being charged $42.55 for a six-minute telephone call. On November 1, 2016 Viiz Communications, a Canadian company, announced they had acquired 1-800-COLLECT for an undisclosed amount. Marketing 1-800-COLLECT advertising did not mention its connection to MCI in order to avoid confusion from persons who might otherwise believe they had to be MCI customers to use the service, as well as to attract AT&T "loyalists" disinclined to patronize an MCI service. In 1994, 1-800-COLLECT became one of the first six brands to use banner ads as part of a marketing campaign, purchasing a flight of ads on hotwired.com. Beginning in 1994, MCI sponsored airshow pilot Sean D. Tucker under the 1-800-COLLECT brand. Tucker's biplane regularly appeared at military and civilian airshows throughout North America for several years, later transitioning to the 10-10-220 brand under MCI until the program ended in 2000. The service's heavy spend on television advertising made 1-800-COLLECT ads, which featured celebrities including Phil Hartman, Wayne Knight, Mr. T, and Arsenio Hall, a ubiquitous feature of the 1990s TV landscape in the United States. In 2000, 1-800-COLLECT was being promoted with more than $160 million in annual advertising support by MCI. References External links Official website. MCI Communications Telephone numbers in the United States Telecommunications-related introductions in 1993