Voice of the People

Posted: 11/2003

Voice of the People
Partners Push IP Telephony Into Mainstream
By Tara Seals

VoIP is cheaper and niftier than plain old telephone service, and finally is gaining traction in the mainstream markets. Many providers are asking channel partners to keep the momentum going.

Increasingly, medium-sized to large enterprises are turning to IP-based voice services, says Tom Valovic, program director for IP telephony at IDC. In general, the drivers for this are often tied to cost savings, he says. The market is prepared to embrace managed voice services that eliminate capital outlay, reduce operating expenses and complexity, and deliver the advanced functionality and flexibility inherent in IP-based services.

That advanced functionality available with VoIP includes unified messaging, e-mail integration and other whiz-bang features that appeal to busy executives looking to drive efficiencies. For instance, SAVVIS Communications Inc. just rolled out a suite of fully managed, network-based voice application services for this market, available via the companys channel partners. Besides the ability to make calls, the service includes voice mail, 800 services, virtual PBX, auto-attendant/interactive voice response, fax, conference calling, mobility integration, business continuity services and other options. End users can customize their messaging services on the fly, at a Web portal.

The outsourced voice application allows companies to implement new voice networks or expand existing environments without capital investment, and will lower maintenance, licensing and operating costs, says the company.

Taking a slightly different track, Volo Communications Inc., which markets its services via agents and resellers, has begun offering unlimited calling with enhanced features, high-speed Internet access, VPN services and other voice and data services via the local cable access network, on a trial basis, to Florida consumers and business customers. The suite of new products includes high-speed cable Internet access, corporate and residential video streaming services, virtual private networks for telecommuting employees and remote offices, storage and data recovery services and local/long-distance calling.

The ... mission is all about empowering service providers and customers of all types to finally reap the inherent benefits of packet communications technologies, says Shawn Lewis, Caerus president and CEO. Cable companies, ISPs and other service providers can offer these services to their customers through our Volo Communications subsidiary without having to go to the expense of upfront investments, costly pre-certifications and lengthy systems integrations.

Like other offers, customers have full control over their choice of features, which can be changed as needed through a Web-based interface. Customers will be able to perform online account management, including Web-based voice mail retrieval, and view account activity.

Another growth area for VoIP is the residential market, where VoIP is being positioned as the service of the people, the common folk: It represents the opportunity, flexibility and freedom of choice Americans have come to expect. Another rationale: Why pay the local incumbent vast quantities of your hardearned cash for the same calls you make for pennies on the dollar?

Volo also offers unlimited residential local and long-distance VoIP services and enhanced calling features. For $25 per month, customers can buy a package of local and long distance with voice mail, call waiting, call forwarding, caller ID, three-way calling, repeat dialing, call transfer, caller ID block and virtual phone numbers. The services are accessible from a standard PC, telephone or IP phone. Volo Communications also allows customers to select their own area codes or keep their current numbers.

In addition, theglobe.com Inc.s new voiceglo service offers two basic VoIP plans: voicegloSaver for $12.99 per month and voicegloUnlimited for $32.99 per month. Both plans offer no additional charges for local calling or for longdistance calls between voiceglo subscribers. Calls to non-subscribers in the United States and Canada are 3 cents per minute with voicegloSaver, while voicegloUnlimited lets subscribers place calls anywhere in the United States and Canada for no additional fees.

voiceglo includes traditional features like voice mail, call waiting, caller ID, three-way calling and call return (*69), and enhanced features such as voice2email, Web directory services, Web-based account management and real-time call activity. Users can use a broadband Internet connection with their existing phones and a voiceglo adapter. Alternatively, they can also use voiceglos USB phone, free with sign up, with an Internet-connected PC or laptop, dial-up or broadband.

By allowing customers to choose between their existing phones and our advanced USB phone, we provide flexibility that consumers have never experienced before with a local or long-distance phone service, says Michael Egan, chairman and CEO of theglobe.com.

theglobe.com launched its voiceglo agent program Aug. 15. We are looking for partners who understand the new technology that is out there today, especially VoIP, and who are eager to cash in on this new revenue opportunity, says Ted Mooney, voiceglos marketing director. The products will carry a residual income for individual sales, plus a bonus pool distribution based on hitting certain goals each month. The company is, however, limiting its distribution network to a select number.

Though its been around since the mid-1990s, VoIP until recently did not enjoy widespread support among average Americans. Acceptance was slow because of concerns about voice quality and technology readiness, issues since addressed in a variety of ways. Volo, for instance, uses its private IP backbone network for service, which offers MPLS services between switches.

Part of it also may be blamed on pop culture: People who remember when telegrams were common have a tough time accepting that their teenage sons Internet gaming buddies are halfway around the world. However, statistics show reluctance to be eroding. Frost & Sullivan predicts significant growth is set to occur after this year as the pace of actual, full-scale uptake and replacement starts escalating.

Accordingly, Primus Telecommunications Group Inc. has rolled out a VoIP product for its agent partners to sell to the enterprise and consumer markets. PC-to-Phone allows customers to call any domestic, international or mobile number directly from their computers, while also surfing the Internet. It is also one of the preferred global IP telephony providers for users of Microsoft Messenger.

PRIMUS PC-to-Phone makes money for agents 24-7, says a Primus spokeswoman. Through a link on agents Web sites to the PC-to-Phone online order form, site visitors can sign up for the service, and agents are automatically credited with the sale.

As for the future, the promise of convergence doesnt end with VoIP. [IP telephony] will open up a whole new world of convergent services for consumers and business alike, says Volos Lewis. True convergence should apply to networks of all types, Internet, intranets, telephony, cable and more, not just the technologies that provision them.