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eBay Wants Voice Phone Free In Five Years

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the well-sure-don't-we-all dept.

kmk writes "In a few short years, users can expect to make telephone calls for free, with no per-minute charges, as part of a package of services through which carriers make money on advertising or transaction fees, eBay's chief executive said on Wednesday."

7 of 185 comments (clear)

  1. Ads? by elbenito69 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I would much rather pay for phone service than to put up with ads on the telephone, of all places.

    1. Re:Ads? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Not to worry. Following TV and cable, you WILL pay and also have to listen to the ads.

    2. Re:Ads? by Jonathan+the+Nerd · · Score: 5, Insightful
      It's inevitable that advertising will try to worm its way into every possible medium.

      Leela: "Didn't you have ads in the twentieth century?"

      Fry: "Well, sure, but not in our dreams. Only on TV and radio...and in magazines...and movies, and at ballgames, and on buses, and milk cartons, and T-shirts, and bananas, and written in the sky. But not in dreams, no sirree."

      --
      Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are not necessarily my own, as I've not yet had my medication today.
  2. As long as... by GeneralEmergency · · Score: 5, Insightful


    ...the FBI has to watch/hear the same advertising that I have to suffer through because of the FCC mandated CALEA IP-taps!

    Sorry, I'm cranky today.

    --
    "A microprocessor... is a terrible thing to waste." --
    GeneralEmergency
  3. Re:Face it, stupid telecom/media companies.. by DaHat · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Isn't that much the same logic that lead to the .com bust? Lots of companies eating lots of money and not actually making any? Nice and idealistic concepts my friend... but still awful naive.

    --
    Help Brendan pay off his student loans
  4. So, how's ebay gonna profit from this? by Arpie · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Really just plain ads?

    Or will they take advantage of the new mandatory wiretapping laws, and have automated systems that scan your conversation for keywords and give you related ads?

    Sort of like Google adsense, but with voice content...

    I for one do not welcome our new phone tapping overlords...

    --
    /* TAANSTAFL */
  5. No thanks. I'd rather pay. by Ssolstice · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I'd rather pay for a service that is free from advertisements than get a free service that I can't use when I want to. Most of those "free services" require you to sit through ads before you can use them, such as many website video streams. My time is not free.