jersey and Guernsey operations) is also expected to launch "soon". |
Call Blue now GT-Sim??
I looked at the Call Blue site and something didnt feel right about the fact that they were terminating the service April 20, (in fact I have not been able to send sms or make/receive calls for 2 days - i can receive SMS), and providing a new sim in June..... Looked like a breakaway company to me.
Looked at the GT-Sim site, plucked up the courage to log in, and there were all my payments and calls for the past. Unless it is an amazing scam, Gt- Sim are the people we have been dealing with when using Call Blue. Filled in my name, address and payment details etc.. changed password.... phone works fine. hope this helps Richard |
GT-Sim incoming charges
Looks like it's billed in Euros, and incoming calls are 38 euro cents per minute.
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I have two callblue sim cards & have had the same messages & have also visited the GT site. I did enter my name & address but not my credit card details. Now my phone has been off for two days with my credit still unused! I had a sms stating I needed to put my credit card details in - NO WAY!
I have made some enquiries with the company I bought the sim cards from (0044.co.uk) who have told me they are going to help the callblue customers as best they can & have offered a new sim card with the same tariff, I can keep my phone number provided I top up with 50$ first. I am still making making my mind up! I have tried to use callblues web site but cannot get any further than the announcement page. Their director level contact in the UK is Mr. Jay Shah jay@callblue.com and their key accounts contact is Muzaffar Ahmed mahmed@callblue.com should you wish to address any formal communications to them directly. As I will! Sorry for the rant but I do hate to be taken for a ride! Billym |
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My general thought about switching carriers by service providers/resellers. I dare to say we already have experienced some operations of this kind. The first one is an Italian reseller of Hop Mobile which, started selling UM branded as Hop Mobile :-P. BTW, they have a funny map of Europe with a large lake in the place of Moldova http://www.hopmobile.net/hop_english...ori/italy.html :D Another one is Globalsim.net from Germany which used to sell rebranded Riiing/UM SIMs and it switched to a Manx. As for them, AFAIR at least they sold both +423 and +447624 top-ups for some time.... |
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Chris |
The rate calculator on the callblue.gt-sim web site has been updated to reflect the correct rates.
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GT-Sim... ex Call Blue charges
Looks like the rate change has happened over the last couple of days. Just checked and incoming to Portugal and Malta is $0.00 per minute.
To Billy..... it really looks as though we have been dealing with GT-Sim all the time, even though the sim was branded Call Blue. So each time you topped up, if you gave your credit card details, it was almost certainly GT-Sim who collected the money... so they already have your details if they wanted to scam some money off you. I would be more concerned about proceeding with Call Blue, who will almost certainly be a brand new company, with no track record, in a very competitive marketplace where margins must be small. |
I duly filled in contact details on callblue.gt-sim.com and yes all the previous call details were present.
Then I started having doubts about the call rates but I see that they are different on the rate calculator for callblue.gt-sim.com and gt-sim.com Going to Morroco tomorrow so will see what happens with call charges if the sim still works as it's the 20/4 |
No email reply from Callblue to a prospective new customer asking about the new numbers - I expect they're busy
I've just found their phone number in my Voipcheap account - I might try in a few days, or can PM it to anyone who needs it |
Message from CallBlue GSM
It has come to our attention that there has been some confusion over the current situation regarding CallBlue GSM.
