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NewswireTODAY - /newswire/ -
Riga, Latvia Republic, 2013/04/29 - A new mobile application, Roamer, was introduced for the first time as part of the TNW Conference, taking place in Amsterdam from April 24 to 26 - RoamerApp.com.
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The test version of the Roamerapp.com service was presented by a group of developers from Latvia, who demonstrated the functionality of the mobile application and talked about how it works. The developers have claimed that Roamer will be 3-4 times more cost-effective than “tourist” SIM cards and 10-20 cheaper than roaming within Europe. The application is targeted at the roaming market, the volume of which was estimated at 45 billion dollars in 2012.
Nick Ustinov, the co-founder of the start-up Roamer, revealed the main principles of how the service works,“The path to lower costs is in three simple steps. First, you need to ‘park’ your home telephone number immediately prior to traveling abroad. Then, when you arrive at your destination, you can install any local SIM-card which has a suitable data plan. Finally, you have to activate your ‘home number’ on the new card. After that, you can accept calls on your ‘home number’, as well as make calls from it, during your whole stay abroad. The service uses the cellular network at the destination and ensures a high quality connection irrespective of the available speed of the internet.”
The main advantages of the application are the following
Using one’s ‘home number’ to make and receive calls abroad at rates up to 90% cheaper than roaming
Using a local internet data plan in the destination country
Receiving notifications to ‘park’ your number before departure
Suggesting points of sales for local SIM cards
Using one’s existing contact list
Managing the call list, duration and cost
At the moment, the start-up is preparing for a phase of beta testing. A limited number of testers, who can register at Roamerapp.com, will be the first to experience using this service. The service will be launched to the general public in summer 2013 as an application for iOS and Android. Once launched, Roamer will be offer an affordable connection in 216 countries of the world to travellers originating from 52 countries.
About developer
The developer of the Roamerapp.com service is a European company, Arcana Digital Group, which is specialized in the launch of global internet start-ups. The Arcana Digital Group team is based in Latvia. The company uses a scientific approach, including research, analysis and projection, to create its internet projects. The previous mobile start-up in the area of telecommunications launched by Arcana Digital Group, VIR2SIM, received positive feedback from a range of reputed internet publications such as Wired and KillerStartUps.
Market background
In 2012, mobile operators made $45 billion off roaming alone. The average call rate for intercontinental roaming fluctuates between 1€ and 5€ per minute, and the high charges are activated immediately after crossing the country border. As a result, upon returning back to their home country travelers may find a bill of up to €1000. Due to this, 70% of roaming users feel the need to stop or minimize calling from abroad in order to prevent the shock of the bill.
Forecasts state that revenues in the roaming niche are expected to grow by 86% to reach $67 billion in the time period between 2010 and 2015, which will make up 6.3% of the global income received from mobile services. The growth in popularity and accessibility of travel has turned the roaming niche into a real goldmine for mobile operators.
Essentially, the roaming market is completely monopolized by mobile operators. Existing agreements between operators allow them to continue charging clients at incredibly high rates and make calling from abroad a serious issue for the general public. Unfortunately, the current alternatives available on the market have too many disadvantages and couldn’t completely replace roaming. Roamer will effectively be the first and cheapest roaming alternative.
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edgar[.]arcana.lv 
