Eight months on from the launch of its computer-based information service, Tel-Me, Birkenhead, Merseyside-based Phonelink Plc says it is on target for a subscriber base of 100,000 by August 1995. Chris Knowles says the major drain on its resources – setting-up the Tel-Me infrastructure – is now complete, although its Datacare batch telephone number verification service is still its main moneyspinner. In addition, British Telecommunications Plc’s Windows-based phone number service, Tele Directory, which uses Phonelink software and services, is making a positive contribution to the company’s coffers, although these have been adversely affected by British Telecom cutting the price of its directory enquiries service last year. As to Tel-Me, which went live last May (CI No 2,408), Phonelink says it has hundreds of subscribers, ranging from 500-user licences to single users, although exact figures were not given. According to Knowles, the majority of these are large companies, in industries rang ing from insurance, through manufacturing, to solicitors. The annual Tel-Me licence fee is ú300, with sliding-scale discounts available for bulk purchases, priced at up to ú20,000 for a 500-user licence. As predicted last year, a telephone enquiry costs 12p, while a British Rail timetable enquiry costs 15p. In terms of competition, Phonelink says that Prestel Ltd, which licensed British Telecom’s Phonebase directory enquiries service last May (CI No 2,409), and has an annual subscription fee of ú100, is not a serious rival, as the time taken to do an on-line search is longer than it takes to dial 192. On the service side, Phonelink has announced an on-line catalogue from W H Smith Office Supplies Ltd and a pilot on-line newspaper venture with the Liverpool Daily Post. Last November it also announced a partnership with Cellnet Mobile Communications Ltd, under which Tel-Me can be accessed from a portable computer using Cellnet’s mobile network. Future plans include two Internet access services and a new version of Tel-Me with additional services, which is set to ship in the first half of this year.
