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Questions and Answers
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Most frequently asked
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Which services can I offer via Fortumo?
Fortumo's current list of services is available here.
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Do I need any technical skills, such as programming skills, to set up Fortumo services?
No, creating "Basic" services is extremely simple and requires no programming skills whatsoever. However, if you do have programming skills, you can also set up an "Advanced" service, which gives you more customizable options for the performance of your service(s).
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In which countries does Fortumo offer its services?
Click here to see the list of countries where Fortumo services are available. For each of the countries we offer our services in, the SMS services are available for our customers on all mobile operators within these countries. We are planning to add new countries on a regular basis.
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How much do I earn, based on the revenue, from each SMS sent to my service?
Users of your service shall be billed for each message sent to the service. Mobile operators take a revenue share on each transaction for handling billing, collecting money and covering credit risk. The operators then pay the remaining money (usually between 40% and 60% depending on end-user price) to Fortumo. Fortumo pays you the remaining money minus a small commission (which can be only 2-3% of end-user price, depending on country, type of service and volume). Take a look at Fortumo revenue sharing for exact revenue-sharing figures.
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When can I offer Fortumo services in other countries?
To offer SMS services in other countries, Fortumo must have cooperation agreements with local mobile telecommunication operators or service providers. We are currently working on adding new countries to Fortumo. If you wish to suggest a particular country where you have decided to offer SMS services, please send us an e-mail at support@fortumo.com and we will do our best to consider your request. If you are an active SMS connectivity provider and wish to partner with Fortumo, please send us an e-mail at partnership@fortumo.com.
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Did not find an answer?
Write to support@fortumo.com and we will answer you as soon as possible.
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Which services can I offer via Fortumo?
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General
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Can a private person create Fortumo services?
Yes, a private person can also offer Fortumo services.
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Can a legal person also create Fortumo services?
Yes, a legal person can also create Fortumo services.
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What is the difference for a company and a private person to use Fortumo's services?
Actually, there is no difference. The only difference is that private person has to declare earned revenue as his/her income if it is regulated by the law. And Estonian companies who are VAT-liable the VAT is also added to the payout.
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How much does it cost to create Fortumo services?
Creating Fortumo services is free of charge and will remain so.
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Do my users have a limit for sending SMS?
To protect the end-users and at the same time avoid services abuse we have set a limit of 100 messages, per phone number, per 30 day period. Due to market regulations, in Denmark the limit is 50 messages, per phone number, per 30 day period. In Latin America countries customers are usually limited to 6 messages per day.
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How can I get people to use my service?
We advise you to advertise and dispread your service among your friends, acquaintances and everyone else. You should ask them to try out your service! Advertise your service in your website or in any other sites you have access to. If you make your service noticeable, we're sure more people will come and use it!
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I don't want to use Fortumo's services anymore. How can I delete my account?
In Fortumo's web interface, all inactive accounts are deleted automatically. Just delete all your active services and do not to use your account anymore. After 60 days of inactivity Fortumo's system will delete your account automatically.
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Do I need to have a permission to create campaigns, lotteries etc via SMS?
Most campaigns do not require permission, but some types of campaigns may require that you follow the law and local rules in the target countries. For example, contests and lotteries are permitted in some countries, yet not in others. There are also restrictions for adult or obscene content, which varies by country. To find out, if your campaign requires permission, please contact the appropriate local institution. You can also review our terms and services for rules and regulations listed by country on our site.
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I don't have a website. Can I still use Fortumo's services?
Of course. You don't need a website to advertise a service. For example, you can use radio, television, newspaper, brochures, or other methods to promote your service(s).
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Can a private person create Fortumo services?
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Taxes and payouts
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Where can I see how much I have earned?
All information regarding your services, number of received messages and earned revenue is visible in real time on the "Dashboard" page.
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How do I get my money?
To get your money, go to the "My Services" page. Under the "Payouts" section you can see whether your payout is configured or not. There you can configure your payout preferences. You can configure a payout as a private individual or as a company. Fortumo supports monthly and one-time payouts. The payout is made when your account has accumulated at least 50 EUR (~ 75 USD). The money will be transferred by the 15th day of the month. You can see the length of the payout cycle by country here
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I have heard that depending on mobile operator, it can take time for money to reach me. How much time?
Mobile operators pay Fortumo the money earned from your services within a period of several months and it varies by country and operator. Fortumo pays the money to you after the money is paid to us. You can see the length of the payout cycle from here. Fortumo makes payments by the 15th day of each month.
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Which payout options does Fortumo support?
Fortumo supports money transfers to bank accounts, payouts through PayPal, Webmoney and Moneybooker.
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I don't have past payouts, why?
It means that your account has not accumulated at least 50 EUR (~75 USD) and Fortumo has not made any payouts to you. As soon as your account has accumulated at least 50 EUR (~75 USD), Fortumo will transfer you the money according to the payout cycle. After the first payout is made you are able to see your past payouts.
