118800.co.uk - where are you?

Remember the controversial online directory for mobile phone numbers? That's right, the one that promised to give you the opportunity to contact the mobile phone of anyone over the age of 18 in the UK and leave a message asking them to get back in touch with you, all for £1.

When it launched, people rushed to the 118800.co.uk site - according to figures from Nielsen Netratings it had around two million unique visitors in July 2009 - but most of the visitors, it seemed, were simply there to get their number taken off the directory.

Emails circulating around the time of the launch expressed concerns over privacy, saying that it could be used to stalk individuals or for unwanted marketing approaches.

Though the way the system works actually meant that no mobile phone number would ever be passed on without consent, I can understand the clamour to get numbers removed. If someone I don't want contacting me used the service, sent me a message that I didn't respond to and then I bumped into them in the street, how would I explain that?

I actually managed to get my number taken out of the directory for the short period of time that the site was actually online. However, the service was suspended on 10 July and we're now two full months on. Initially we were told that
the service was closed to "improve customer service". Just how long does this take exactly?

Did the sheer volume of people trying to get their number off the directory break the system, perhaps? Or are there privacy issues that need to be addressed before it can relaunch?

However, we've just learned that 118800.co.uk is on the "brink of relaunch", according to a spokesman, and there have been "substantial changes made based on consumer feedback". We'll hopefully be talking to 118800.co.uk at greater length very soon, so watch this space...