The Vonage Mobile softclient has been kicking around for a while and is already available on the iPhone, BlackBerry and iPod touch devices (with the iPad no [...]]]>

Vonage (www.vonage.com) has announced that it has rolled out its Vonage Mobile offering/service to AT&T and T-Mobile Android devices… so what about those other (Verizon, Sprint) devices?

The Vonage Mobile softclient has been kicking around for a while and is already available on the iPhone, BlackBerry and iPod touch devices (with the iPad no doubt about 5 minutes away).  The softclient enables discounted international calling over WiFi and cellualr networks, as well as free domestic calls via WiFi.

Customers can choose between the Vonage World Mobile plan, which includes unlimited international calling to more than 60 countries, or a Vonage Mobile Pay-Per-Use plan; it provides savings of “more than 50 percent” compared to rates charged by wireless carriers for calls to a bunch of companies.

In addition to saving money, the app has the users’ existing contact list and uses the existing cell phone number so call recipients will recognize who is calling.

Vonage says the service will have custmers more than 50 percent on calls to [...]]]>

After plenty of foreshadowing statements on earnings conference calls, Vonage has released Vonage Mobile, a free downloadable application for low-cost international calling on smartphones.  The app is said to provide “seamless” low-cost international calling while on Wi-Fi or cellular networks.

Vonage says the service will have custmers more than 50 percent on calls to “dozens” of counties as compared to rates charged by wireless carriers — and no calling cards required.  Vonage Mobile will be available for download on the iPhone, iPod touch, and BlackBerry and features include the ability to use an existing contact list for click-and-dial, using the existing clel phone number for caller ID identification, and real time balance updates.

By the end of the year, Vonage says it will enhance the app to include the Vonage World plan initially intro’ed for home service in August, giving mobile customers to make unlimited calls to over 60 countries for one flat monthly fee.

While the concept of a mobile app to make long distance calls sounds “old,” Vonage is the largest independent carrier/ITSP to load up the concept and cooperation with Apple to make the app available through the Apple app store implies that Vonage has played nicely (i.e. maybe some sort of recurring revenue) with Apple.

Be interesting to hear the field reports once the app is more widely deployed.

Doug Makishima, one of the hardest working guys in the biz, has been promoted to COO and will also be acting head of D2′s new Mobile and Personal Communications Business Unit (MPCBU).  Asian-based Paul Wu [...]]]>

In a sign that life is good, IP communications “stack” provider D2 Technologies has split into two business units.

Doug Makishima, one of the hardest working guys in the biz, has been promoted to COO and will also be acting head of D2′s new Mobile and Personal Communications Business Unit (MPCBU).  Asian-based Paul Wu has been promoted to VP of the Fixed Access Business Unit (FABU… yes, there is a joke in here somewhere…)

You can find D2′s software on a bunch of mobile platforms, including Android.  Back in May, D2 said its vPort software was processing 40 billion minutes of VoIP traffic per month.

My opinion of GigaOm tends to ebb and flow; right now it’s pretty ebbed.  Today’s “news” is the “discovery” — bootstrapped off of a Gadgetell post — that Vonage is working on a rolling out a smartphone app/mobile VoIP [...]]]>

“The Force can have a strong influence on the weak-minded.” Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars.

My opinion of GigaOm tends to ebb and flow; right now it’s pretty ebbed.  Today’s “news” is the “discovery” — bootstrapped off of a Gadgetell post — that Vonage is working on a rolling out a smartphone app/mobile VoIP client to allow its customers to get cheap minutes.

THIS. IS. NOT. NEW.NEWS. For shame!

Vonage has talked about this product for the last two earnings calls, and @Vonage_Voice/Michael Zema — who seems to be strong with the Force, in spite of some of his shilly tweets — was talking about about a Vonage smartphone app/cheap international voice minutes in mid-June, underlining what was said in the two conference call about Vonage working on new products to leverage their existing network.

