PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS INC.

What PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS INC. does

Primus Telecommunications, Inc. is a legacy U.S. long-distance voice carrier that provides state-to-state, international, local/intrastate, dial-around (1010024), calling card, and toll-free voice services, primarily to residential and small business customers. Service brands include GlobeTalk and Ten4Real, and VoIP services are offered through a related entity, Lingo, Inc. The company operates under tariffs filed with the FCC and is governed by a General Service Agreement; its customer service operations run out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with subpoena compliance handled through Birch Communications in Kansas City. Pricing is usage-based per minute, supplemented by recurring account maintenance fees, carrier cost recovery fees, and surcharges, with low monthly minimums on both residential and business accounts.

The company was acquired by Birch Communications in April 2016 and has since been operationally absorbed into the Birch family. Billing for customers holding 7 or fewer digit account numbers migrated to Birch bills as of October 31, 2017, and Primus services are now presented under the Birch brand with integrated billing and support systems. Today, Primus functions as a residual legal and customer-care entity within Birch, maintaining its customer help center and tariff-based service obligations while discontinuing independent growth initiatives. The website is positioned as a customer service portal rather than an active marketing channel, and there is no evidence of new product investment, hiring, or technology modernization.

There are no named enterprise customers, no disclosed revenue, no funding history, and only 7 employees listed, consistent with a maintenance-mode operating posture. The underlying product categories — long-distance voice, calling cards, dial-around — face secular decline from mobile, VoIP, and messaging substitution, and the company's strategic direction is defined entirely by the Birch acquisition and brand transition rather than by independent expansion.

Name

PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS INC.

Legal name

Primus Telecommunications, Inc.

Website

https://ptgi.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Primus Telecommunications, Inc. is a legacy U.S. long-distance voice carrier serving residential and small business customers with state-to-state, international, calling card, and toll-free services, now operating as a residual Birch Communications entity following its April 2016 acquisition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Long-distance voice telecommunications services

NAICS

All Other Telecommunications (5178)

SIC

Telephone Communications (No Radiotelephone) (4813)

akta.pro primary industry

VoIP Access & ITSP Services (HDAIAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Telemarketing & Telesales Services (Outbound/Inbound) (BPAFAKAC)

Keywords

• Long distance voice services
• International calling services
• Calling card services
• Toll free numbers
• Business telecommunications

Headquarters

HQ city

Cedar Rapids

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Infrastructure, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Long Distance Voice Services: Per-minute charges for state-to-state and international voice calls. Rates vary by destination with higher rates for international mobile telephones and special services calls.
2. Monthly Account Maintenance Fees: Standard monthly account maintenance fee of $15.00 for business accounts billing less than $25.00 per month in long distance charges. Residential customers subject to $10.00 per month minimum usage requirement.
3. Calling Card Services: Globe-Talk calling plan with $0.50 per call surcharge for all calling card calls.
4. Toll Free Services: $5.00 monthly maintenance charge per active toll free number, plus $10.00 one-time setup fee for new toll free numbers. Directory assistance services additional.
5. Surcharges and Fees: Carrier Cost Recovery Fee ($4.95/month), Billing Service Fee ($4.95/month for paper invoices), PICC Fee ($4.31/line/month for multi-line business accounts), Reactivation Fee ($25.00), and various governmental charges including Federal Universal Service Fee and Payphone Use Charge ($0.99/call).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Primus Telecommunications, Inc. provides long-distance and international voice telecommunications services to residential and business customers in the United States, including state-to-state, intrastate, and international calling, prepaid calling cards (Globe-Talk), dial-around service (1010024), and business toll-free numbers under FCC-tariffed rates. The company has been part of Birch Communications since April 2016, with services transitioning to the Birch family brand and consolidated billing systems.

Product overview

Primus Telecommunications, Inc. is a telecommunications service provider offering a portfolio of voice communication services. The core offerings include state-to-state and international voice telecommunications, local/intrastate voice service, dial-around voice service, and calling card services. Service brands include GlobeTalk and Ten4Real. The company provides separate customer support channels for residential and business customers, along with online billing self-service capabilities. VoIP services are offered through the subsidiary Lingo, Inc. (Lingo). The company operates under a General Service Agreement covering rates, charges, terms and conditions, with billing transitioning to the Birch family brand following acquisition in April 2016.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GlobeTalk: Telecommunications service offered by Primus, referenced in Do Not Call policy.
• Ten4Real

Products and services

• State-to-State Voice Service Long-distance voice telecommunications service covering interstate calls, governed by the General Service Agreement and FCC tariffs, for residential and business account holders.
• International Voice Service International telecommunications service for calls to foreign countries, with rates that vary by destination, available to Primus residential and business account holders.
• Local/Intrastate Voice Service Local and in-state long-distance voice service covered under Primus's tariffed offerings and subject to state public utility commission regulations.
• Dial Around Voice Service Service allowing customers to make long-distance calls without an active Primus account by dialing access codes such as 1010024.
• Calling Card Service (Globe-Talk) Prepaid calling card service with authorization codes for making long-distance calls, subject to a $0.50 per call surcharge on Globe-Talk plans.
• Toll Free Service Business toll-free number service with monthly maintenance charges ($5.00/month per active number), a one-time $10.00 setup fee for new numbers, and optional directory assistance add-ons.
• GlobeTalk Residential long-distance calling service plan marketed via telemarketing under the Primus brand.
• Ten4Real Residential long-distance calling service plan marketed via telemarketing under the Primus brand.
• Online Billing Service Web-based billing portal allowing customers to view invoices, pay bills, and manage accounts online, with paper invoice billing fee waiver for enrollment.
• Lingo VoIP Services Voice over Internet Protocol services operated by subsidiary Lingo, Inc., with separate terms and conditions available at www.lingo.com.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Birch CommunicationscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2016Primus has been part of the Birch family since April 2016. The acquisition by Birch Communications has led to integration of billing systems and transition of services to the Birch brand. Customers with 7 or fewer digit account numbers transitioned billing to Birch effective October 31, 2017. Services and quality remain consistent under the new brand identity.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• 8x8: Enterprise-focused UCaaS and cloud communications provider; comparable voice services category though oriented to mid-market and enterprise.
• Twilio: Cloud communications platform offering programmable voice and messaging APIs; comparable underlying voice category though operating at a very different scale and model.
• Vonage: Established VoIP and UCaaS provider for consumers and SMBs; broader portfolio but overlapping core voice telephony value proposition with Primus/Lingo.

Direct peers

• magicJack VocalTec: Provides VoIP-based telephone services and calling cards to consumer and SMB markets; comparable business model focused on low-cost voice telephony.
• IDT Corporation: Long-standing provider of retail and wholesale long-distance, international calling, and prepaid telecom services, with a comparable product mix of calling cards and dial-around.
• NetTalk: Small-cap VoIP provider offering residential and business telephone services with comparable calling-card-style retail positioning.
• Lingo (subsidiary): Wholly-owned subsidiary of the Primus group offering VoIP services to consumers and SMBs, directly comparable on voice telephony product.
• Birch Communications: Acquirer and parent company of Primus since April 2016; provides overlapping SMB voice, internet, and telecom services, and now absorbs the Primus customer base and product lines.

Emerging players

• Telna: International communications services company providing long-distance and roaming voice services; partial overlap with Primus's international calling product.
• Callcentric: Niche VoIP and SIP provider serving residential and SMB customers with similar long-distance-style service delivery.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/primus-telecommunications-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PRIMUS TELECOMMUNICATIONS INC.