National Geographic broadens reach with international MVNO

As an American who grew up in Italy, Sebastian Harrison always had two phones: one for use in Italy, and one for the United States. As an adult, he decided to tackle the international traveler’s dilemma of having to carry or buy a new device depending on which countries one was visiting.
Now, Harrison’s company, Cellular Abroad, is partnering with the National Geographic Society for a mobile virtual network operator that offers free incoming calls in 65 countries and voice service in 105 countries, all with the same phone or SIM card.
The National Geographic Talk Abroad Travel Phone is set to launch this month. The outgoing call rate in most of the covered countries is 90 cents per minute. The service is kicking off with one no-frills Nokia Corp. quad-band GSM handset with an international SIM card.
The service is prepaid, and no contract is required. Receiving calls is free in 65 locations including Germany, France, Spain, Japan, and the United Kingdom. Users also have the option of using text messaging, with free incoming texts and a price of 60 cents per message sent, regardless of the country.
The offering targets people who are outside the United States more often than not. The company notes on its Web site that the phone is meant to be used overseas and “therefore, placing a call from your handset in North America is expensive”-to the tune of $2 per minute in areas with GSM coverage.
The initial cost of the service package and handset is $200, which includes the handset, a universal wall charger, SIM card and a credit good for 30 minutes of outgoing talk time. The talk time is good for 12 months from activation, and users can top up their calling time by using a three-digit code sent from the handset, which charges additional talk time to a credit card on file. All top-ups will be virtual, according to Harrison, who is president of Cellular Abroad. Users will be able to reach a 24/7 customer service line for free from their mobile phone.
The service provides a United Kingdom phone number for calling, regardless of which country the traveler visits, avoiding the typical need to activate a new SIM card and change phone numbers based on which country a user is in-or paying huge roaming fees.
“I think this is going to be something that addresses a need that has not been addressed up until now,” Harrison said. He pointed out that international wireless roaming options are both limited and expensive. T-Mobile USA Inc. and AT&T Inc.’s wireless division have international roaming services, and Verizon Wireless offers one phone with international access. Harrison described those options as very expensive and only addressing the needs of perhaps the wealthiest 10 percent of travelers-not the vast majority of tourists.
Harrison said the service will roll out in phases: first, the international phones will be available for rental, beginning this week. Then the National Geographic phone will be available for purchase. Toward the beginning of April, a National Geographic international SIM card only will be available for use in unlocked GSM phones.
The National Geographic offering will be marketed through various travel magazines and Web sites. Harrison said that while various retailers are interested in selling what the company has to offer, only wireless retailers will be able to sell SIM cards, to prevent customer confusion about the cards not being able to be used with CDMA phones. The MVNO plans to introduce “deluxe” model with a color screen and National Geographic content. Cellular Abroad will continue to rent out country-specific devices for customers who plan to be in France for a few months.