The actual time you spend on-line either in units purchased or a time increment in seconds. The time increments vary from 1 second to 10 minutes. MyCyberCard bills time in 1-minute increments.

Connection fees are a single charge for initiating a single call. Each and every time you use the card and your party answers, you will be charged a connection fee, which will be deducted from the available minutes on the card. This amount is deducted from the card value either in money or in minutes. If a calling card has a very low per minute rate, the chances are it has either a high connection fee or a surcharge. It is a logical extension that cards with a connection fee are hopeless for short duration phone calls whereas they may be highly effective for long duration calling. MyCyberCard does NOT use connection fees.

Some cards have an initial set up fee. This could be a single charge just to get you on the road. Some, however, charge a weekly or monthly fee of around $1.99 or more. This is charged after the first time that the card is used and is deducted in minutes or dollar from the card. Even if you are not using your calling card you may be racking up a charge. MyCyberCard does NOT use any fees of these types.

Nearly all phone card calls originating from a pay phone are charged a fee per call. Federal law requires that a fee be charged when calling from a payphone and the fee typically ranges from $0.50 to $1.50 per call. This goes to pay Uncle Sam or the owner of the payphone. This amount is deducted in minutes from the card. If your cellular or mobile phone company allows you to call from your mobile phone, there maybe a charge per call fee. Some Cellphone contracts do not allow the use of alternate carriers like phonecards or dialaround services. MyCyberCard charges only $0.49 per pay phone originated call.

There are FCC/State/Local charges taxes based on where the call originates. (This is the same tax that appears on your phone bill each month and is calculated on each call.) Normally this is factored into the rate but it can be deducted separately and will be deducted from the value of the card. MyCyberCard already has factored in the taxes in your low minute cost and you will not be billed extra for this fee.

As calls are made, the phone card provider will automatically deduct the number of usable minutes from the card balance. Connection fees, maintenance fees and surcharges are converted into minutes and deducted in the same way as the call is made. This is normally recorded on the calling card company's computer system. Some cards (particularly the early calling cards) record the usage on the actual card itself. MyCyberCard allows you to check your remaining balance online.

Your balance is normally given each time you call the access number and enter your PIN. With most cards you are notified how many minutes are remaining at the beginning of each call. In general you will be interrupted during your conversation when you are down to the last two or three minutes.