Lucent Technologies Inc. is introducing a wireless “smart” pay telephone. The company intends to market the new phones in nations with limited phone service.
The goal is to provide the service to as many people possible, said company spokeswoman Delitha Morrow Coles.
Initially, the wireless pay phones will operate on cellular frequencies only, but Lucent plans to make the phones compatible at various frequencies and with different technologies.
The K-set pay phones allow users to pay by coin or electronically with a debit or smart card. The phones feature a liquid crystal display screen that can register text in up to four languages, and a speed dial capability for up to nine phone numbers.
Lucent said pay phone service providers can monitor and manage the phones remotely. Software in the phones, designed by Elcotel Inc. and licensed to Lucent, allows service providers to receive and initiate multiple polls simultaneously, analyze data collected from each terminal in the network and generate custom reports. A multitasking capability makes it possible for one phone set to be programmed while another phone set is reporting the amount of money in the box.
Further, Elcotel’s Pollquest software allows data from a phone to be received and translated in various other computer formats, so service providers can maintain a single user interface for managing networks, said Elcotel of Sarasota, Fla.
The agreement between Lucent and Elcotel allows Lucent to market pay phone technology with Elcotel’s software in areas where Lucent currently has operations and contracts to supply equipment and services, including Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Caribbean countries and Latin America.
Cellular service already must be available in the areas the wireless pay phones are used. Lucent is contacting various post, telephone and telegraph authorities and local, long-distance service and independent access service providers to introduce the K-set series. The company also is positioning the K-set as a rental item to better sustain influxes of foot traffic.
The wireless pay phones will be available in the next six months, said Coles.
The K-set wireless pay phones have cellular antennas and feature the sound quality and convenience users would expect in a regular pay phone, said Coles.
Wireline versions of the K-set have been sold to Chile. Trials are underway in Honduras and Poland and a trial is pending in Russia, said Coles.
Lucent would not specify the cost of the phones.
