eurovoip

Why you shouldn't do business with Lloyds Business

2008-02-18T16:35:00.002+01:00

The friendly people at Lloyds Business a UK VoIP outfit have been comment spamming this blog and most likely other blogs as well. The seemingly innocent comment goes like this "Kept hearing people talk about Voip and IP Telephony. Didn't know what it was but i found the Lloyds Business website and it shed some light. Not as exciting as i though it was gonna be" but is littered with links to the

Sipcat 1.2 is here

2007-06-05T12:22:00.001+02:00

I can't believe I haven't posted on this blog since our first release of the software over ten months ago. Time flies, because I can proudly announce our first major update to our VoIP software. I will continue blogging on our company blog. Hope to see you there.

Launching Sipcat IP telephony software

2006-08-02T01:21:00.000+02:00

After just a year, we are proud to announce our Sipcat IP Telephony Software. The software, which can be downloaded from the site as an .iso file, contains a complete Linux distribution, web server, database, VoIP PBX and a web management interface.You can download Sipcat and give it a try using our free license for up to 4 users. This license is not otherwise limited in time or functionality.

VoIP features expected in Apple's Leopard

2006-06-30T09:46:00.000+02:00

Software engineers at Apple Computer have been toiling away on a new set of features that will allow users of its next-generation Mac OS X operating system to place phone calls over their Internet connection, AppleInsider has learned. People familiar with recent builds of the software say voice over IP (VoIP) Internet dialing is just one of several new features in iChat 4.0, which Apple is

taking up blogging (again)

2006-06-10T13:03:00.000+02:00

It's been over 4 months since i posted anything new on this blog, and that's a shame really. I guess this isn't my first apologetic post about not updating this blog, but over time I have renewed my interest in maintaining it.The past few months (more like a year actually), we've been working hard on a completely renewed version of our Packetbox VoIP PBX. This time around it is completely

20% of UK business have adopted VoIP

2006-02-12T19:48:00.000+01:00

According to telecommunications and software consulting company Ovum, about 20% of British businesses have already adopted VoIP technology, about the same percentage as in the USA. Number two in Europe, is Italy, just short of 20%. What's interesting to see is that more companies are citing other benefits than telecommunication costs as reasons for them to switch to Voice over IP technology.

Wanadoo's VoIP service falls over

2006-02-02T23:23:00.000+01:00

Wanadoo, which claims to be the UK's largest VoIP outfit with more than 80,000 users, has apologised to punters after its broadband telephony service went on the blink. Its Wireless & Talk VoIP product went titsup on Tuesday morning resulting in calls from landlines or mobiles being unable to connect to Wanadoo's internet telephony service.Technorati Tags: wanadoo,

VoIP as denial of service coverup solution?

2006-01-29T18:07:00.000+01:00

The latest flurry of articles regarding VoIP being used by cyber criminals to cover their traces doesn't stop to irritate me. What a bunch of nonsense. Apparently a group of researchers at the UK's Cambridge University and USA's MIT have published a study, indicating how easy it would be for 'hackers' to cover up their traces using Voice over IP protocols. Traditionally, 'hackers' use IRC or -

European VoIP demand booming

2006-01-25T17:14:00.000+01:00

The demand for VoIP solutions is booming according to vendor Shoretel. They recently set up offices in Madrid, Munich and a reseller partnership in Benelux to support their European expansion. An interesting viewpoint in the article: "The nature of Europe, as a set of countries that need to work together and interoperate on standards just to conduct business, lends itself to coming together

Skype battles to stay ahead

2006-01-24T21:32:00.000+01:00

Skype contributed a modest 25 million dollars to parent E-Bay's total net revenue of 1.5 billion dollars according to recent published results. The number of registered users skyrocketed in the last quarter of 2005 from 52 million to 74.7 million. Yet Skype is still battling to stay ahead:"Skype is going to be challenged by a host of others, by services that live independently of the PC," said

Google Opens IM, VoIP Services

2006-01-23T02:36:00.000+01:00

This is great news, I thought they were already pretty open regarding the technology they're using. But it seems Google has taken it up a notch and now allows anyone that supports XMPP to connect to their platform. It will be interesting to see how this impacts Googles popularity and that of the other big three players (Microsoft, Yahoo, Skype)Google Inc. has opened it instant messaging and

Interview with Mark Spencer

2006-01-13T10:24:00.000+01:00

A little over a year ago I posted an interview Sineapps had with Mark Spencer (creator of Asterisk). Yesterday, OSdir posted a little more substantial interview with Spencer.Telcom just doesn't have the same barriers to entry. It's a lot easier for Asterisk to get in. There is no single ubiquitous platform that everybody uses for their telephony. And people already have some understanding of