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I don't have past payouts, how can I see how much have my services earned?
On the "Dashboard" page you are able to see the revenues each service has generated. See the "Profit" section after every service. You can also see the revenue every service type has earned by selecting "Total".
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I seem to be getting less money than I should. Why?
Most of the end-user prices include VAT (value added tax) of the particular country (usually between 17-25 percent). It is collected by the local tax authorities and is not paid out to you. Thus, the actual amount shared is the end-user price minus VAT of the user's country. This is already calculated into your account as the messages arrive. Also, you may have some unbilled messages. Sometimes operators fail to bill some messages. This happens when end-user refuses to pay the bill or someone has used your service with pre-paid calling card that doesn't have enough credit. These unbilled messages are withheld from your account according to the terms of services. When end-user pays the phone bill later the money will be transferred back to your account.
. However, if it's not related to VAT or unbilled messages and you still seem to be getting less, please contact our customer support. -
Is Fortumo withholding any taxes from the payments?
Fortumo isn't withholding any taxes from your revenue, but you might be required to pay income tax of your own country if you are a private individual.
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What is BIC / SWIFT?
To transfer money to your bank account, we need to know your IBAN (International Bank Account Number) and BIC (Bank Identification Code). The latter is also known as the SWIFT address of the bank. BIC / SWIFT is 8-letter code that identifies the bank, and it looks like DABADKKK or HABALV22. You can find your bank's BIC / SWIFT from their homepage or your online banking account, or you can contact your bank for more information.
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I noticed that the money in my "Payable in the future" has decreased. Why?
The money may decrease when some messages with status "pending" turn to "failed". It happens when a person who sent the message doesn't pay for the message.
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What is an unbilled message?
Sometimes operators fail to bill some messages. This happens when end-users refuse to pay their bill or someone has used your service with pre-paid calling card that doesn't have enough credit. These unbilled messages are withheld from your account according to points 17,18,19 in our terms of services. When the end-user pays the phone bill, the money will be transferred back to your account.
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What is bad debt?
When end-users do not pay their phone bill, it is withheld from your revenue as bad debt.
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Where can I change the payout settings?
You can change, add, and configure your payout settings when clicking on your user-name in the upper right corner of your Fortumo interface. From there please select "Payout".
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Where can I see how much I have earned?
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Services
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How many services am I allowed to have at one time?
At the moment, one user can create up to 30 services. If you need to create more than 30 services, please look the answer to the question "How can I create more than 30 services?".
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How long are my services valid?
If you use your services actively, there is no validation time. An active service should be used at least once every 60 days. If during the 60 days no messages are sent to the service, a letter reminding you will be sent to your e-mail. After that letter you have 10 days to keep your service - you must either send a message to the service yourself or advertise it so that others will send messages. If no messages are sent to the service within those 10 days, the service will be stopped and it will be no longer active.
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What happens with no longer active service?
If after 60 days, plus 10 days after a reminder letter is sent to you, no messages are sent to your service the service will be stopped and will no longer be active. If this happens, it will not be possible to send a message to this service anymore (an error reply message will be sent back).
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If the user of the service has not received the service, should they still pay for the message?
Unfortunately yes. This is due to the fact that operators charge for receiving and forwarding messages regardless of whether the user has received the service or not.
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How can I change the end user price, keyword and other settings of my service?
You can determine the end user price and keyword when you create the service, they cannot be changed later. If you wish to change them, create a new service! However, you can change the reply message and the e-mail address where the messages are forwarded (in case of an SMS-campaign service), or a web address (in case of Premium SMS-connectivity service).
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Is it possible to have a service with higher end-user price per SMS?
Commonly, mobile operators do not agree with higher prices per SMS than we have at the moment, it's much too big risk for them. But please, let us know about your wishes, we'll take them into account!
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Can I also view the phone numbers of the users of my service?
Yes. To view the phone numbers of the users of your service, click on the service in the "My Services" page and navigate to the "Messages" tab.
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What do the "pending", "ok" and "failed" mean behind the message under the billing?
The word "pending" means that we have not yet received the money from the operator for that SMS. "OK" means that the operator has managed to bill the message and we've received the money, and "failed" means the opposite of that – operator couldn't bill the message.
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Can I delete the SMS services that I have created?
Of course. You can delete services when clicking on the service and choosing "End" from the menu bar. History of all deleted services will be preserved, so you can always analyze the results of your services and view the history.
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Why is the maximum number of characters in the reply-message 120, when usually the maximum length of an SMS is 160 characters?
We would like to offer equal opportunities in every country and that is why we have validated the number of characters in reply message up to 120.
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Can a person from foreign country use my services?
Only people who have a prepaid card or contract with the particular countries' operator can send the messages to your services. Unfortunately, there aren't any money transactions between operators from different countries. But you can always open services in foreign countries.
