Users can buy virtual phone numbers from the store, and start using them immediately, while operators can leverage this distribution platform to find new customers.
In response to increasing demand from African people traveling abroad, businesses wanting to have local numbers for overseas customers, and operators looking for new avenues to maximize ARPU, Kirusa today announced the feature allowing users to buy foreign numbers from its InstaVoice ReachMe app.
These virtual numbers, called ReachMe Numbers, are now available from US, UK, Canada, and France for just US$1 a month with additional countries to follow shortly.
The numbers are available from InstaVoice ReachMe app (which can be downloaded from Google Play or App Store) and do not require any additional activation steps or physical liaison with the operator. The new numbers can be used alongside a person’s existing mobile number(s) and activated instantly. ReachMe uses a multi-ID architecture, allowing up to 20 numbers to be linked to an account and used on any device. This eliminates the need to carry additional phones to use multiple phone numbers.
After buying a +1, +44 or +33 number from the ReachMe app, users will receive calls to that number when they are connected to the internet – via mobile data from any SIMs, or Wi-Fi. When they are offline, callers can leave voicemails in the app which can be listened to when the recipient is back online.
Surinder Anand, CTO, and VP – Product Management of Kirusa said “Virtualization of numbers promises a new business stream for carriers. Expats and inbound tourists become new segments of the population that can be reached out to, increasing the size of the telecom pie. Sim-less nature of the numbers made possible by multi-ID, allows users to own several phone numbers, without the hassles of owning several phones. This incentivizes the users to buy add-on lines for each aspect of their life – one for work, one for family and perhaps one for dating! This also drastically reduces the cost of user acquisition– an important consideration in low ARPU markets like Africa. Kirusa envisages a future where users in any part of the world can buy phone numbers in any country, via ReachMe.”
InstaVoice ReachMe App was launched at Mobile World Congress Barcelona 2018, as a Roaming App, targeted at International travelers. Kirusa further announced the app’s ability to integrate with carrier networks, to roll-out customized roaming packages and plans for subscribers. Unlike other OTT apps, ReachMe doesn’t require both the calling parties to have the app installed. The caller’s experience remains the same as when making a regular mobile call to a ReachMe user (via the phone dialer), with no need for the app or a data connection.
