Payphone

A payphone (alternative spelling: pay phone) is a public telephone, often located in a telephone booth or a privacy hood, with pre-payment by inserting money (usually coins), a credit or debit card, or a telephone card.

Payphones are often found in public places, transportation hubs such as airports or train stations, convenience stores, malls, casinos, and on street corners. By agreement with the landlord, either the phone company pays rent for the location and keeps the revenue, or the landlord pays rent for the phone and shares the revenue. Some payphones, particularly at gas stations, are mounted in drive-up structures that can be used without leaving the vehicle.

Payphone revenues have sharply declined in many places, largely due to the increased usage of mobile phones. Payphone providers have sometimes tried to reverse the decline in usage by offering additional services such as SMS and Internet access, thus making their phone booths into Internet kiosks. The abandonment of payphones by telephone companies has angered some people who consider them a communication staple for low-income and low-credit consumers. In particular, payphones are useful for foreign or generally non-local travellers who need to place local calls, as well as those who simply don't like or cannot afford mobile phones.