MyVoIPnews

Advanced in Mali

Advanced VoIP Ltd. this weekend announced its successful deployment of its VoIP solution for billing at Sotelma, the national telecommunications company of Mali. United American Corp. partnered in the implementation, which provided Sotelma a complete billing solution for their VoIP solution.

Based in Bamako, Sotelma provides local telephony, international telephony, internet service and mobile telephone service in Mali. United American Corp, Inc. is a facilities-based, marketing and sales-oriented telecommunications holding company. UAC is a business partner and reseller of AVPL.

Founded in 1999, AVPL boasts three product categories: Advanced Enterprise Solution catering for small- to medium-sized operators; Carrier Grade Interconnect Billing Solution catering for long distance and international operators; and Carrier Grade Advanced Retail Customer Care and Billing Solution for medium- to large-sized operators. AVPL products are used in telecom applications including those of voice, data, VoIP, and multiple-play for WiFi, WiMax, call shops, CLECs, WLL/LL operators around the world. AVPL has installed over 300 systems in 41 countries.

Cease fire in Bangladeshi VoIP war?

Could Bangladesh finally be turning the cover in its VoIP wars? The news has been remarkably absent of material regarding the strike force known as the Rapid Action Battalion, and this weekend has seen Bangladesh media report only on legislative activities.

The Daily Star and The New Nation online versions ran stories on the government’s Council of Advisers requesting “specific and comprehensive guidelines” for VoIP so that carriers may legally exist within the country.

Three ministries have been tasked with creating the new rules: Science and ICT; Information; and Post and Telecommunications. The ministries have been advised to consider VoIP operations in neighboring countries when formulating the plan, which should be submitted “as soon as possible.”

The last major salvo fired in the government’s crackdown on illegal VoIP business came at the beginning of this month, when the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) filed a case accusing private mobile phone operator Aktel of “running illegal voice over internet protocol business and depriving the government of a huge revenue.”

The motion was filed after Rab officers busted Aktel. The Rab rounded up “sophisticated equipment used for running voice over internet protocol business illegally” from Aktel offices in Gulshan.

Officials reported to press that the devices rounded up in the bust could be worth Taka 1.8 billion (approximately $26.1 million) per year.

IP legislation in the works

On The Hill, the relevant news item of the week was the Senate Commerce Committee’s new legislation to extend liability and other provisions of the 1999 wireless enhanced 911 act to Internet Protocol voice communications.

The measure would grant IP-enabled voice providers right of access to essential 911 components comparable to the rights of access accorded mobile phone carriers and would also clarify the right of states and localities to impose 911 fees on IP-enabled voice services providers for use of E911, or other public safety purposes.

The legislation would direct the E911 Implementation Coordination Office to develop and report to Congress on a national plan for migrating to an IP-enabled emergency network within 180 days of the bill’s enactment.

“When it comes to public safety and services like E911, we must always strive to do better,” said Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), who old-school politics junkies may remember from the Iran-Contra Investigation days or even the times of the Senate Watergate Committee (now, that’s old school).

“When lives are on the line, first responders need location information that is as accurate as possible. The IP-Enabled Voice Communications and Public Safety Act would ensure that first responders receive accurate information, which would, without a doubt, save lives.”

New meaning to the term “Net provider”

Uh oh: Here’s a message to suppliers of inadequate business VoIP: You now may be replaced. IP5280 Communications, dubbed as “Colorado's business VoIP specialists,” announced its "Safety Net Program." The program carries a mission statement of trying to sway businesses who “are dissatisfied with their current internet phone service provider.

In the announcement, IP5280 revealed further than who the program is really targeting are (ahem) Vonage customers. The thinly-veiled shot ascribed the desire for the program as “In light of the recently announced patent infringement disputes surrounding Voice over Internet Protocol technology and the financial instability riddling both national and Colorado Internet phone providers…”

As part of the Safety Net Program, IP5280 is waiving its standard $49 per user activation fee and is offering the IP5280 Installation Guarantee which ensures a business VoIP installation in five days. IP5280 also reported a 22 percent increase in the first quarter of 2007 from Colorado business users.

