STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep. You may place a phone call to France, even if you don't know anybody there. France copied a service first launched by Sweden. You pick up the phone, and you're connected with a French volunteer, as promised in this ad.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Just take your phone, dial the number, and in a matter of seconds, you'll actually be talking to [expletive] French. Oops, pardon my French.

INSKEEP: There's no assurance the French volunteer will be as charming as the woman in the ad, but you can ask anything about France. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.