Reservationless conferencing is a term that applies to two different kinds of conference calling programs. The first is a typical third-party conference call provider which allows for last minute conference call scheduling. The second is a company which doesn't operate so much as a conference organizer, but more as a provider of dedicated lines which multiple users can dial into, anytime of day.

The Two Types of "Reservationless" Conference Calls

With the first type, "reservationless" conference calls would still require making a call to the conference call company to request a line and pass code. Reservationless, in this case, means that the request for a line wasn't made a day or so in advance, but rather 10 or 15 minutes prior to the conference call. These companies may actually charge more than their regular rate for this on-the-fly scheduling.

The second type refers to companies which assign individuals a dedicated conference line for a period of time. The number remains the same for the duration of the "contract", be it a month or a year. Team members are given the phone number, and a pass code, which allows them to patch in to conference calls anytime of day, any day of the week. These systems can often handle over 90 individual team members at a time, for periods up to six hours in length.

This second type of service is typically completely automated. You won't get a friendly, capable operator on the line asking, "How may I help you?" However, the money one can save with this kind of operation may make even the grumpiest project leader a happy camper.