Cue superhero music. "We have rescued businesses throughout Colorado, including Summitcove.com of Golden, Goff Capital of Englewood and M Inc. of Denver, who have been overwhelmed by the poor service quality and concerned by the long-term viability of their current VoIP provider," said IP5280 co-founder/managing partner John Scarborough.

“Who was that masked man?”

“I don’t know, but he left us this swell new business VoIP solution.”

“Wow…”

Inter-MiTel?

IP communications company Mitel Networks Corp. and Inter-Tel this week announced the former’s plans to acquire the latter for $732 million. The combined private company is figured to support the Mitel and Inter-Tel brands and bring in about $800 million in annual revenue. Mitel’s current figures show that the company currently draws about $400 million a year.

No announcement was made regarding potential lay-offs.

Mitel strategists hope “the deal will create a company better positioned to target the growing demand for Internet Protocol communications products in the small- and medium-size business sector.”

The acquisition was largely about adding scale and incremental research and development capabilities to Mitel, Mitel CEO Don Smith remarked. Mitel will now shelve its IPO plans “because the combination will help it achieve the next step in its growth plans.”

Mitel designs, markets and sells communications products including PBX systems, IP integrated communications products, network management software, and telephones. Inter-Tel sells business VoIP platforms, managed communications services and converged IP PBX products.

The deal is subject to the approval of both companies’ boards, Inter-Tel stockholders and regulatory groups. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter.

Vonage’s good week

It’s been a while since Vonage had a good week but in light of the company’s recent legal troubles, this one should qualify.

The week saw the launch of Vonage’s grassroots communications campaign, of course. Loftily dubbed “Free to Compete,” the Vonagers hope to “educate and mobilize consumers about preserving the freedom to choose their phone service provider.” Especially a certain VoIP solution provider that starts with a “V,” eh?

Upon announcing the PR blitz, Vonage was able to take a swipe at their archrival, stating that “Verizon has pursued litigation against Vonage in an effort to achieve in court what it cannot achieve in the marketplace” while reminding that “Vonage today has 2.4 million subscriber lines, while Verizon has just 15,000 retail VoIP customers, according to court filings.”

Vonage has reason to show a little braggado, though, as the VoIP solution provider finally got a break in court; and o what a break it was…

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington D.C. on Tuesday issued Vonage a permanent stay of a previous court’s injunction that would have barred it from signing up new customers.

Vonage sought the stay following an April 6th decision by the U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va. enjoining the company from using certain VoIP technology to add new customers based on Verizon’s claim that said technology represented copyright infringement.

“We thank the appellate court for its thoughtful consideration of the merits of our case,” politely said Jeffrey Citron, Vonage chairman and interim chief executive officer. “It’s business as usual for us,” he continued and if you believe that, well, perhaps you’re the guy buying the company’s stock.

Vonage’s current plan calls for the company to pay into escrow a quarterly royalty of 5.5 percent throughout the appeals process and by posting a $66 million bond required by the court.

“We believe the original verdict was based on an erroneous claim construction, meaning the patents in this case were defined in an overly broad and legally unprecedented way,” said the oft-quoted Sharon O’Leary, Vonage’s executive vice president, chief legal officer and secretary. “We are confident this error will be rectified by the appeals court, which hears intellectual property cases exclusively. As a result, we remain highly confident Vonage will prevail on appeal.”

The “Free to Compete” campaign includes newspaper advertisements, letters to Vonage customers and the website FreeToCompete.com, at which you can follow the exciting legal action. (With slightly biased reporting, naturally.)

So Vonage had a good week. How was yours?

La VoIP solution

Thomson today announced that it has been selected by SFR, the second-largest mobile operator in France, to provide a comprehensive broadband VoIP solution for SFR’s residential mobile-centric strategy. Thomson is deploying and integrating its Cirpack VoIP softswitch with SFR’s existing infrastructure to manage primary line telephony services.