*sigh*

I suppose it IS a slow news week, especially if you don’t want to write about security issues at Black Hat and DEFCON this week.

Where the Business Week “gets it”–

1) Google’s ubiqulity and many [...]]]>

As I noted last week, Google Voice is going to make life difficult for Skype — not traditional carriers.  Business Week seems to be in line with my general thinking in a piece out this morning — but gets confused on the details.

Where the Business Week “gets it”–

1) Google’s ubiqulity and many many linked-together apps will drag Google Voice into the picture

2) Google will compete with Skype for SMB dollars and long distance dialing dollars.
Where Business Week doesn’t get it–

1) Implying that Google Voice will be more than a SMB alternative to replace Cisco and Microsoft offerings. NOT.  SMB hosted is different than the larger enterprise offerings that Cisco and Microsoft have out.

2) Implying that GV – a FMC-esque app if you have multiple numbers all over the place — challenges Truphone and Jajah’s revenue  in the mobile VoIP space. Truphone has the whole SIM card play so I think they’re OK.  Jajah runs VoIP calling for other companies, so I don’t see them taking a big hit here…

The Goog was brainwashing, showing off its latest Google Voice apps to Om Malik yesterday, with Google Voice service for BlackBerry and Android clients available.  Integration with GV and address book, cheap long [...]]]>

Forget all this crap about Google Voice being “your next phone company.” It’s Skype that is going to have some issues.

The Goog was brainwashing, showing off its latest Google Voice apps to Om Malik yesterday, with Google Voice service for BlackBerry and Android clients available.  Integration with GV and address book, cheap long distance calls, yadda-yadda.

I should have seen the Android client coming; that was a no brain, brothers… but the BlackBerry client should be a wakeup call to a lot of people.  Skype’s been working on a BlackBerry phone client for a while, but it ain’t available for download today as a beta.   Since Skype wants to collect business dollars and CrackBlackBerry is the de facto favorite of the biz community, there is a serious hole in the portfolio, hmm? Be interesting to hear why all the delays in a Skype for BlackBerry client. Heck, even Agito Networks has a FMC client for BlackBerry!

Now, let’s talk about pre-loading apps on cell phones, shall we? Skype has been fighting with carriers to get its app pre-loaded on phones with mixed success, but the company has been relatively quiet of late in stomping its feet about open networks and net neutrality.   If you buy an Android phone, having the mobile GV client included as a part of the load would seem to be a natural fit if the carrier allows — and if it doesn’t, it looks like the first or second app an Android fan boy would download to complement his shiny-new ‘droid phone. True, Skype is preloaded on more cellular platforms around the world these days, but not a Lot More.

Given that Google is more “open” than Skype on software matters and has a MUCH BIGGER market cap than Skype, when Google goes up to lobby about open networks and net neutrality, legislators are likely to pay more attention.

Finally, there’s the whole momentum/integration thing going on, whereas Skype is a one-trick (communications) pony. You have Google, the Search Engine, plus Gmail, plus Google Voice, plus Android, plus all the other beta stuff floating around. Put together gmail, the search engine, and Google Voice, plus the small-but-growing Android installed base and there’s a good chunk of critical mass right there.

Will this displace Skype? Well, not today certainly, but if GV rolls in some quick and dirty Twitter support — and it will, because Google has no problem playing with others when it suits its master plan — one might start to see some cracks in Skype’s walled-garden approach to the world.  Software can come off phones and computers (well, just get forgotten) as easily as it can be loaded.

The comapny currently has the largest documented HD deployment in the world having sold over 400,000 HD handsets to a VoIP customer base of around [...]]]>

Going over my notes from the HD Communications Summit last month, it is instructive to look at the European carrier most bullish on HD voice — France Telecom (FT).

The comapny currently has the largest documented HD deployment in the world having sold over 400,000 HD handsets to a VoIP customer base of around 6 million users in France — that’s about a 7 percent penetration rate at last report, but the numbers will continue to grow moving forward for a number of reasons. For one thing, HD calls are charged/billed the same as regular phone calls.  Any FT VoIP customer who buys an HD handset automatically gets HD service, with no activation required.

