Below we provide reponses to many of Frequently Asked Questions about our Premium Rate SMS service. In addition, the FAQs on our support pages contain more information on how best to use Premium Rate SMS.
How good is your service?
We have direct connections in the UK, which means your messages are delivered within seconds and that we can secure market leading outpayments.
What tariffs are available for me to charge my users?
We offer immediate access to shared UK shortcodes with the following tariffs: 25p, 50p, £1, £1.50, and £5. We also offer a wide variety of international options. All prices include VAT.
What outpayment will I receive?
For information on the outpayment you can expect to receive, please refer to our outpayments table on our prices page.
Can I run more than one tariff on my Short Code?
No. A Short Code only supports one tariff. If you wish to run two different services with different tariffs, you will need two different Short Codes.
Which operators do you support?
We support all of the UK networks: Vodafone, O2, Orange, T-Mobile, Virgin Mobile and 3.
Am I charged for sending premium messages to my recipients?
No. If you are sending premium content messages to your recipients then you, as the service provider, are not charged for sending the messages.
When and how do I get paid?
Once the network operators (Vodafone, O2, T-Mobile, Orange, 3 and Virgin Mobile) have collected payment from their subscribers for using your service, then they will pass payments back to us. Once we have received and reconciled data from all the networks, we provide you with a self-bill VAT invoice. This takes approximately 30 days. Payment is made to you by electronic transfer 15 days later.
If I am running a service where my users are sending messages to a short code, how do I receive the messages?
All the messages that you receive can be viewed in your online inbox.
If you are using our API you can also choose to receive the message in one of the following ways:
1. HTTP(S): to a nominated web page for your application to retrieve
2. Web Service: for your application to retrieve
How long does it take to set up a premium rate service?
Once you have completed a connection agreement we can normally set up your service within 24 hours. Dedicated shortcodes can take up to 6 weeks to set up.
Who regulates Premium Rate SMS services?
All premium rate charged telecommunications services, including SMS, are regulated by PhonepayPlus. We recommend that all our customers familiarise themselves with their obligations, as detailed in the PhonepayPlus Code of Practice.
What level of support do I get?
Technical Support is provided free of charge either by emailing support@esendex.com or calling 01 631 9410, between 09.00-17.30 GMT, Monday to Friday.
Do you have online help?
We do, you can find more help in our Developer Zone. There you will find a range of information including free sample codes and downloads for all major development environments. Alternatively, give us a call on 01 631 9410 to talk through your queries.
Sign Up Now!
Sign up for a free 7 day trial to start testing the service straight away or
call 01 631 9410 to find out more about our SMS API service.