Said the folks at Thomson: “This major project further reinforces Thomson’s leadership in the fast growing market of comprehensive VoIP solutions, IPTV solutions, and interactive broadband services, which allow operators to converge into a global IMS architecture.”

Earlier this year, SFR deployed Thomson’s Cirpack VoIP softswitch to offer enterprise users Mobile IP Centrex services fixed-mobile convergence.

Runnin’ Rebtel

VoIP telephony provider Rebtel Inc. today announced its new pricing program for use by mobile phone users to 37 countries.

Rebtel members are entitled to ten free international calls every month free of charge. Additional calls are charged at two to twenty cents per minute thereafter. A call from the United States to Mexico or a U.K. landline costs 2 cents per minute.

To sign up for Rebtel, check out the homepage.

More VoIP numbers!

You know how you call tell there’s such expansive growth in the business VoIP universe? When statistical reportage on VoIP business and the business of VoIP becomes a cottage industry in and of itself.

To wit, today saw release of the report not-so-concisely entitled “SMB Interest Perks Up In Hosted VoIP: North America hosted VoIP forecast outlook, needs assessment and positioning implications” from Access Market International Partners.

So, let’s roll the numbers! Study authors figure that:

• The North America small- and medium-sized business segment for hosted business VoIP will reach $416 million this year, up just a wee bit from approximately $165 million in 2005.

• Between 2005 and 2010, cumulative growth rate reach or surpass 56.9 percent.

• The small business VoIP segment is forecasted to grow at a 69 percent on a cumulative basis for the next five years.

On this point, AMI-Partners vice president for SMB infrastructure solutions Sanjeev Aggarwal says, “The concept of hosted VoIP is analogous to software-as-a-service, where upstarts like Salesforce.com and NetSuite are gaining rapid adoption. Similarly, the concept of voice communications as a service is becoming very appealing as these small businesses have almost no IT/voice communications expertise and resources.”

Key findings in the study include:

• North American SMB hosted VoIP market spending was $164.9 million in 2005 and will surpass $1.56 billion by 2010, at a compound annual growth rate of 56.8 percent.

• Hosted VoIP installed seats in the North America SMB market are forecasted to rise from 393,967 in 2006 to about 3 million seats by year 2010.

• The market penetration of hosted VoIP seats will increase from less than 2 percent in 2006 to over 7 percent by 2010, a compound annual growth rate of 65 percent.

• The adoption of hosted VoIP will be particularly high in companies with 10-50 employees.

• Last year, the leading vendors (based on seats) were Covad Communications, XO Communications, Packet8, Cbeyond, and M5 Networks.

More In-Stat stats

In-Stat’s got more numbers on Voice over Internet Protocol technology, business VoIP, VoIP providers, business VoIP providers, everything in between and cable companies.

This week, In-Stat reports in “The Worldwide Market for Cable Telephony Services” that VoIP has proven to be the key market enabler for cable telephony services and subscriber growth. In fact, say In-Stat stats, increasing availability of VoIP solutions and services in North America was directly responsible for an almost two-fold increase in the number of subscribers during 2006.

Research by In-Stat found that:

• Worldwide cable telephony subscribers increased to over 22 million in 2006, up from 15.8 million in 2005.

• Cable telephony service revenues are projected to reach $10.4 billion in 2007, up from $7.9 billion in 2006. North America will account for two-thirds of the worldwide service revenues in 2007.

• In a few countries, the number of VoIP-based cable telephony subscribers has already exceeded the number of circuit-switched cable telephony subscribers. In the US, there are over 6.6 million VoIP subscribers and 2.8 million circuit-switched subscribers.

• Cable telephony’s growth spurt in the US market has been a relatively recent phenomenon; 42 percent of all US cable telephony subscribers signed up for the service during the past twelve months.