NEWS ARTICLE

December 3, 2006 - THEY improv mentioned in the Boston Herald - The Edge.

THEY improv mentioned in the Boston Herald - The Edge.

Dial up privacy with free online phone service
by Rochelle Stewart

Now you can give out your phone number and still remain anonymous.

A new, free service lets you take control of who you wish to talk to on the phone. And its creators believe it could become the next wave of virtual communication.

PrivatePhone is a free phone-number and voice-mail service created by NetZeroVoice. All calls go straight to voice mail and you are alerted to the new message via e-mail or through a text message on your cell phone. Users can check the message over the phone or online.

Matt Wisk, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of United Online, an Internet holding company that runs PrivatePhone, said the idea was inspired after the infamous Paris Hilton cell phone gaffe.

"Someone got hold of her number and she was Spammed with messages," Wisk said. "We decided to create a way for socially active people to have a phone number that wasn't as personal as a cell phone."

The service, which has been available since May, has taken off, Wisk said.

Now people are using the service for things such as posting items on Craigslist, anonymous online dating and even as a promotional tool, he said.

For Todd Rice and Will Luera of THEY improv, an improv troupe that performs for corporations and charity events in Boston and southern Florida, PrivatePhone has helped them manage the business while they travel back and forth between the two locations.

"One main phone number gives us the look of having a much wider and larger organization," Luera said.

Ryan Hurley, a 23-year-old from Winchester, said PrivatePhone gives him the ability to have a permanent number to use for resumes and networking.

He also said he finds the service useful for peer-to-peer transactions on the Internet.

"If I post something on eBay or Craigslist, I don't want to give out my personal phone number," he said. "It also serves as a general Spam diversion."

For instance, Hurley uses the number when he signs up for something online that requires a phone number as part of the application or purchasing process.

"If someone does have to call, they leave a voice mail and I decide if I want to call the person back," he said.

Rice also uses PrivatePhone for personal calls.

"I don't want a lot of people calling me at home," he said.

About THEY improv
THEY improv is a national leader in corporate comedy shows and performs regularly for some of Dallas Fort Worth's top companies. Often performing for charities, THEY improv is changing the face of comedy in Boston. THEY can be seen in private events at various venues in the area, as well as around the country, and our Boston Page is regularly updated with information about upcoming events and shows.