Long time reader, first time trying a post. I've noticed over my last few visits to WDW the abundance of pay telephones! There seems to be 2-3 by every restroom exit. Does anyone ever use them? They all seem to be hooked up, too (The ones I checked have dial tones at least). Most public places have virtually eliminated the payphone because almost everybody has a cell phone. Why is Disney holding on to all these phones?
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Pay Phones Everywhere!?
- Thread starter Wisconsin
- Start date
urbanvegan
New Member
Maybe they cost more to remove than they care to pay right now? I doubt they are bothering anyone, but I can't see any new ones being added.
If Disney removed them they would probably just make them into tiny Pin Trading stores.
Victoria
Not old, just vintage.
Disney serves a very large international population. Many of those travelers don't have cell phones that work internationally so they use calling cards instead. With the invention of the internet, calling home (to another country) isn't as vital as it used to be, but I still see people using them occasionally. Granted, the ones in the resorts get a lot more use, but I would imagine it is cheaper to just leave the pay phones in the parks. :shrug:
wickedsoccer22
Active Member
The South American tour groups use them a lot. As well as all other foreigners.
JimboJones123
Well-Known Member
Just more fuel for the hate the foreigners fire.
"Those people" use pay phones.
I swear, for every wall that gets broken down...
urbanvegan
New Member
Why would anyone hate people due to their use of pay phones? I don't think anyone said anything here that had the intention of making pariahs of International guests.
Phonedave
Well-Known Member
I doubt they are owned by Disney either.
They are COCOT (Customer Owned Coin Operated Telephones). They are not installed/maintained by the local ILEC.
If they are not owned by Disney, then I would be suprised if Diseney is not getting a leasing feel from the owner of the phone. At the VERY least, they are being placed for free.
In the past, if you owned a store, you could get a pay phone in one of three ways. You paid the phone company for it, it was provided free, or sometimes the phone company paid you to put one there.
As others have said, coin box revenue is tanking, and in most cases now, nobody is getting paid to allow a pay phone to be placed on their property. I would not be suprised if WDW is on of the few places that still has the volume to users to demand (and receive) a leasing fee.
-dave
They are COCOT (Customer Owned Coin Operated Telephones). They are not installed/maintained by the local ILEC.
If they are not owned by Disney, then I would be suprised if Diseney is not getting a leasing feel from the owner of the phone. At the VERY least, they are being placed for free.
In the past, if you owned a store, you could get a pay phone in one of three ways. You paid the phone company for it, it was provided free, or sometimes the phone company paid you to put one there.
As others have said, coin box revenue is tanking, and in most cases now, nobody is getting paid to allow a pay phone to be placed on their property. I would not be suprised if WDW is on of the few places that still has the volume to users to demand (and receive) a leasing fee.
-dave
captain marvel1
New Member
:drevil
oh i just had a thought lol. oh this is good one for a joke. remember disney has the talking bush, the talking trash can, and the talking water fountain. well what if they figure out a way to make a talking payphone so when tourists go to use it says welcome to disney. then it screams dont touch me i dont like to be touched. so for the guests to watch the reaction of the forigen tourist who tries to put money in it.:drevil:
oh i just had a thought lol. oh this is good one for a joke. remember disney has the talking bush, the talking trash can, and the talking water fountain. well what if they figure out a way to make a talking payphone so when tourists go to use it says welcome to disney. then it screams dont touch me i dont like to be touched. so for the guests to watch the reaction of the forigen tourist who tries to put money in it.:drevil:Disney was 1/2 owner until around 2001 or so...
The payphones, and all other phones for that matter, were initially installed and maintained by "Vista-United Telephone" which was an LLC half owned by Disney and half owned by United Telecom. I know because I was part of the installation team from Stromberg-Carlson that was on site for months doing the initial and several follow up installs. In the early 2000s (2001 or 2002 I think) the company was purchased and became an independent company named Smart-City Telecom. When Disney created Vista-United they had several "firsts". They were the first to be 100% underground cable plant, in anticipation of hurricanes, the first to heavily rely on fiber optics for premise wiring, combining data and voice networks together, and they were one of the earliest adopters of advanced 911 in the country and the first in Florida, to name but a few. Smart City still provides all of the phone services in the parks, they are not COCOT pay phones. Amongst other benefits to Disney, the payphones allow guests to contact Disney reservations and such with special dialing codes. Cell phones have certainly reduced the revenue for a large percentage of pay phone sites but there are also still a lot of sites that make good money, tourist spots, rural areas, c-stores, confinement institutions, hospitals, and schools amongst them.
