July 27, 2006
VoIP Roundup #2
TechCrunch reports that SightSpeed 5.0 launched. Yet when I checked the Sightspeed site (10 PM Pacific time), there's a message saying you should return at 9 PM Pacific time. The new version apparently includes place-shifted TV, a new video codec, PSTN out- and in-calling, and more. The beta was available a couple of months ago. Sightspeed is a competitor to Skype, but went one step further by incorporating native call recording as well as video calling and free voice and videomail. [Update: 5.0 is now available for both Mac OS X and Win XP. Unlike Skype, Sightspeed is keeping version numbers for both platforms in line.]
GigaOm points to a post on Andy Abramson's VoIPWatch about a new deal between SixApart and Gizmo Project. The new service would let LiveJournal webloggers VoIP and text IM site visitors. This is in addition to the recently announced Jabber-based text IM that LiveJournal would be adding. These kinds of integration of web services are going to appear a lot more often, as innovative companies like SixApart see the value to the end users.
Benjamin Higginbotham presents a compelling argument for why Skype has not won the VoIP battle yet, saying that while it's great in the C2C (consumer- to- consumer) market, it falls down in the B2B (business- to- business) and B2C markets. Skype did announce late last year, and again recently, that they were going after the enterprise VoIP market. That is despite saying their software was not enterprise grade. Nevertheless, I think I have to agree with Benjamin, as Skype (and most other softVoIP clients) support neither VoiceXML nor CCXML, which would really make a difference for businesses.
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