Rebtel (News - Alert) has declared “its support of a petition for declaratory ruling by the Federal Communications Commission that declining the terms of short code to customers is unfair and unreasonable prejudice, and infringes the law.”

 

“We’ve said from the start that rejecting our short code campaign was anti-competitive abuse of power, just like the rejection of NARAL Pro-Choice America’s text messages to supporters was interference with political speech,” said said Hjalmar Winbladh, Rebtel co-founder and CEO. “We totally agree that the FCC (News - Alert) needs to rule on this issue.”

 

Recently filed by major public interest groups like Public Knowledge, Free Press, and Mobile Commons, the appeal quotes U.S. carriers’ rejection of issuing short codes to Rebtel as an example of how Verizon (News - Alert) Wireless, T-Mobile, and Alltel have taken advantage of a perceived regulatory hole to differentiate opposing political speakers and challengers.

 

Rebtel is a mobile phone service that enables users to call any phone, anywhere in the world, at a very low cost per minute. Its services can be utilized with any mobile phone without alteration or software downloads. There is no charge to set up a Rebtel account, nor does Rebtel impose any monthly fees, connection fees, or hidden costs.

 

All new comers can enjoy 10 free minutes call to test the service. Thereafter, subscribers only pay for the minutes they use. Smart Calls between the 40 regions serviced by Rebtel are always free and only one of the two people on a call has to be a Rebtel subscriber.

 

Short codes are five- or six-digit numbers used on a mobile phone to connect, rather than dialing an entire phone number. Millions of Americans, for instance, have used short codes to vote for their favorite American Idol. Rebtel wants short codes to give its customers a fast and easy way to use its services for making low-cost or free international calls.

 

But to get short codes, companies and organizations must apply to each carrier for a campaign, which Rebtel did through its U.S. service provider, mBlox. Sprint (News - Alert) and AT&T have approved Rebtel’s short code campaign application. Verizon, Alltel, and T-Mobile, an investor in Rebtel competitor Jajah, however, all denied the application.

Rebtel is a worldwide communications company, which, unlike the large mobile telecom carriers that charge exorbitant rates for international calls, offers ultra-low rates for global calling by making all calls local and leveraging VoIP technologies.