We would like to clarify that CallBlue GSM is separate and has never been a partner of GT-Sim, CallKey or any GSM company. We were testing our product and service hosted primarily by Isle of Man MANX network. However, we have now left MANX to set up our own proprietary network as a complete mobile roaming network service. This new, groundbreaking service is due to be launched this summer. In the meantime, we would like to take the time to address some of the issues raised by posters on this forum in detail: 1) Some posters have received two contradicting SMSs when testing their CallBlue sim card; one from GT-Sim telling them to continue with the service via a CallBlue/GT-sim website, and one from CallBlue telling them to cease the usage of that particular sim card. The reality is CallBlue has terminated its service until the re-launch in the summer, and has not sent any SMSs to encourage its existing customers to continue with its usage. Another GSM company has simply taken advantage of the temporary shutdown of the CallBlue service and has since claimed to act on behalf of CallBlue. We would like to reassure existing customers of CallBlue that their remaining credit will be transferred onto the new sim cards when issued this summer. 2) Some posters have also raised concerns about the lack of customer support and the current CallBlue website. Our telephone customer support has temporarily closed as we switch to our own new network. The CallBlue website has remained unchanged and customers can visit the website to view the current situation of the company and to learn more about our future plans. Customers can send an email with queries to CallBlue and a member of our helpdesk will respond within 24 hours. We also urge customers to email their old CallBlue number, along with an address that the new CallBlue GSM sim card can be sent to for free. 3) Another issue mentioned is the inconsistent call rates listed and that there is no advance warning on rate changes. All GSM companies should have an advance warning on rate changes in order to pass on the information to its customers. However, sometimes this may not be the case, and this is a particular problem if the company does not control the network that they’re using. The new CallBlue GSM network will have complete control over the technical infrastructure and thus call quality, call rates and billing. Thank you in advance for your understanding. When we announce our next moves in the coming weeks, we hope very much that you will lend us your support. Muzaffar Ahmed CallBlue GSM mahmed@callblue.com |
new callblue customer
Ahmed,
thanks for your news. Who write these 3 lines is a new customer of callblue, who was left in the middle. I ordered march 15, 2 callblue sims and never arrived at all. Never have from CC reply about my situation. Finally, 100$ are in your pocket (confirmed from your credit card provider). Can you pls post some notes to give me advice of what to do? 1- have my money back. 2- have the services up and running. Thanks. Alex Morelli ps. sorry to others in the forum for outing my personal situation.... Quote:
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Dear Muzaffar Ahmed
Why is it that you can post such a reasoned report on a forum but you do not have the decency to reply to e mail sent to you by a customer who has had no phone since 15 April, & who has credit on the sim (which we can only assume has gone into someones pocket). Why is it I cant get your permission to take my phone number to a new provider a descision I made due to the lack of information & contact from yourself? You don't answer texts, email enquiries or phone calls, no customer service. There are many other service providers & I hope they will be used by others before yourselves. Yours VERY DISSATISFIED BILLYM (Sorry to forum users for this personal letter but this is obviously the only way to get MR Muzaffar Ahmed to hear our complaints) |
Billym -
One point I .can answer - Most, if not all, international SIM card sellers are simply resellers and don't own the numbers. Thus they can't give you the number. I am sure United Mobile, Travel SIM's various outlets, etc. don't make it possible to take your number somewhere else. I just went to CB's web site. Explanation of their temporary problems seemed clear to me. I went thru something like this a couple of times with other services. 1. When DSL first was announced in Ca. years ago, we had to pick an ISP. The install was handled by the phone co. Since I was an early adapter, 6 people came out, mainly as a training session. A year later, the ISP I had chosen went out of business. 2. When we had to pick an LD carrier, all was fine for years until they suddenly went out of business. I didn't lose any money, but suddenly had to instruct everyone how to use a "1010" dial around code to place LD calls during the couple days it took to change to a diff. LD provider. In your case the provider is offering to, in effect, make you whole. The logistics in trying to simply refund relatively small airtime credits to numerous customers would be prohibitively expensive. ...mike |
Thanks for your input snidely.
