30 Years of International Direct Dialing; Traffic Has Soared As Prices Have Plummeted.BASKING RIDGE, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 11, 1997--In 1967, when a loaf of bread was 22 cents and a gallon gallon: see English units of measurement. of gas was 33 cents, the first call from the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. to London London, city, Canada London, city (1991 pop. 303,165), SE Ont., Canada, on the Thames River. The site was chosen in 1792 by Governor Simcoe to be the capital of Upper Canada, but York was made capital instead. London was settled in 1826. without operator assistance was billed at $12 for the first three minutes "Three Minutes" is the 46th episode of Lost. It is the twenty-second episode of the second season. The episode was directed by Stephen Williams, and written by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. It first aired on May 17, 2006 on ABC. - the equivalent of $45 today. In the ensuing en·sue intr.v. en·sued, en·su·ing, en·sues 1. To follow as a consequence or result. See Synonyms at follow. 2. To take place subsequently. 30 years, while prices for most consumer goods consumer goods Any tangible commodity purchased by households to satisfy their wants and needs. Consumer goods may be durable or nondurable. Durable goods (e.g., autos, furniture, and appliances) have a significant life span, often defined as three years or more, and and services have risen, international calling prices have fallen dramatically. Today, subscribers of AT&T's One Rate International, who pay a $3 monthly fee, can call the United Kingdom for just 12 cents a minute. "In 1967 the bulk of international calls were made by businesses and the average consumer considered making such a call a big event," said Peter Hayden Hay·den , Robert 1913-1980. American poet whose works, such as Heart-Shape in the Dust (1940), often explore the history and experiences of African Americans. , international consumer market director. "The introduction of direct-dialing and subsequent improvements have made international calling so affordable that consumers can stay in touch with loved ones loved ones npl → seres mpl queridos loved ones npl → proches mpl et amis chers loved ones love npl around the world," added Hayden. As a result, international traffic has exploded ex·plode v. ex·plod·ed, ex·plod·ing, ex·plodes v.intr. 1. To release mechanical, chemical, or nuclear energy by the sudden production of gases in a confined space: . Information from the AT&T Archives indicates there were just 54 million international calls in 1967. Industry-wide, more than three billion calls will be made this year and the AT&T network alone carries eight million international calls on an average business day. In 1967, only 600 circuits were available for overseas calling - meaning only 600 conversations could take place simultaneously. That was still a big improvement from 1927, the year of the first transatlantic call, when one had to make an appointment to use the one circuit available. Today, with state-of-the-art undersea cable routes spanning the globe, there is an international circuit capacity of approximately three million for high-speed voice calling, faxing and data transmission. While consumers could only reach London and Paris without operator assistance in 1967; today, direct dialing is available from the United States to more than 280 countries and areas worldwide. AT&T is the market leader in international calling, offering specialized spe·cial·ize v. spe·cial·ized, spe·cial·iz·ing, spe·cial·iz·es v.intr. 1. To pursue a special activity, occupation, or field of study. 2. features such as AT&T International Redial In telecommunication, an automatic redial is a service feature that allows the user to dial, by depressing a single key or a few keys, the most recent telephone number dialed at that instrument. (R) service and providing customer service in 51 languages and dialects. -0-
INTERNATIONAL CALLING COMPARISON
30 Years Ago and Today
1967 1997
COST $12 (equivalent to $40-50) as low as 12 cents/minute(a)
to call New York to London to call New York to London
for first three minutes
CALL
CAPACITY 600 simultaneous approximately 3 million
conversations for voice calls,
faxing, data transmission
CALL VOLUMES 54 million 3 billion
(Industry-wide)
DIRECT-DIAL 2-NY to London and Paris only over 280 countries
LOCATIONS during the trial in 1967; and areas worldwide
national rollout in 1970
TOP 10 INTL. Canada Canada
CALLING Mexico Mexico
DESTINATIONS U.K U.K.
(Industrywide) Germany Germany
The Bahamas Japan
Japan Dominican Republic
Cuba France
France Korea (Rep)
Italy Philippines
Philippines Italy
(a) 12 cents a minute available with AT&T One Rate International and
$3.00 monthly fee. Basic rates average about $1.00 a minute.
CONTACT: AT&T, Basking Ridge Suzanne Chung Park 908-221-6436 (office) 800-939-4252 (pager) scpark@attmail.com or Karyn Vaughn-Fritz 908-221-7974 (office) 500-677-9087 (home) kvaughn@attmail.com |
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