Free Conference Calling Blog

I saw the posting: ” Outlook and iCal integration are listed as features. I can’t find anything outlining these features on your site - how does Outlook and iCal integration work for Rondee free conference calls?”

For Outlook: when the invite arrives, the Outlook downloadable file will be attached and just needs to be downloaded.

For iCal: please go to the My Account section after logging in:

You’ll see these notes next to a URL:

Use the above URL to import your Rondees conference calls into many popular calendar applications.

You should consult the documentation for your application to do this. We provide data in the Internet-standard vCal format.

Please do not share this URL with anyone, as it provides access to your Rondee schedule without a password.

I saw the question: “Can we have two different conference calls happening at the same time or overlapping?”

The answer is yes.  You will be prompted when you call in to choose which Rondee conference call you are seeking

I saw someone asked the question: “Can last-minute participants use my personal pin to access this conference call?”

The answer is yes. last-minute participants can access the conference call using this method

I saw this post:
“Dear Rondee, what are the technical requirements to use your conference calling service. (headset or telephone etc.)”

You can use any sort of device you wish….landline telephone, cell phone, Sky-Out headset, etc.

I saw this posting from a prospective corporate user: “I often use free conference call services  for my work. I have recently become concerned about the sustainability of the business model. Because of the high interchange fees, I expect that carriers will increasingly block calls to these services. What makes Rondee’s model more sustainable - and therefore more reliable for businesses - than its competitors?”

There has recently been extensive publicity concerning VOIP carriers, most notably Google Voice, blocking calls to services located in rural areas.  The problem came about because the rural phone companies in these particular areas impose exorbitant tariffs on the national carriers who originate these calls. The reason that the free conferencing services partner with these rural carriers is because the rural carriers are able to collect high tariffs on these calls. Such tariffs, in some cases, have been five to ten times higher than the tariffs on normal call traffic. In turn, the free conference call services enter into more lucrative revenue share arrangements than would otherwise be possible.

Individual callers have historically not paid these tariffs; rather, they have been paid by the national carriers that originate the phone calls. With Google’s recent moves, there is now growing concern that these tariffs could get passed along to users of free conference services.

Rondee users have been totally unaffected by this controversy. This is because Rondee is the only major free conference call service that does not use the sort of rural dial-in numbers that are at the heart of this controversy.”

Rondee’s free conference call dial-in bridge is area code 619 — the metropolitan San Diego area code. Rondee does not charge for its regular service.

I saw a user asked: “Is this area code accepted in Cebu?”

619 is a US area code (San Diego, California) so as long as you can call a US number from Cebu, you can use Rondee conference calling

a user recently wrote to us and said: “I have just signed up for Rondee. My question is if someone from sacramento calls the 619 # are they charge long distance?”

A call from Sacramento to area code 619 is, by definition, a long-distance call. How much they will pay for that call is really a function of what carrier they have.  Rondee does not charge for our free conference call service. The person in Sacramento will either pay nothing for the call (if they have a flat rate unlimited plan) or a per minute rate equal to whatever the rate is her carrier normally charges for calls to San Diego from Sacramento.

I saw the posting:

“I have used your conference call system several times for my work/company. There are several of us who use the system and we are wondering why we each get different PIN #s when we sign-up for a call. Originally when I set-up our account, I created a specific PIN # for all of us to use. I’ve never seen that number; whenever I schedule a call I get a number assigned by Rondee. However, lately, my colleagues & I are noticing we are each getting different PIN #s for the same call. Why is this? And, what happened to the PIN # I created when I started our account? I look forward to your response.”

The heart of the confusion, I suspect, is coming from the difference between Rondee-On-Demand and Scheduled Rondee.  Here is the difference:

Scheduled Rondees are calendared through the Rondee website. You sign in to Rondee.com to choose the date and time for the call. Rondee sends out email invitations, and invitees respond on the Rondee website. Rondee keeps track of the attendance and displays the call title, agenda and responses on a page unique to that call. Various features can be enabled such as call recording, automated reminders and recurring conferences. Rondee emails each participant a different PIN code unique to him or her.

Rondee On Demand conferences are not scheduled through the Rondee website. Instead, you independently notify your invitees of the date/time, and all participants dial in with the exact same PIN code. Click here to get a PIN code for Rondee On Demand.

What I think happened is that you signed up with a Rondee On Demand PIN originally and are now using Scheduled Rondee….

I saw the posting:

1. Is there any way to stop the loud noise when people come onto the call?

>>> Unfortunately not but we are working on changing the tone to make it less grating!

To date the conference call service has been great but above were a few things we wanted to inquire about.

I saw someone’s question: “Is the On demand conference call pin associated with my email address forever or does it ever expire?”

It is valid as long as the conference call PIN is accessed at least once every six months.