Source: Business Wire
Thursday, January 17, 2013 11:10 AM IST (05:40 AM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest, People, Social issues; Business: Telecommunications; Technology
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(BW)(FOOTALK)FooTalk: International Borders Are No Barrier for Friendship
Research shows Indians have more friends and relatives abroad than other nationalities and use new technology to make more phone calls too.
London, United Kingdom, Thursday, January 17, 2013 -- (Business Wire India) --
We are proving to be the most internationally cosmopolitan nation by having more friends and relatives living abroad compared to British, US and Australian counterparts according to a new study out today (January 17th 2013).
The study, commissioned by new smartphone calling app, FooTalk, surveyed 3,500 residents in the four countries and showed 89% of Indians have friends and relatives living abroad compared to 77% of Australians, 70% of Brits and just 54% of Americans.
63% of Indians even admitted to speaking to their friends and relatives abroad more than some of their friends at home with many likely to take advantage of new technology to aid staying in touch.
The transient nature of modern life coupled with the boom in social networking means those in India are now staying in touch with more people abroad than ever before, and with the rise of smartphone apps people are transforming the way they communicate at much cheaper international rates too.
Indian women are more social than men, regularly keeping in touch with at least 15 friends on international shores with many chatting on average four times a week
This is higher than both in the UK and USA where, surprisingly, more men have contacts abroad. Eighty-two per cent of Indian men prefer to make contact with a phone call (compared to 80% for women).
Agony aunt and relationship psychologist Susan Quilliam elaborates: "It's great to see both men and women picking up the phone for a chat and using modern technology to keep up old traditions as opposed to just sending an SMS or posting on Facebook. Hearing someone's voice is a far richer experience than simply seeing words on screen. You get to not only learn more about what the other person's thinking and feeling, but they get to learn more about you. Add to that the fact that calls are fully and instantly responsive, immediate and interactive. If you talk to someone on the phone, you're fully focused on each other, minute to minute. It's a way of connecting with someone and sharing their ordinary daily life - even if they're far away."
The study reveals almost three quarters of Indians make calls when there's big news to divulge; 45% for daily news and family updates, while 40% just like a good gossip.
However, 52% admit they sometimes avoid talking to their friends and relatives abroad because of high call charges and 54% would make more voice calls if they could speak for free wherever they were. A quarter of those surveyed also moaned about the hassle of having to arrange a time to video call or phone to fit in around personal schedules and time differences.
The most common homes for friends and relatives include the UK, Australia, the USA, Canada, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Social networking sites have also led to 85% of people getting back in touch with people who have moved abroad after thinking they would never speak to them again.
FooTalk is a new app for iOS and Android that significantly reduces the cost of making calls for smartphone users, whether calling abroad. It allows customers to make free calls to friends and family who have the app, anywhere in the world via Wi-Fi or 3G and 4G mobile data services.
Graeme Hutchinson, former sales and marketing chief and founding management team member of Virgin Mobile, who is co-founder of FooTalk said: "We know that people are travelling the world more than ever and that international borders are no barrier to staying in touch. However soaring call rates, inaccessibility and difficulty of use of alternatives are.
"Facebook and Twitter might keep you abreast of your friends' lives but there's always more to be had from a conversation - even if the other person is in a different country."
FooTalk also allows users to call any number at extremely low rates (significantly lower than other alternative calling services like Skype). Whether calling abroad or avoiding expensive roaming charges while travelling or simply to call friends locally. FooTalk offers exceptional value compared to others.
In addition to the significant cost saving benefits, FooTalk's patent-pending Discovery service is designed to ensure more reliable connections than competitor services. This combination delivers a customer experience that gives consumers the most complete alternative to their network operator in one, easy-to-use app.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
About FooTalk:
FooTalk is a new app that will transform your smartphone into your single, low-cost option for keeping in touch with all your friends and family whether at home, at work, out and about or even travelling. FooTalk users can make free calls to other FooTalk users anywhere in the world via Wi-Fi or mobile data. They can also benefit from huge savings on calls to mobiles and landlines, with a simple set of low cost call rates for both calling internationally and within your home country.
FooTalk is really easy-to-use, making it the natural alternative to making calls directly from your smartphone. The app integrates instantly with your smartphone's address book, so you can see who else has the app and informs you when friends download the app. It works brilliantly on iOS and Android smartphones / devices, providing reliable connections and clear call quality over or 3G, 4G and LTE. For more details see: http://www.footalk.me/
FooTalk price comparison:
| $USD (per minute) | |||||
| Skype | FooTalk | ||||
| Australia | 2.3c | 2.5c | |||
| Australia - Mob | 20.8c | 12.9c | |||
| Brazil | 5.8c | 3.3c | |||
| Brazil - Mob | 22.1c | 11.3c | |||
| Canada | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| Canada - Mob | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| China | 2.3c | 2c | |||
| China - Mob | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| India | 9.2c | 2.5c | |||
| India - Mob | 9.2c | 2.5c | |||
| Nigeria | 17.5c | 10.5c | |||
| Nigeria - Mob | 25.8c | 10.5c | |||
| Poland | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| Poland - Mob | 25.5c | 9.7c | |||
| Thailand | 11.6c | 2c | |||
| Thailand - Mob | 11.6c | 3.3c | |||
| UK | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| UK - Mob | 25.9c | 4.9c | |||
| USA | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
| USA - Mob | 2.3c | 1.7c | |||
All rates listed are per minute and correct as at 14 January 2013. Skype rates taken from Skype Pay As You Go rates. All logos and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
- One Poll conducted the research on behalf of FooTalk, surveying 500 Indians.
CONTACT DETAILS
CONTACTS :
EML Wildfire
Katrina Farminer
Ian McKee
Vicki Eltis
Andrew Hill
+44 208 408 8000
footalk@emlwildfire.com
KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, PEOPLE, SOCIAL, TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TECHNOLOGY
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