Revival of phonecard collection as a hobby in Brazil

Abstract

Phonecards have been collected as a hobby by Brazilian people with a peak in the number of collectors (around 300 thousand people) from 1994 to the beginning of the 2010s. The objective of this study was to report the revival of phonecard collection as a hobby in Brazil through estimating the number of collectors and other associated parameters from April to June 2021. The number of phonecard collectors was evaluated on Facebook groups for each Brazilian State and the Federal District (Brasília) on 16 April, 5 May and 5 June 2021. The number of phonecard collection groups on Facebook from other countries was also evaluated. The number of Brazilian groups was 44 and of members, 81,104 in the last assessment date on 5 June 2021, being the country with the highest number of collectors. In thirteen Brazilian States and the Federal District (Brasília), most of the groups (10) had been opened for around 10 years. Italy had the second highest number of phonecard collectors. The revival of phonecard collection as a hobby in Brazil is clear. This revival is suggested to be associated with the attractive images pictured on phonecards, financial condition of the collectors and locations where they live as well as an increase in the number of hours spent with recreational activities at home.

Keywords

• collector
• facebook group
• fusilatelist
• nelson guilherme bardini
• telebras system
• telephone