I bought my callblue sim from a company called 0044.co.uk. They have been generous with their customer service & have replaced the callblue sim even though they were under no obligation to do so. They informed me that callblue will not release my number to them so i can continue to use it. So, I am stuck, you tell me that callblue might not own the number but 0044 tell me that callblue will not release it - what is the truth? I cannot get any reponse from Callblue to my enquiries they have left me without a working sim, Do they expect me to wait until they get their act together? Quote:
I had credit on my sim, they pulled the plug on me on 15th April & expected me to be without a phone until sometime in June - NOT ACCEPTABLE. They do not reply to my e mails. Why? All I want as a customer is to be kept informed & to be given the service I would reasonable expect. As far as I am concerned Callblue has failed to deliver for me. Billym |
From everything I can read the situation looks like Call blue is out of business for the moment.
customers that are using their numbers are stuck as they are switching carriers to setup their "own" network. The question is do they really setup their own network or are the just looking for another company from which they buy theirs services. To me the company is not very serious. They discontinue their operation and customers are left in the dark for several month's untill they have their own network going. A serious company would start their own network and once this works only than discontinue service on the old network so that customers can change easily. |
CallBlue
CallBlue have a parent agent, Global Termination, who has been attempting to allow existing CallBlue users to transfer their contracts directly to them and therefore retain their numbers, credits etc. 0044, a subagent of CallBlue for some of it's customers have also been trying to do this but by the issue of a new SIM with the same number on.
CallBlue sit in the middle of this having cut service without a replacement immediately to hand and therefore have let down their customers. The statement that they have nothing to do with CallKey or GT and were only using the 'Manx' network as a test is not correct and I can say this with authority as a co founder of CallKey. However, you should note that the company they are referring to is actually CallBlue GSM and not CallBlue - I think there may be some significance to this subtlety. I cannot comment on why the move was made by CallBlue or give you any advice on the use of any brand, but I can say that we, at CallKey, are certainly a little mystified and confused as are many users. CallKey, GT and 0044 have done everything they are able to assist the continuity of use and will continue to do so in defense of our own brands. |
I think you need to reconsider the statements made in here or be very much more specific about the issues you are referring to. Although we do not have a direct relationship, the cards that CallBlue have been using eminate at source from CallKey and all rate changes etc that go down the chain of distribution are subject to contractual notice periods that are way in excess of the industry norms for telephony.
From my understanding the only SMS messages that have been sent to users are from CallBlue's arent agent trying to maintain continuity for users and the duplicate SIM cards come from a subagent that is trying to do the same (with your permission) for their own customers. I would also ask if there is a significance that your company is now called CallBlue GSM and not CallBlue - is it in fact the same company? The use of these forums should not be to spread propaganda but to be a constructive method for discussion to make this space better, I believe that the spirit of this is being hyjacked for commercial 'point scoring'. Kurt Roosen Managing Director CallKey Group |
Covers blown
Kurt you sly bugger Crossag all this time! Been righting the wrongs all this time.
Covers blown, you will need another name lest the grumblers hunt you down! Where did you ever get the name Crossag? |
I need a thesaurus ... too many "all this time" cropping up
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CallBlue :: GT Announcement :: Service Continues
Dear Sir,
this is GT the network provider of the CallBlueGSM branded SIM cards. We have moved all CallBlueGSM SIM cards back from the distributor CallBlueGSM to our own platform. This has been done on a very short notice as CallBlueGSM wanted to stop the services as of 20th of April, 2007. In order for you to keep your current SIM card / your current number / your remaining balance you need to re register at the website www.callblue.gt-sim.com we did SMS to you with the 4 digit password. You will not be charged for any additional services. You simply be top up once you drop below 10 $ with 25 $. If you like to deactivate this function you are able to do so at the payment information sector at "ACCOUNT". There is an icon named "press here to set automatic Prepaid trigger". If you like to do the top up manually simply set the recharge trigger to 0 "zero". You continue to stay at your old CallBlueGSM old rate plan as long as you like. With best regards Global Termination Holdings HK Limited For more help go to : www.callblue.gt-sim.com |
It's the middle of June now... Did anyone get their new CallBlue SIM?
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It seems to have morphed into a UK company - and they've managed to get someone to read their press release. Another page there says due for launch next month ...
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/to...cle1913004.ece |
Happy for people to track me down - Crossag (or Crossing in Manx Gaelic) was the name of the farmhouse I used to own here in IoM
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