To some Israelis, a telecard — a phone card purchased in prepaid units that “tick away” as you talk — is merely a means of making a call from a public telephone. To others, each card is a collector’s item.
The Israel Telecard Collectors’ Society, established in 1994, now has some 1,500 members nationwide. But according to the society’s chairman, Benzion Ze’ev, this figure represents “only the tip of the iceberg.”
Ofer Yona of the marketing department of Bezek, Israel’s phone company, estimates that Israel is home to more than 100,000 telecard collectors. Of those, about 2,000 are what Yona would call “telecard fanatics.”
“Fanatical” collectors, he says, eagerly buy every telecard they can, as well as extra copies of the cards for trading.
Demand has been so great that Israel’s first National Convention of Telecard Collectors was held in December 1995.
Bezek’s prototype of the Israeli telecard phone was first presented in June 1988 at an exhibition celebrating the state’s 40th anniversary. At the time, the company also presented the first Israeli telecard, which is now worth some $3,000. Some two years later, actual telecard phones were first installed in Israel.
Since then, Bezek has issued telecards emblazoned with more than 70 different designs, based on a range of themes including tourist sites, “Jerusalem of Gold,” sports, peace with Jordan, wildlife and Yitzhak Rabin. A special memorial card dedicated to the slain leader sold at the convention for $3,000.
The latest offering is a set of four cards designed by the renowned Israeli artist Ya’akov Agam. The 14-1/2 million telecards Bezek sells per year (in values of 20, 50 and 120 units) are mostly for communication purposes, but more and more Israelis have taken up the hobby of collecting them.
Like stamps, telecards are released in series and limited editions; a card’s value is based on rarity and condition. An unused telecard, like an unused postage stamp, has more value than a used one. Telecard collectors usually favor certain themes. Ze’ev, for example, has an extensive collection of Judaica cards. He maintains contact with fellow Jewish collectors around the world and sends them all the Israeli cards he can.
Telecard collecting in Israel has grown so popular in the past few years that a number of private long-distance communication companies have created their own Judaica telecards.
T-Land, the distributor of Euronet Telesave long-distance telecards, was overwhelmed with calls for its Judaica telecards as soon as the cards were released. Among them are a commemoration of the International Summit Against Terror, the centennial of Theodor Herzl’s book “The Jewish State,” and political cartoons of Shimon Peres and Benjamin Netanyahu.
Another private company offering Judaica telecards is Adir International Communications Services Ltd. These cards include an Israeli prime ministers series, Israeli history cards, Jerusalem 3000 cards and an old synagogues series created for the Diaspora Museum.
Telecards from these private companies are often more expensive than those sold by Bezek. However, any real collector knows that the best cards are the ones that are not for sale. Some of Israel’s most wanted cards are ones Bezek has given away free: a Rosh Hashanah telecard, for instance.
Other sought-after cards are those issued to newly enlisted soldiers in the Israeli army.
To meet the needs of collectors and communicators alike, Bezek is developing innovative telecards that have a multiple purpose. One such card doubles as a calorie table. A card like this is useful even when its communicative value runs out.
With more products like this, Bezek will be able to achieve what its original advertising slogan promised: “a telecard in every pocket.”