Irish telecommunications company Cubic Telecom yesterday launched a new mobile phone and sim card which it claims can dramatically reduce roaming charges for international travellers.
Cubic launched its MaxRoam phone and sim card at the influential Techcrunch 20 conference in California yesterday. Cubic won a competition to become one of 40 companies to present at the event which showcases innovative new technology companies.
The MaxRoam sim card significantly reduced roaming costs by providing users with a landline number in a number of countries which is then routed to their mobile. Purchasers can currently choose to have a landline number in Ireland, US, UK or France with additional numbers available in other countries for €1 a month.
Pat Phelan, managing director of Cubic Telecom, says that the firm guarantees to provide cheaper call charges than the leading incumbent telecommunications carrier in every country it operates. "If you arrive in a country to do business, we can give you a local number that you can provide to your contacts and you can still have your Irish number as well," said Mr Phelan.
He says Cubic is able to offer the calls cheaply because they are terminated in a country with cheap telecommunications costs but this is transparent to the user.
The MaxRoam phone cuts costs even further as it will route calls over a Wi-Fi network using voice over internet protocol technology. Two versions of the phone will be available priced at €99 and €159. They are being manufactured for Cubic by Italian firm Pirelli.
Cubic Telecom has raised over €5 million from private backers to develop and launch its products. Its primary backer is Cork property developer Declan O'Donoghue.
