What is Internet Phone Line?
Internet Phone Line is an extra phone line with two important differences:
Firstly, it costs just £2 line rental per month; that’s over 80% cheaper than an extra line from BT.
And secondly, the phone number on this extra line is completely portable, and can be used for making and receiving phone calls anywhere in the world!
It costs nothing to receive a call, and any calls you make are charged on our normal Home Phone/BroadCall (including “Free Global Calls”) or Office Phone tariffs. All you need to benefit from this service is a broadband connection – which doesn’t even need to be supplied by us.
So what types of customer will benefit from this service?
People who need an extra phone line at home
- families with teenage children (or lots of adults!) who find that they are often trying to use the phone at the same time; or
- people who work from home and would like to keep a separate line for business calls; or
- people who want to keep a dedicated line available for elderly relatives or children to call them in an emergency; or
- anyone involved with a local group or club which means they spend a lot of time on the phone.
Businesses that need an extra phone line(s) in the office
- a sole trader who wants to ensure customers can still reach them when they’re on the phone to someone else
- a partnership where both partners want to use the phone at the same time
- a small business that is growing and needs more phones, but wants to avoid the high cost of extra standard lines from BT or cannot afford to invest in a complete new phone system.
Anyone who regularly travels overseas, either for business or on holiday
- people with a second home, who would like friends and family to be able to call them on their normal UK number – at UK rates – wherever they are
- anyone who would like to benefit from “Free Global Calls” while they are abroad. Just imagine – free calls to any number in the UK from anywhere in the World! And any calls which aren’t included (like calls to mobiles) are charged at our normal low UK Home Phone/BroadCall or Office Phone rates.
Businesses with lots of home workers
- each home worker can have their own 'office' phone number at home
- they can have the same area code as the main office, even if they're based in a different area or working overseas or on holiday
- all calls are charged and detailed on the business's monthly bill - so no expense claims or paperwork to deal with.
Business people who are based away from the office for a while
- people who spend time based in different locations, but want clients to be able to contact them on the same number, not a mobile, wherever they are
- a business person who wants or needs to go abroad for a while, and doesn’t want their clients to know they are out of the country – or to have to pay international rates to speak to them
- sole traders who need to exhibit at conferences or exhibitions, but still need to have their office phone number with them.
Because the Internet Phone Line uses the internet to carry your calls, you can use it anywhere there is a fixed broadband connection point – including many hotel rooms and holiday homes abroad.
And the above are just a few examples to get your imagination going - there are plenty of other people who will also benefit from an Internet Phone Line!
How does it work?
There’s no engineer visit involved, no software to install, no headset to wear, no extra hassle - just a little adaptor that you plug into your broadband router (and it must be a router), and you’re away!
You plug the phone into the adaptor; the adaptor into the router; the router into the broadband socket. And that’s it.
What about the quality?
The internet phone line is at least as clear, if not clearer, than a regular phone line; particularly from many overseas destinations.
How much does it cost?
Each Internet Phone Line costs just £2 per month (customers can have up to two extra lines if they wish, business customers can have as many as they require).
There is a one-off initial connection charge of £50, whether the customer chooses one line or two. This is much cheaper to install than a new standard phone line - and is a very strong selling point, especially for businesses.
For residential customers, calls are charged on our Home Phone/BroadCall tariff, and customers benefit from “Free Global Calls” in the usual way. Business customers will be charged for any calls at our low Office Phone rates.
Do customers have to be taking their broadband and landline from the Utility Warehouse?
No! Remember - it works with any broadband connection, so your customer can be in a contract with someone else for their broadband (like Sky), or they can have their landline with someone else. It makes no difference - they can still benefit from an Internet Phone Line and "Free Global Calls" with us.