TRACNotes, a publication of the consumer watchdog Telecommunications Research and Action Center, gives a favorable review to a new company that provides free directory assistance and long distance calling when connecting through their directory assistance. Businesses can also pay a fee to have the consumer connected to them when the caller asks for a specific type of business.

A new service called 1-800-FREE411 which launched last week could make paying for directory assistance a thing of the past. What’s more, by letting the service connect you (again, free of charge), consumers can make long distance calls for free, according to the company. Sound too good to be true? It may not be, if you are willing to sit through a 10 second ad. The service is funded not by consumers paying to access it, as with conventional directory assistance, but by companies that pay to have callers hear their ads while they wait for listings. Read the full review