Dual mode GSM/WiFi phone

2006-01-06T11:53:00.000+01:00

If 2004 was the year of the cameraphone, and 2005 the year of the musicphone, I hope 2006 will be the year of the dual-mode VoIP phones. I'm sure this will drive the adoption of VoIP technology among people to new heights. Although it seems that most models will only offer WiFi as a means to connect to your provider, it's definitely a start. To increase adoption even further I would like to

Google Sued over VoIP Technology

2005-12-30T13:50:00.000+01:00

Google is being taken to court over patent infringement charges related to the search giant's nascent Internet calling service, in a case that could put a crimp in the rollout of Google Talk. In October, Rates Technology filed suit against Google in a New York district court, alleging that Google violated two patents pertaining to technology that minimizes the cost of long-distance VoIP calls.

Europe to pass tough new data retention laws

2005-12-29T03:28:00.000+01:00

Telecoms providers will now have to keep data including the time of each fixed and mobile phone call made in Europe, whether the call is answered or not, the duration of the call and other details that can trace the caller, as well as times users connect to the internet, their IP addresses and details pertaining to emails and VoIP calls. The content of the communications will not be recorded.

European Firms Likely to Outsource VoIP

2005-12-24T02:29:00.000+01:00

A Research and Markets study, “Hosted VoIP Services in Europe,” says European companies are more willing than their U.S. counterparts to adopt external management of their VoIP service. The report cites the lack of internal IP skills and fragmentation of the European telecommunications infrastructure as factors contributing to the disparity.

BT Challenges VoIP Providers

2005-12-22T10:42:00.000+01:00

Unlike many of its counterparts around the globe, BT Group, the United Kingdom’s largest telecommunications carrier, has embarked on a plan to use its ownership of the country’s largest broadband network to challenge VoIP service providers such as eBay’s Skype division. “Whether Skype’s business model is sustainable or not is yet to be determined,” said Gavin Patterson, BT’s managing director of

For SMBs, VoIP Is the Big Equalizer

2005-12-20T01:38:00.000+01:00

In the not-so-distant past, it was nearly impossible for a small- and medium-size business (SMB) to get the same business communications capabilities as a larger enterprise. It's not that they didn’t want these capabilities: SMBs know that they have little room for error. A missed customer contact or a miscommunication between employees translates into losses on the bottom line. It was a matter

Companies like VoIP but don't understand it

2005-12-19T11:04:00.000+01:00

Large companies are starting to turn towards managed services for IP telephony because many believe they don't have the skills or knowledge to do IP convergence themselves, according to a study by IDC UK. Around 15% of the enterprises questioned use managed services today, but 40% are considering it, says Pim Bilderbeek, IDC's consulting VP. "The way people buy is changing," he says. "There is a

Jabber IM adds VOIP

2005-12-16T11:27:00.000+01:00

The Jabber Software Foundation (JSF) today published initial documentation of Jingle, a set of extensions to the IETF's Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) for use in voice over IP (VoIP), video, and other peer-to-peer multimedia sessions. The Jingle technology represents an open version of the protocols used in the popular Google Talk application released in August 2005, and Google

Microsoft and MCI Jump Into PC-to-PSTN VoIP Fray

2005-12-15T11:25:00.000+01:00

Microsoft and MCI will next year begin offering a service that allows users to make cheap VoIP calls from PCs to the public telephone network. The service is currently in beta testing in the U.S.The service, called MCI Web Calling, will use an upcoming version of Microsoft's messaging product called Windows Live Messenger. Users will be able to subscribe to the service via the messaging client,

packetbox introduces international numbers

2005-12-09T15:47:00.000+01:00

We are glad to announce the immediate availability of international phonenumbers on our Packetbox VoIP PBX. customers will be able to choose a number in any of the following countries: Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and

Yahoo Launches VoIP Service Linked To E-Mail

2005-12-08T22:15:00.000+01:00

The Yahoo offering, to be available in 180 countries, will link with existing Yahoo e-mail and instant messaging features, and that appears to be what will distinguish the service from many of its competitors. The crowded VoIP sector is getting another major player. Yahoo Inc., which is entering the field with a service that in many ways is cheaper than Web phoning pacesetter Skype, and putting

Trolltech Adds VOIP Linux Mobiles

2005-12-06T22:53:00.000+01:00

Hooray for Trolltech, this will definitely increase their advantage in this deadly competitive market. Although I have yet to see their OS running on mainstream smartphones.Oslo headquartered Trolltech has updated its software suite for Linux-based mobile phones, adding VoIP (voice-over-IP) capabilities.Qtopia Phone Edition (QPE) version 2.2 is targeted at dual-mode and "converged" devices.

consumer voip in the enterprise?

