MR. NUMBER

Mr. Number develops apps for smartphones that give consumers more control over who can call them and when. First, Mr. Number aims to bring users more calls and texts from people they like by letting them share availability or status with their friends. Second, the app tells users who is calling when the number is not in their mobile contacts (Caller ID). Finally, Mr. Number block calls and texts from people and companies that users don't want to hear from again. The base application is fre... e and the company charges for Caller ID service and reverse lookup. Customers pay between $1.99 and $9.99 per month depending on the platform and level of service. The data for both Caller ID and automatic blocking of problem callers is crowd-sourced. Users can report telemarketers and the like immediately after a call, and Mr. Number also tracks unusual patterns of calls and texts to users to identify spammers. Some users allow Mr. Number to look up unknown numbers in their mobile contacts on behalf of all other users, in exchange for free Caller ID. The company claims 2 million users across iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry smartphones.More