The payphones, and all other phones for that matter, were initially installed and maintained by "Vista-United Telephone" which was an LLC half owned by Disney and half owned by United Telecom. I know because I was part of the installation team from Stromberg-Carlson that was on site for months doing the initial and several follow up installs. In the early 2000s (2001 or 2002 I think) the company was purchased and became an independent company named Smart-City Telecom. When Disney created Vista-United they had several "firsts". They were the first to be 100% underground cable plant, in anticipation of hurricanes, the first to heavily rely on fiber optics for premise wiring, combining data and voice networks together, and they were one of the earliest adopters of advanced 911 in the country and the first in Florida, to name but a few. Smart City still provides all of the phone services in the parks, they are not COCOT pay phones. Amongst other benefits to Disney, the payphones allow guests to contact Disney reservations and such with special dialing codes. Cell phones have certainly reduced the revenue for a large percentage of pay phone sites but there are also still a lot of sites that make good money, tourist spots, rural areas, c-stores, confinement institutions, hospitals, and schools amongst them.
Disneybear
Active Member
Coming from the UK I use them a lot to phone relatives a back home (6 hours ahead back in the UK). Simply pick up an international phone card at a shop and away you go.
Figment632
New Member
This is the only real reason I could think for them still being around :shrug:
bgraham34
Well-Known Member
A friend of mine who comes from the UK only uses the pay phones when he is in the world.
It not like the phones are offensive or anything.
Phonedave
Well-Known Member
So Smart-City is WDW's telecomm provider, and they provide a complete solution for WDW - nice.
One of my old bosses was offered a job by them (I assume it was them at the time)
He was in WDW on vacation (As it was, his wife used to work for TDS) and he saw some techs splicing fiber. He made some sort of comment that showed he knew about what they were doing - some thing like "nice hot jacket stripper" or something like that. The guy asked him to wait, got his boss, and they offered him a job on the spot. Supposedly they needed fiber techs badly at that time. Of course that was back when fiber splicing was all sorts of finicky, nobody dreamed of doing it outdoors or *gasp* aloft.
-dave
WishIwasThere
Active Member
I don't thing the OP was making a point about them being a problem. I think it was just an observation that in most of the US, the payphone is going the way of the dodo, but they are all over the place in WDW.
I_heart_Tigger
Well-Known Member
ummmm....I used them 5 or 6 times on my last visit. :lookaroun I guess I'm a foriegner coming from Canada. We do actually have cell phones here. I just choose not to have one.
I even know other people who either A) choose not to have a cell phone or B) Have one for work and don't bring it on vacation.
I called 2 friends locally so we could hook up at the parks and home to my boyfriend using a calling card.
Hopefully they don't get rid of them since I will also plan to use them on my next visit.
I did call my boyfriend once from the room calling home collect. The difference between the calling card and the collect call is that the calling card cost $20 and has over 60 minutes on it and the collect call was 12 minutes and cost $30 (room charge + home phone charge) so I prefer the pay phones.
I even know other people who either A) choose not to have a cell phone or B) Have one for work and don't bring it on vacation.
I called 2 friends locally so we could hook up at the parks and home to my boyfriend using a calling card.
Hopefully they don't get rid of them since I will also plan to use them on my next visit.
I did call my boyfriend once from the room calling home collect. The difference between the calling card and the collect call is that the calling card cost $20 and has over 60 minutes on it and the collect call was 12 minutes and cost $30 (room charge + home phone charge) so I prefer the pay phones.
luckyeye13
New Member
Ah, that provides for another idea for Pleasure Island! Disney can simply tear down the buildings that used to house the clubs and put up lots of phones in their place in order to get the leasing fee. After all, they have pretty much made it clear that third-party is the way of the future there, so maybe this is the new and innovative experience that they were hawking.
