Africans in US embracing Smartphones, new study reports

San Francisco – April 22, 2010 – iPhone is the favorite among Egyptians in the U.S, while Ugandans here favor the BlackBerry.  Samsung and Nokia phones tie for first preference among Sierra Leoneans living in America, and the Zambians dig Nokias.

Those findings and more come from a just-released study of international calling habits and preferences among Africans living in the U.S., provided by the Internet phone company, Rebtel (http://www.rebtel.com).

Saturdays and Sundays are the days that most Africans abroad call home, although Zambians prefer Saturdays, while Sunday is more popular among Egyptians, Ugandans and Sierra Leoneans.

The largest number of calls from the U.S. to Egypt, Sierra Leone, Uganda and Zambia originate in primarily Eastern and Mid-western states.

The vast majority of calls go to mobile phones in Africa vs. landlines.  Among the survey respondents, 73.2% of calls are to family, 16.1% are to friends, and only 9.6% call business associates at home.

Top Three U.S. States Calling:

Egypt: New York, New Jersey, California

Sierra Leone: Maryland, California, Washington D.C.

Uganda: Minnesota, Massachusetts, Texas

Zambia: Ohio, Illinois, Maryland

Of the Africans participating in the survey, 65.4 % said Rebtel call quality was noticeably better than other phone services for calling family abroad; 79.7% said Rebtel was easier to use.  And well over half – 61.8% – said Rebtel rates consistently beat the competition.

Starting this month Rebtel, which works with any carrier or phone, cut its calling rates to a handful of African nations.

Pre-Minute Rates from U.S. (in U.S. Cents):

Â	Rebtel		Skype		AT&T*		Verizon*
Â	Landline	Mobile	Landline	Mobile	Landline	Mobile	Landline	Mobile
Egypt	11.9	11.9	18.5	15.0	38.0	38.0	34.0	34.0
Sierra Leone	34.9	34.9	29.9	29.9	59.0	74.0	49.0	60.0
Uganda	11.5	12.9	15.0	15.0	49.0	52.0	49.0	51.0
Zambia	4.5	4.9	11.6	24.3	59.0	70.0	29.0	40.0

* Requires $3.99 per month international calling plan

“There is absolutely no need to pay traditional carriers’ crazy rates when you want to talk to your family back home,” said Andreas Bernström, Rebtel CEO.  “Nor do you have to risk getting ripped off by calling cards. Just say, ‘No’ to the old way of calling, and give Rebtel a try.”

Founded in 2006, Stockholm-based Rebtel was established to give people around the world an alternative to mobile operators’ rip-off rates for making international calls. Today, thousands of Africans living in the U.S. use Rebtel every day to call family at home.

Rebtel has been ranked No.1 in international calling by Technology Appraisals and has been featured in USA Today, The New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and The International Herald Tribune for its unique calling service.

About Rebtel

Rebtel is an Internet phone company that makes it possible to use any phone in 49 countries to call anywhere in the world for just pennies per minute or for free.  Rebtel customers only pay for the minutes they use. There are no monthly fees, no connection fees, or hidden costs.  Free calls are possible between the 49 countries served by Rebtel and only one of the two people on a call must be a Rebtel customer. For more information, or to start using Rebtel, go to http://www.rebtel.com.

Media Inquiries:

Greg Spector, greg.spector@rebtel.com Tel: +1 415 717 4666

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