2005-12-06T22:50:00.000+01:00

i think this article raises some interesting points:The materialisation of consumer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services in 2005 has seen more than 50 million people register for a service across the globe. However, with all the advantages that come with a VoIP service there can be drawbacks when a consumer VoIP service is used in a business environment.Recent debate about the security

How To Set Up A Business VoIP System by Michael Lemm

2005-12-06T22:40:00.000+01:00

To set up a business VoIP system, you need several components. A central device to manage the calls, the way a private branch exchange (PBX) or key system unit (KSU) does in traditional phone systems is one of them.This can be a dedicated piece of hardware such as an IP PBX, a regular PBX that has been IP-enabled, or a server running specialized software. You will also need phones and a data

Freevoip passes 1000 users

2005-12-03T12:48:00.000+01:00

The free service for interconnecting Asterisk users and machines via IAX has passed 1000 Users. FreeVoip was started a little over a month ago by SineApps and Gedam Europe to provide routing, phone numbers, conference rooms etc to users via the IAX2 protocol. It includes a free IAX2 client with no configuration requirements which you can download. Alternatively, under the Setup Help menu it will

Skype adds video to voip calls

2005-12-01T18:41:00.000+01:00

Popular internet phone service Skype is adding video calling to its software. Skype's software lets computer users talk to each other for free and make cut-price calls to mobiles and landlines. The new version adds video and a bunch of extra features in what is becoming an increasingly competitive area. Internet portals such as MSN, Yahoo and AOL have offered video with their instant messaging

UK 'lagging on VoIP usage'

2005-11-30T03:11:00.000+01:00

The poor rate of broadband adoption in Britain at the start of the decade has been blamed for slow adoption of Internet telephony today. The UK is lagging behind Europe on the take-up of VoIP, according to a report published on Tuesday, and its failure to adopt broadband as early as other countries is taking the blame. The EIAA claimed on Tuesday that 10 percent of Europeans had made telephone

VoIP Picking up in Central and Eastern Europe

2005-11-29T02:24:00.000+01:00

The era of VoIP telephony is beginning in Central and Eastern Europe. According to a new IDC study of 11 CEE country markets (not including Russia), compared to 2004, the number of VoIP minutes will more than quintuple this year and more than triple in 2006. Meanwhile spending will more than double this year and grow by 80% in 2006. Still a relatively small part of the overall telephony market,

new blog

2005-11-29T02:20:00.000+01:00

the new blog hasn't been taking off as fast as I'd expected. so in the mean time I've decided to continue post here and update the site a bit. after all, the previous post was the 100th post on this blog, and it would be a shame to let it all fade away.

europreneur

2005-11-03T12:26:00.000+01:00

it's been quite some time since i put a fresh post on this blog. the main reason for this is that after a year of posting, i've realized that the topic is a bit too narrow for me to cover. there are a lot of interesting things i would like to blog about, that just don't fit on a voip related blog. that's why i deciced, over a month ago, to start a new blog covering a broader range of topics.

VoIP Killed The PBX Star

2005-09-26T00:21:00.000+02:00

richard tehrani over at tmcnet, has a nice overview of the future - or lack thereof - of the pbx market. i don't entirely subscribe to his point of view that the success of voice over ip will kill off the pbx market. as he correctly points out, traditional pbx companies such as avaya, have been making a killing selling voip-based pbx'si'm not convinced that a software only p2p ip based

Intel and Digium Jointly Develop Driver

2005-09-24T14:58:00.000+02:00

this is great news for digium who've been working passionately on their open source pbx software for the past few years. mark spencer and the entire asterisk community have created a wonderful product and it's nice to see that industry leaders have finally acknowledged this. the driver for intel's dialogic cards will only be available in asterisk business edition.HUNTSVILLE, Ala.--(BUSINESS WIRE)

ebay acquires skype

2005-09-15T01:05:00.000+02:00

it's official, ebay has acquired skype:London, September 12, 2005 – eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY; www.ebay.com) has agreed to acquire Luxembourg-based Skype Technologies SA, the global Internet communications company, for approximately $2.6 billion in up-front cash and eBay stock, plus potential performance-based consideration. The acquisition will strengthen eBay’s global marketplace and payments

ebay + skype ?