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Why does the status of a message say "pending" for so long?
Usually, the pending status is changed right before your payout. So, it can take some time before it changes to "ok" or "failed".
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Can my clients send messages from a foreign country?
Yes, if they have activated roaming service.
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Can I have my own first keyword?
Fortumo services are set up with our own pre-determined keywords for you to get started quickly. It is possible for you to use your own custom keywords, but this may incur service fees for this type of usage. If you are interested, please contact support@fortumo.com and we'll give you further information on how to set this up.
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Is it possible to test the service without paying for it?
Yes, you cam simply click on your service from the "My services" page and select "Test" from the menu bar. You can find further instructions from there.
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How can I create more than 30 services?
If you reach to services limit, you can raise it by 10 additional services by sending an SMS. You will get the exact information through our web interface once you've reached the limit.
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How many services am I allowed to have at one time?
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Technical
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How to create scripts for Premium SMS-connectivity?
Please see the technical description of Premium SMS-connectivity. If you have questions regarding PHP programming in general, please consult PHP developer forums or mailing lists, to get quick help from thousands of developers wordwide.
- In Finnish:
- keskustelu.suomi24.fi
mbnet.fi - In Swedish:
- htmlsidan.se
scriptdev.se - In Norwegian:
- diskusjon.no
forumet.no - In Danish:
- phpuniverset.dk
dk.edb.internet.webdesign.serverside.php - In Estonian:
- php.ee
php.center.ee - In Latvian:
- php.lv
- In Lithuanian:
- php.lt
forum.hostas.lt - In English:
- webmasterworld.com
comp.lang.php - In Chinese:
- phpchina.com
phpx.com
discuz.net
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Can I also create subscription-based services via Fortumo?
Subscription-based services with periodic taxation will be available in Fortumo any time in the future. Check back soon!
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Users of my Premium SMS-connectivity service get an error message. What should I do?
They receive error message if we can't connect with your script in a reasonable time. There might be several reasons:
1. the server where your script is located is facing problems and is not responding
2. your script is not found in the place you specified
3. your script had an error when we tried to execute it
The correct response from your script should be HTTP error code 200 (Success) with non-empty reply message. Please take another look at the service specification, check the script and try again. If the error persists please contact our customer support. -
Can I also create MMS-based services through Fortumo?
At the moment, creating MMS services through Fortumo is not possible due to technical reasons.
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The users of my service claim that they have not received a reply message. What should I do?
First, check if the user has sent the message to the right short code and started the message with the right keyword. If yes, then check your service settings - is the service still active? If you are sure that everything is okay with your settings, contact our customer service (support@fortumo.com), and send us the phone number of the customer who placed the order. We will react as soon as possible, but definitely within 24 hours.
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What are MO- and MT- billing?
MO- and MT- billing are the two methods how carriers charge users. With MO-billing (Mobile Originating Billing), operators charge for the sent message. In this case, users are billed at the moment when they sent out SMS. With MT-billing (Mobile Terminating Billing), operators charge for the reply-message sent back to the user. In this case, users are billed only when they receive the reply-message (also known as reverse billing). Different countries offer different billing systems so please check your targeted country for exact info: here
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Which alphabet can be used for writing messages?
Latin alphabet.
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Do you have sample scripts for services? Could you please help me to create my own script?
We do not have service specific scripts, but we do have the sample script that helps you to understand how the system works, you can see it here . If you don't know exactly how to write a script for your service and none of your friends can help you, I advise you to ask help from php- or ASP forums. There are many specialists there who can help you. Many Fortumo users have asked for help from such forums and have found answers to their questions.
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What does "I want to receive billing reports" mean?
This feature gives you a possibility of receiving billing reports immediately in MT billing countries (the message is billed with a reply message). If you click the box and complement your script you can receive billing reports from operators right away and so, only those users with "ok" messages can receive the service you are offering. MT billing is available in Latvia, Lithuania, China, Malaysia, Serbia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland (with a few exceptions).
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How to create scripts for Premium SMS-connectivity?
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Affiliate
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I didn't get my 5€ for using a promotion code when signing up to Fortumo. Why?
Did you set up your payout settings? If yes and you still don't have the 5€, please contact us.
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How can I delete my affiliate code?
If you want to delete your affiliate code, then just don't use it any more.
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Can I use my own text or banner to promote Fortumo?
Yes. Feel free to use any text or banner that you think would persuade your users to join Fortumo and start making SMS-services. (We reserve a right to decline the written text on these banners if they do not adhere to our company standards).
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How can I change my affiliate code?
Changing the affiliate code from web-interface is not possible because after editing the code, the statistics you had, will be no longer available. The statistics will be counted from zero all over again.
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I didn't get my 5€ for using a promotion code when signing up to Fortumo. Why?
