The resurrection of AllFreeCalls

Now it's called Yak4ever, which is how long they expect the service to last.

Here, according to Pat Phelan, is how the service, resurrected from the TechCrunch Deadpool works:

Go to Yak4ever or our old site and register your phone number along with those of ten of your friends, allocate each friend a number (1-10), your numbers will be registered which may take up to 24hrs. We will email you your access number and your friends short code immediately.

A little background: AllFreeCalls started several months ago, giving US users unlimited free international calls. They were doing this by basing the service in Iowa, where they were among a few resourceful companies taking advantage of a rural phone connectivity subsidy service, one of the few times that little guys could use the law to the advantage of themselves and their customers.

The incumbents, particularly AT&T did not like this and litigation and legislation are often the primary tools of large incumbents. In this case, AT&T, using their roomful of lawyers, filed suits asking for a sum about equal to the Irish GNP.  Right or wrong, the legal costs  to a tiny startup like Pat's Cubic  Telecom  would have  choked David to death before ever getting to see who customers in the market preferred (free v. ripoff rates).

Pat is just about the most tenacious entrepreneur I've ever met. He decided to fight another day. He changed the location of the service and just how it works. He has lawyers who feel the new case is rock solid and he is offering you the chance to Yack Forever to ten international pals.

I think its an offer you cannot refuse.

Comments

[Ben Metcalfe]

Actually, it's an offer I could easily refuse... there is a major security exploit on their site right now that is revealing the phone numbers of everyone who signs up...

http://benmetcalfe.com/blog/index.php/2007/05/13/major-vulnerability-issue-with-yak4evercom-site/

Please don't sign up for this service until the people at Yak4Free.com have fixed the bug.

[Tom Raftery]

Ben,

just noticed that in your blog post you mention that the security vulnerability you found on the site is now fixed.

Does that mean it is now an offer you can't easily refuse?

;-)