2005-09-09T20:32:00.000+02:00

according to the rumor mill, ebay is set to acquire luxembourg based skype. and again i'm royally late reporting it. i've long given up trying to get the scoop on things. so instead i intentionally waited a bit longer to see if any interesting news came out in the wake of the scoop. it seemed to have paid off, somewhat.of course both companies are keeping their mouths shut and have, until now,

microsoft acquires teleo

2005-09-02T13:28:00.000+02:00

what happens when you're the worlds largest software company and everybody starts doing voip? it should come as no surprise that microsoft has launched their own voip initiative, after google talk's introduction a few days ago.of course, as we've come to expect, microsoft's approach is a little different. instead of building a solution that's compatible with their existing products, they acquired

skype inks deal with 3g operator

2005-09-02T13:08:00.000+02:00

good news for skype, as they introduced their first partnership with a cellular network operator yesterday. german provider e-plus will bundle the skype software with their flat-rate 3g data subscription. although it's still a far cry away from being included by a handset manufacturer, it's definitely a start. i guess handset manufacturers aren't waiting in line to include skype software on

Asterisk 1.2.0-beta1 Released

2005-08-29T01:46:00.000+02:00

The first beta of Asterisk 1.2.0 has been released! This version of Asterisk represents a significant improvement in features, stability and compatibility over the 1.0.x releases. Some of the major new (or upgraded) features include: Asterisk Realtime Architecture Asterisk Manager Interface Asterisk Extension Language Dialplan functions More powerful dialplan expression

google talk

2005-08-24T19:19:00.000+02:00

so i get back from a short city trip to venice, with little or no broadband connectivity, only to find out that our friends at google just launched there own im/voip service: google talk. of course, that's great news. because finally there's a worthy contender to the, until now pretty dominant, skype service. even though it's still in beta, it looks pretty nice, supporting open standards such as

VOIP shipments up 30% in Q3 2005

2005-08-14T10:25:00.000+02:00

Taiwanese IP phone shipment volume for the enterprise market will hit about 850,000 units and one mln units in Q3 and Q4 2005 respectively, marking roughly 20% sequential growth in each quarter, according to Market Intelligence Center (MIC), an ICT industry research institute based in Taipei....This revival in shipment volume was caused by rebounding demand in the three main markets, including

IAX protocol simplifies VoIP

2005-08-01T01:01:00.000+02:00

One reason analog telephones are still around is that you can buy an inexpensive model, plug it in and begin making calls right away. When was the last time you were able to do that with a new IP phone? Most VoIP protocols are hard to configure in certain environments, making it difficult to get many new VoIP products working out of the box.After Mark Spencer created Asterisk , the open source

VoIP will be worth €12bn in Europe by 2010

2005-07-28T21:11:00.000+02:00

As many as 32 million workers in Europe will be using voice over IP (VoIP) within five years, according to a report from analyst firm Analysys. In that same time period, spending on VoIP systems and services is set to rise too, by more than 17 per cent each year to reach €12bn in western Europe.

Privacy Guru Locks Down VOIP

2005-07-27T12:14:00.000+02:00

First there was PGP e-mail. Then there was PGPfone for modems. Now Phil Zimmermann, creator of the wildly popular Pretty Good Privacy e-mail encryption program, is debuting his new project, which he hopes will do for internet phone calls what PGP did for e-mail.Zimmermann has developed a prototype program for encrypting voice over internet protocol, or VOIP, which he will announce at the BlackHat

phonegnome buzz

2005-07-21T14:54:00.000+02:00

it seems that the launch of phonegnome generated quite a stir all over the blogosphere. most of them, including the manufacturer (or should i say service provider), claim that it's a custom built appliance while it really is an off-the-shelf sipura SPA-3000 with a nice web based hosted management interface and some added services. the amped mind seems to be the only one with a correct analysis.

world top voip providers

2005-07-20T10:52:00.000+02:00

russel shaw points us to a list of the largest voip providers in the world, divided by country, region and provider. number one appears to be skype, with 5 300 000 users. There are 3 more other european providers in the top ten, mainly in france: free (600 000), neuf (297 000) and italy: fastweb (528 000).

Vodafone takes the fight to VoIP

2005-07-19T09:34:00.000+02:00

Vodafone is responding aggressively to the rise of VoIP by launching a low cost, flat rate phone service of its own, using capacity on its 3G network. Echoing similar moves by its US joint venture Verizon Wireless, Vodafone’s plan reflects the main defense that cellcos have against the non-3G operators that seek to steal their voice markets using voice over Wi-Fi or, in future, WiMAX.

gizmo project

2005-07-12T01:39:00.000+02:00

aswath has a nice overview of gizmo project a sip based softphone similar to skype. it looks very promising, if only it wasn't locked to sipphone, an itsp founded by mp3.com and linspire founder michael robertson.

Eurobites: VOIP's Hot

2005-07-12T01:32:00.000+02:00

The inevitable is finally happening on the mainland of Europe – incumbent carriers are starting to offer widely available VOIP services that cannibalize their precious, traditional, circuit-switched voice revenues.The time, it seems, has finally come when Europe's major operators (outside Scandinavia, where everything happens in advance) have realized that if they don't offer voice-over-broadband

Skype claims VoIP lead

2005-06-21T17:30:00.000+02:00

Skype has claimed the top spot in the global voice over IP league, according to web traffic analysis by broadband management firm Sandvine. The data puts the market share in North America for London-based Skype at 46.2 per cent, giving it a clear lead over other VoIP providers including Vonage, AT&T Callvantage and Dialpad, which was acquired by Yahoo last week.