And HD support is being “baked in” to handsets of all shapes and sizes.  Last month Cisco reportedly was adding G.722 support to the firmware on its flagship small business handset.  Ooma is putting G.722 in its handsets for the home (OK, so ooma isn’t in France yet, but give them time) and other manufacturers are joining the HD voice club.

FT turned up HD over VoIP in its home territory (i.e. France) in 2006, and has continued to expand its HD footprint across its territories.  Spain began getting HD handsets for VoIP in the first quarter of 2009 while the UK and Belgium are getting mobile HD service.  As the third largest mobile operator in Europe, FT serves 123 million customers — there are a lot of customers to upgrade to HD out there.

According to FT’s research, voice quality is a key criteria when choosing a VoIP or mobile service.  Half of VoIP users would change providers (Vonage: Take note here) to get better voice quality.  In addition, 30 percent of non-VoIP users would siwtch to VoIP if it had voice quality akin to face-to-face communication.  Finally, customers want “mobile with the quality of a fixed line.”

FT says HD voice has had a positive impact upon retention; in other words, they are keeping customers, rather than watching them leave to cheaper alternatives.

Michael Zema, one of Vonage’s PR guys,  outlined [...]]]>

Last month,  some folks believed Vonage’s “sounds good” campaign indicated the company was going to roll out a wideband service.  I went to the horse’s (or is it bird’s?) mouth: Vonage_Voice on Twitter and received confirmation that HD is not in the company’s near future plans.

Michael Zema, one of Vonage’s PR guys,  outlined the same game plan that came out of the company’s conference call last month:  A smartphone app to enable the use of Vonage service to dial international numbers at low rates using either cellular or Wi-Fi networks,  enhancing the core service with features currently offered at a premium for now additional cost, and better integration of voice and messaging services across all devices.

Virtual numbers — an old trick in the VoIP world, a newer one for Vonage and Verizon Business — also got underlined.  Vonage currently offers virtual numbers in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, UK, France, Ireland and Spain ranging from $4.99-$9.99 per month for both small business and residential customers.  Reading between the lines, Vonage will likely add on more countries to the virtual numbers list by the end of the year.

Michael also said Vonage was not working with Digium’s Switchvox IP PBX solution at this time.  If Vonage does offer SIP trunking for the SMB community, it might be nice to have a piece of CPE to offer customers on-premise functionality that doesn’t require a fully hosted solution.  (Yes, I know this upsets the “Host it all, and rake in the bucks!” of the Hosted VoIP community, but there will be businesses/vertical markets that require customized solutions going beyond vanilla hosted VoIP).

Digium’s Switchvox is one of two or three solutions in the marketplace that provides an open API for customization and sufficient features for the typical SMB.  As Digium’s VAR relationships start picking up steam, I think you should see more Switchvox/SIP trunking bundles; MegaPath and Digium made such an announcement at the end of May.

Exactly what Natural gets [...]]]>

Natural Convergence has bought fellow Canadian company NewStep Networks.  Natural gets the ability to integrate NewStep’s fixed mobile convergence (FMC) solution with its silhouette hosted VoIP software application. Terms of the deal weren’t announced, so this was most likely either a stock deal or a stock and a little cash.

Exactly what Natural gets in the deal from the Toronto-based company other than a name brand, code, and some customers isn’t clear. NewStep has FMC deployments in North America, Europe and Asia claims the press release, but the company effectively disappeared off the radar after NXTComm ’08 (June 2008).  NewStep President/CEO Peter Vicars tried to shift the company away from a message of FMC into a world of “anytime, anywhere” communications and “service convergence” but that message went silent.

Natural now gets to integrate a FMC solution into its hosted offering.  Other independent FMC/mobile UC companies have built partnerships with larger players, such as DiVitas Networks working with Avaya and waving its flag at the AT&T developer conference.