Tag: sim-cards

  • Truphone Unveils First Multi-country Mobile Service


    Truphone has unveiled its plans for a single-SIM, multi-country mobile service that will enable users to make calls in supported countries at local rates.

    The mobile communications company says a key aim of the Local Anywhere service is to eliminate the hassle of switching SIM cards or the expense of often-exorbitant roaming charges when callers use their handsets on foreign trips.

    Truphone claims that the new service, which will launch in September, will offer up to 80 per cent savings on roaming charges when visiting other countries.

    Users can chose from 5 up to a mind-boggling 49 different telephone numbers, with a sliding scale subscription based on how many numbers are chosen.

    Making the announcement at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Geraldine Wilson, Truphone’s CEO, said the service was intended to get rid of the need for people to juggle multiple devices and phone numbers to avoid paying roaming charges.

    "Our customers are telling us they want one phone, one SIM and one plan," she said.

    Additional Truphone Local Anywhere features and cost savings include:

    • number portability of existing mobile and landline numbers to Truphone
    • full service multi-language customer support
    • ability to manage their Caller ID (CLI)
    • competitive rates on domestic calls, SMS, and data in home country
    • low-cost international calling to the world from any Truphone Local Anywhere-supported country
    • no roaming surcharges to receive calls in most major destinations
    • TruFriends – providing even lower calling rates to call to other Truphone Local Anywhere customers
    • additional "virtual" country mobile numbers to seem ‘local’ in another country so friends/colleagues can call at local rates.
  • Sagem Embeds GPS Receiver into SIM Cards


    Smartcard vendor, Sagem Orga has formed a partnership with BlueSky Positioning to integrate its A-GPS positioning technology onto conventional SIM cards.

    A GPS receiver and proprietary antenna are integrated into the SIM card, which the companies say then enables mobile operators to deploy applications without the need for software or hardware changes.

    The A-GPS provides accurate positioning information for the phone to emergency services in case of an emergency call as required by E112 and E911 legislation in the EU and the US respectively.

    It can also support generic location-based services such as navigation, "find a place or person" services, location-aware games, and many more.

    Navigations solutions are increasingly availabile on smartphones and mobile phones.

    Sagem Orga and BlueSky Positioning say the two broad technical approaches that can deliver the accuracy required for these services demand either significant investment in networks by the mobile operator or the purchase of new handsets by the end user.

    In a statement, they said the A-GPS SIM would allow mobile operators to significantly increase the cost effectiveness of their services and size of their marketing target when launching new LBS.

    François Blanchard, global account marketing manager at Sagem Orga, said the technology would help the mobile industry overcome the "key stumbling block" to the success of location-based services – affordable, accurate positioning technology.

    "The SIM is entering a new era where it can now be considered as a real service platform and a valuable device; the A-GPS enabled SIM card will reshape the way SIM card are perceived by MNOs and end-users," he said.