MCI Rolls Out Euro Biz VOIP

2005-06-14T11:51:00.000+02:00

MCI today announced that it has begun its European roll-out of MCI Advantage, a portfolio of IP-based services designed for companies wanting to converge their voice and data networks. MCI Advantage, which includes networked voice over IP and Hosted IP telephony, will be introduced throughout the next year. The initial offering, MCI Advantage IP Integrated Access, is now available in the UK and

switch to mac

2005-06-14T11:44:00.000+02:00

ok, it's been some time since i last posted there. there's two reasons for that: (1) i've switched to a mac environment (imac g5) coming from a linux system (fedora core 2) that takes some getting used to, but i really like it a lot. if anyone can recommend me some interesting utilities, feel free to leave it in the comments. (2) sales of our packetbox boxed voip solution has been doing very

Linux Booming in Telecom

2005-06-03T13:38:00.000+02:00

Some news to share about Linux in telecom. Open Source Development Labs (OSDL), a global consortium dedicated to accelerating the adoption of Linux in the enterprise, today announced it has published its Carrier Grade Linux requirements definition version 3.1 (CGL v3.1) and will host two SUPERCOMM panels, "Accelerating Linux Deployment in Communications" and "The Business Case for Linux," to meet

Bonjour/Zeroconf support for Asterisk

2005-06-02T13:57:00.000+02:00

Astmasters - the Macintosh Asterisk community responsible for porting the popular open source PBX Asterisk to the Apple platform - has just added Bonjour/Zeroconf support to Asterisk. If you (like me) have no idea what they're talking about, here's what Apple has to say about Bonjour:Bonjour lets you create an instant network of computers and smart devices just by getting them connected to each

VoIP mainstream in businesses by 2008

2005-06-02T12:13:00.000+02:00

Voice over IP is set to hit the big time in enterprises, according to one analyst. Speaking at the VoIP for Business conference in London today, Peter Hall, research director at Ovum, said: "IP telephony has reached the mainstream. The technology is robust. The number of vendors is considerable. The business case is becoming more sophisticated." Hall said the IP PBX market, in particular, is

Council of Europe switches to VoIP

2005-06-02T10:01:00.000+02:00

The Council of Europe has put in place new internal telephone services, opting for a switch to VoIP. From now on, all communications from the 4,000 seats in the Council's offices in Strasbourg will be routed through IP. The call for tenders for the migration was won by the French network integrator, Amec Spie Communications.

Avaya CEO on VOIP issues

2005-05-27T11:16:00.000+02:00

Avaya was borne out of AT&T/Lucent's legacy. But since its 2000 launch, the enterprise telephony vendor has tried to recast itself as an enterprise applications company, with a focus on voice. Recent moves include the migration of Avaya's legacy PBX to a Linux-based server application, and the introduction of an application server for partners and users to develop VOIP-integrated software such as

Global Crossing launches VoIP service in Europe

2005-05-26T11:25:00.000+02:00

Telecoms solutions provider Global Crossing has introduced its carrier VoIP outbound service in Europe and is providing the service to Hellas On Line, a Greek internet service provider (ISP) offering internet-based services, including telephony and unified messaging, internet connectivity, and value-added and content services.

von europe

2005-05-24T15:27:00.000+02:00

like the rest of the voip blogosphere i'll be heading out to von europe tonight on which will be my first low-cost airline - ryanair - flight ever. we'll see if it lives up to the hype. i will only be visiting the exhibition tomorrow and will not have enough time to attend the conference. i'm sure my fellow voip bloggers will post a more elaborate review of that event. if anyone has any last

Pingtel open source VoIP attacks Europe

2005-05-23T11:20:00.000+02:00

Open source VoIP has been touted as bigger than Linux, and the competition is hotting up in Europe as one of the US pioneers crosses the Atlantic. The normally sleepy world of office telephony hardware, the private branch exchange (PBX) systems which put you on hold and transfer you to people’s secretaries, has already been shaken up by the arrival of voice over IP. VoIP has allowed a few new

Vonage brings 'mass market' VoIP to the UK

2005-05-23T11:13:00.000+02:00

it's been announced once or twice before, but now vonage has officially launched in the uk. Kerry Ritz, managing director of Vonage UK, told silicon.com the company used the last five months to make sure the service was working properly and train the New Jersey-based customer service staff on British "peculiarities - things like post codes, UK phone number conventions and how to spell Welsh names

Hit "*" for More Options

2005-05-14T12:36:00.000+02:00

When Mark Spencer was starting a Linux company six years ago, he had $4,000 and some cheap, leftover hardware from a company where he had interned during college. His first conundrum: How were customers going to call him? A private branch exchange -- the specialized hardware that routes calls around an office -- was going to set him back $6,000. So Spencer decided to program his own Linux-based

telecom city

2005-05-11T13:39:00.000+02:00

if you're in belgium and interested in ICT solutions, take some time to visit the telecom city trade fair in the Brussels Expo. We'll be presenting the latest version of our Packetbox solution on stand 5811. Feel free to come by and say hi ...

