Russian mobile call-back service EZtalk has received 100 million rubles ($4 million) of investment from VTB Venture Fund. Owned by Simbiotel, the service saves money on international mobile calls and has built up 30,000 users since its launch in January this year.
EZtalk works via a downloadable mobile app which allows calls to anywhere in Europe, US or Canada for $0.30 a minute, or anywhere in Russia for $0.15 a minute. It has an interop agreement with international telcos including Russia’s Rostelecom and the UK’s Orange.
The callback market in Russia was valued at $60 million in 2007; much of that spending comes from Russia’s 140 million mobile users, RBC Daily reported (via Quintura).