Testdrive: Digium's Asterisk IP PBX

2005-05-03T16:44:00.000+02:00

It's another "open source" Linux package. Definitely an interesting option for the small techno savvy operation. We even tested it with a couple of downloadable open source additions for the main voice routing software -- an Admin GUI and a voicemail client. Certainly not as polished as most mainstream systems, but, again, might be worth a look for those not all that interested in traditional

Hacks built using SkypeAPI are property of Skype

2005-05-03T13:32:00.000+02:00

The Skype API lets developers build hacks onto the Skype application. It doesn't give one access to the Skype protocol but it allows external applications to interact with the Skype software. Some folks over on the VoIP USER forum have noted that the Skype EULA says Skype owns anything developed on the SkypeAPI. It suggests that Skype would have commercial rights to anything developed using the

Mass Migration to VoIP Expected Within a Decade

2005-05-03T13:28:00.000+02:00

According to a new report released by In-Stat on Monday, the time frame of 2005 to 2009 is the consumer and small business VoIP ramp-up period, and the mass migration to VoIP will peak somewhere between 2010 and 2014.

Skype Smartphone 'Voiceless VoIP'

2005-05-02T13:05:00.000+02:00

Voice-over-IP software Skype last week released a beta version of Skype for Windows Mobile smartphones but left out voice capability. According to a post in the Skype forum by a staff member, voice has been left out for now because Windows Mobile smartphones don't have enough processing power with 200 MHz. Skype requires 400 MHz processors to run efficiently. Additionally, "network connectivity

cisco acquires sipura

2005-04-26T15:10:00.000+02:00

cisco just announced that it is acquiring sipura technology - through its linksys division - for approximately $68 million in cash and options. Cisco Systems today announced a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held Sipura Technology, Inc. This represents Cisco's first acquisition for its Linksys division, the leading provider of wireless and networking hardware for home, Small Office/Home

UAE Blocks Skype.com

2005-04-26T00:47:00.000+02:00

i wonder if this is related to my earlier post. it not only prevents users from buying skypeout minutes, but also from downloading skype.Skype Journal confirmed that Skype users in the United Arab Emirates are blocked from the Skype.com web site. This prevents users of the Skype internet telephone system from buying minutes to call at highly discounted rates, of special importance to the many

asterisk & skype?

2005-04-25T22:49:00.000+02:00

for some time i have been thinking about how nice it would be to have the ability to add a skype channel to asterisk. apparently some people have been thinking the same thing. there's even a bounty for it (currently $1050).i'm no fan of skype, but the ability to interconnect with other protocols is the power of asterisk and somehow it seems stupid to try and ignore the 35 million registered

VoIP: Not just about free calls

2005-04-23T12:13:00.000+02:00

While price is the main attraction for Europeans, Americans are interested in wireless VoIP because it helps them cope with patchy GSM coverage, says one vendor. There is a transatlantic split over attitudes to wireless VoIP services, according to one Dublin-based VoIP operator which believes that Europeans and Americans are both keen, but for different reasons.

Skype to hit mobile phones this year

2005-04-20T14:46:00.000+02:00

At the Voice On the Net (VON) conference in Toronto, Skype Technologies co-founder and CEO Niklas Zennstrom reported that a mobile version of Skype will be available this year. “We will encourage hardware manufacturers to deploy Skype on their devices.” said Zennstrom. SkypeMobile for mobile devices (our unofficial name for the new Skype) will be targeted to hardware manufacturers for integration

saudi telecom employs voip detection

2005-04-19T01:13:00.000+02:00

this disturbs me a bit ...Narus Inc., the world's leading carrier-class IP Platform provider, today announced that it was selected by Saudi Telecom, the pre-eminent telecommunications provider in the region, to provide Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) detection services. By employing Narus' VoIP detection application, Saudi Telecom has recovered revenue that would otherwise be lost through

Colt Carries VOIP to the Enterprise

2005-04-18T01:19:00.000+02:00

Pan-European operator Colt Telecom Group plc has finally got around to offering an enterprise VOIP service. After putting off the launch in February to spend more time on “innovation,” it has introduced Colt IP Voice, a managed IP centrex service available across its network of 13 countries. Although consumer VOIP services have been made available in Europe, the rollout of Europe-wide business

utstarcom f1000 review

2005-04-18T01:14:00.000+02:00

engadget has a review of the ut starcom f1000 wifi phone. as the other wifi phones around, it's still very much a first generation wifi phone, and the question remains if people are really looking for wifi phones without cellular hand-off, let alone want to be seen with one

Sipura SPA-841 Phone Review

2005-04-11T13:24:00.000+02:00

More known for their line of analog terminal adapters (ATA's), Sipura has released their first business hard phone. Small in size and large in features, The Sipura SPA-841 IP telephone can be configured as a two (2) line or, via a simple software upgrade, a four (4) line full featured business phone with pixel based graphical display, speakerphone and headset port. Stylish and functional in

OPTA not empowered to regulate KPN’s VoIP offer

2005-04-10T14:29:00.000+02:00

The Dutch regulatory authority OPTA has today published a document (dated 24 March 2005) in which it states that it currently does not have the power to regulate the forthcoming VoIP offering(s) of the fixed incumbent operator KPN. KPN had announced its intention to launch VoIP for the second quarter of 2005, in its 2004 annual report.

holiday

2005-04-02T12:05:00.000+02:00

so, i'll be off for a week enjoying the snowy slopes of the alps. actually, i already left, as i'm writing this on the highway somewhere between lyon and dijon over gprs. no ev-do over here as far as i know, but the connection is quite steady at 130km/h. although i don't manage to make a voip call over it. anyway, more voip news when i'm back ...

ENUM Heads for Primetime

2005-03-31T14:04:00.000+02:00

After some months in the wilderness, ENUM (electronic number mapping), the protocol that maps telephone numbers to IP addresses, is once again a hot topic as VOIP providers look for ways to charge customers for new services and keep their calls off the PSTN.ENUM, or e164.arpa, uses a lookup system for routing that’s similar to the domain name system (DNS) for Web addresses. It can allocate a

Telenor Launches VOIP Service

2005-03-31T11:53:00.000+02:00

OSLO, Norway -- On Wednesday, Telenor introduces its broadband telephony product to the consumer market. Telenor now provides a full range of telephony services, and customers are offered traditional fixed telephony, mobile telephony and broadband telephony.

IP telephony picking up in Europe

2005-03-24T17:33:00.000+01:00

IP telephony is taking hold in businesses across Western Europe - and its spread shows no signs of slowing down this year. The IP telephony market grew in terms of both revenue and shipments during the fourth quarter of 2004. Revenue rose 13 per cent over the third quarter to hit $77m while the number of IP handsets shipped rose 14 per cent, according to IDC's Western European IP Telephone

new zyxel wifi voip phone

2005-03-21T11:06:00.000+01:00

om malik has the scoop on zyxel's new wifi voip phone, the p2000w v2. thanks to the inventive naming, i haven't been able to dig up more information on the device. the handset looks much better than the p2000w's previous incarnation, but that's about all i can say about it right now.

VoIP caps

2005-03-20T23:56:00.000+01:00

Just as broadband customers discovered that "unlimited" really means "limited", subscribers of Packet8 VOIP service discover that having teenagers can push them over a hidden 3000 minute per month boundary, and trigger an automatic change to a more expensive business level service plan.

Asterisk – a star of the future?

2005-03-17T13:38:00.000+01:00

Larry Ellison has his super yacht, Bill Gates has his humanitarian fund. For Mark Spencer, the symbol of his success is a hot tub. It may not be the most expensive trophy, but Spencer’s achievement may well prove to be just as revolutionary - turning the world of enterprise telephony on its head. The tub, now installed at his Huntsville, Alabama home, was bought for him as a token of gratitude by

zennstrom interview

2005-03-17T13:31:00.000+01:00

techworld has an interview with skype ceo niklas zennstrom. skype currently has 29 million users - 1 million (or 3.5%) of which use skypeout - adding 155 000 users each day, they also have around 1.3 million pocket pc users.

Ezmax adds VOIP to Flash-based MP3 Players

2005-03-16T23:14:00.000+01:00

A Korean MP3 Manufactured called Ezmax has added an interesting feature to their latest EZMP4200P MP3 player, when connected to your systems USB 2.0 port, the included software will allow you to make VOIP calls with the devices built-in microphone. When connected to your PC a removable disk icon appears, within the disk is a dialing software icon which will enable you to make calls through third

to ata or not to ata

2005-03-15T19:48:00.000+01:00

i'm a bit confused now. according to om malik the ata is dead, they are clearing the way for ip phones. on the other hand inside c (via eurotelcoblog) is all raving lunatic about the actiontec internet phone wizard, which is essentially an ata for skype. i'm not a skype fan, but i fail to see what all the buzz is about. this adapter still requires you to run skype on your computer. so instead

skype news bits

2005-03-13T15:40:00.000+01:00

okay, so the news is all over the blogosphere, so i'll stick to the official press releases. skype has reached one million paying subscribers (skypeout), and recently introduced skypein which allows you to get a real geographic number and accept calls on it. numbers are available in the us, france, uk and hongkong at €34.5 per year, including a free voicemail subscription.

cebit 2005

2005-03-13T13:22:00.000+01:00

so, i was at cebit on friday. as usual there's a lot to see when you're only there for one day. but i did manage to talk to a few people at junghanns, snom and 2n. other than that it was more of the same you get every year. hundreds of asian booths trying to get "new products" on the market, which mainly consists out of usb sticks, ipod knock-offs and other mp3 players, all kinds of cameras and

voip pbx's

2005-03-07T23:44:00.000+01:00

snom has introduced their new voip box at cebit. it's a 50 user sip ip pbx in a compact appliance. it doesn't look like there's any place for expansion cards, but it has no moving parts and a very small footprint. we will be publicly demonstrating our packetbox appliance at telecom city. it's a larger device, also available in 19" solution based on asterisk. it offers many additional modules

QoS for Tiscali VoIP

2005-03-06T18:15:00.000+01:00

Tiscali is offering quality of service (QoS) guarantees for it's ADSL broadband for VoIP which were announced back in February. Lance Spencer, product director for business services at Tiscali, said that traditional leased lines were far too expensive for most companies to use them to connect to remote offices and home workers, but Tiscali's QoDSL service provides an alternative for "low-cost,

Skype launches free WiFi calls at hotspots

2005-03-04T01:44:00.000+01:00

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Internet telephony company Skype and wireless broadband operator Broadreach will offer free telephone calls over the Web from laptops and handheld computers at 350 locations in Britain, including major train stations.

VoIP to save fixed line telcos billions

2005-03-04T00:58:00.000+01:00

While VoIP is most often painted as a threat to mobile operators - snatching away vital voice revenues from mobile operators and fixed line firms alike - new research has found that VoIP might yet prove a help rather than a hindrance to the telcos.

KPN CEO Talks Up VoIP

2005-03-02T00:20:00.000+01:00

KPN CEO Ad Scheepbouwer believes 2005 will be a big year for his carrier in terms of voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and broadband. “Starting in 2005, we intend to have a big push in broadband and VoIP. This will have consequences for short-term profitability, but will position us strongly for today's market and deliver greater benefits in the future,” he comments. “In the all-IP world things

Telcos told 'you're no better than the gas board'

2005-03-01T00:26:00.000+01:00

Incumbent telecoms providers have been told to start falling into line with utilities companies as bandwidth and connectivity become commodity products, piped into customers' homes like gas and electricity. Consumers are now entitled to pay "utility prices for a utility product", said Morten Singleton, director of telecommunications equity research at West LB. ... Ironically it was the incumbents

VoIP carriers launch peering network

2005-02-25T13:16:00.000+01:00

Internet calls to landlines could get even cheaper, following yesterday's launch of an international peering network of VoIP providers. Fourteen companies have signed up to the free-of-charge interconnection service including Callme.se (Sweden), e-fon.ch (Switzerland), Magrathea Telecommunications (Great Britain), Musimi.dk (Denmark), MS Networks (Luxembourg), sipgate (Austria, Germany, Great

VoIP set for high-street boom?

2005-02-25T13:11:00.000+01:00

A number of high-street names are making the move to voice over IP (VoIP) telephony with a rollout now underway at LloydsTSB and Virgin Megastores currently assessing the business benefits of a VoIP implementation across the UK and Ireland. The VoIP implementation being rolled out at LloydsTSB will see the bank install 70,000 Cisco internet telephony handsets in 2,500 branches and 1,000 other

Skype launches free SMS service

2005-02-25T12:06:00.000+01:00

A free feature that lets users send short text messages to mobile phones from internet phone service Skype was being made available for testing starting on Thursday. Prior to Thursday, people downloading the Skype software could only receive short message service (SMS) messages, which are text-only and a maximum of 160 characters.

astricon coming to europe

2005-02-24T18:43:00.000+01:00

the second astricon conference will take place in madrid, spain 15-17 june, and will be the first european conference dedicated to the asterisk pbx. the three day event will include a conference and exhibition, asterisk tutorials and a developer's meeting. more details will be released soon. i will try to be there.

belgacom launches voip for home use

2005-02-24T02:04:00.000+01:00

according to this article (in dutch), belgian incumbent operator belgacom will be launching voip services for home use this summer. it is responding to earlier intiatives from telenet and versatel. the pricing structure for the service is not yet known.