VoIP Now

Skype and Bandwidth On Mobile

Did you get a shiny new EV-DO data card for your laptop or EV-DO on your PDA/ smartphone? If you're running Mobile Windows (not Palm OS), you can run Skype on your phone. If you're wondering about how much bandwidth is used up by Skype, and whether it'll eat into your EV-DO monthly data plan, Ken Camp provides a few details, gleaned from the Skype FAQ. He also discusses the quality of a call between himself and Phoneboy.

My own experience with EV-DO on my Palm Treo 650 (Palm OS) is limited to calls over VoIP bridges, as EV-DO and Palm OS don't play nice. So while I can run a few Google Talk compatible IM (Instant Messaging) clients on my Treo, I cannot run actual VoIP software. Yet. However, with my one success (I gave up after a while) on Mino Wireless, the call quality was very good.

Show Me The Money In VoIP - Small Business Services

With all the innovative VoIP companies popping up, it's hard to keep track of them all, let alone the ones getting venture capital. One such company is the Canadian-based Natural Convergence, who recently acquired US$10M in Series "C" funds. They've been in business five years, serving SMBs (Small and Medium Businesses) in North America, parts of Europe and the Caribbean. [Light Reading].

Though Natural Convergence has only 10,000 active users, they're catering to a VoIP niche that many other companies have been ignoring: the SMB market. And the "Long Tail" theory applied to IP communications suggests that in terms of enterprise sales, the money might just be in the SMBs. This is simply a numbers game: take the sheer volume of SMBs, multiply by the high expected conversion ratio. Even inexpensive IP PBXes (i.e., under US$5,000) will generate a profit by volume.

On the other hand, the conversion rate of larger businesses and enterprises will likely be smaller, as they have more invested in traditional communications. Thus a per head cost of conversion may be much higher, especially in lost productivity if the implementation is stalled or runs into problems.

VoIP Roundup - Tues Nov 28/06

Internet TV Middleware: An Telco Provider Necessity?
While most Internet surfers are probably still learning about IPTV (Internet TV), telcos should scramble to offer the service, to keep up with cable providers' triple play offerings. So says Light Reading, who say it's a necessity to telecoms:

IPTV middleware is the technology that can deliver that advantage to telecom carriers.

In other words, don't fear IPTV, embrace it?

Mac OS X iPhone?
Could it be? Could the Mac iPhone, scheduled for some mysterious date early next year, be running Mac OS X? Tech Digest has a pic (illustration?) of some gadget that seems to have no buttons whatsoever, and some "desktop" that may or may not be OS X. The speculation is that the phone will run a stripped down "Leopard", the next version of OS X. That would certainly make sense.

Hullo VoIP Redefining Itself
Last week, I received an email from Hullo that their beta was over and that they were working on a new version. As Alec Saunders mentions, it'll be interesting to see what they have in store. I've written previously that Hullo had high quality calls between computer and phone - enough to impress my father, who said that other pc-to-phone solutions didn't compare.

Palm Hurting, Apple Smiling

It's just a few minutes after noon in the New York time zone, and CNBC TV just reported that Palm's share price is down 7.4%. RIM is down about 0.5%, Apple is up a couple of %. Palm was downgraded, triggered by their announcement that they were delaying the release of a new Treo. While they've release several this year, including the Treo 680 (which was partly recalled, I believe) and the Treo 750, they had plans for releasing many more. In the meantime, Apple is doing just fine, thank you, and no doubt fans are eager to hear more about the Apple iPhone, due out next year.

Survey Says - Vonage IPO A Dud

Is it a surprise that readers of Light Reading's recent poll IP communication IPOs voted Vonage's IPO (Initial Public Offering) a dud? It's had enough media coverage, and the stock has been a real dog. It's kind of a no brainer, and part of the reason some shareholders petitioned for a deferral in SEC rules. But when asked when who they favored for success on their IPOs, Riverbed Technologies, a company I hadn't heard of, took the lead. For upcoming IPOs, Opnext Inc. took the lead.

Now keep in mind that Light Reading's readers are fairly informed in the area of IP communications, many more so than I. So I'm not suprised to find quite a few companies - many of whom develop IP hardware - on the survey list that I know nothing about. But if you ask my opinion on which soft VoIP company has a lot of potential in the future, I'd have to say SightSpeed, for their video calling and their free video click-to-call web functionality. Of course, to be successful in an IPO, SightSpeed will need to be able to actually monetize their great video VoIP offering, which CEO Peter Csathy blogs about quite often. And his is a great example of quality corporate blogging.

iPod As Destroyer Of Civilization?

Fox TV talk show loudmouth Bill O'Reilly went off his regular nut recently, blaming all kinds of mobile gadgets for the collapse of civilization - or so I interpret And VoIP blogger Russell Shaw says he agrees with him for once. I've actually been saying some of what Russell says for many, many years. I'm not quite a Luddite - as I love gadgets - but my unfinished book "Moving Forward While Standing Still," started over a decade ago, talks about this sort of thing.

Call me contrarian, though, because in the intervening years, what I've come to realize is that technology (and media) just amplifies the social lack in some people. Blaming technology in and of itself is easy. We as a collective society are ultimately responsible for our actions, not technology. Need I mention all the positive applications of mobile devices? I select my gadgets fairly carefully, and they have to serve multiple purposes, or I won't buy them. While I may dislike my Palm Treo, for example, for specific reasons, I still get a lot of mileage out of the device. And if I put on my iPod's earpods as I walk across the street to catch a bus, without looking both ways, how is that the iPod's fault?

Show Me The Money In VoIP - Stocks

If someone offers you stock in an IP communications business, learn everything you can about it, including whether or not it'll make money. Pretty obvious, right? Well a man in Tokyo is suing an "IP phone" (VoIP) company for not telling him and other investors upfront that they might not make any money. The man, 61, invested millions of yen and is suing for 27M yen. He also wants his investment contract cancelled.

Now if I understand the story correctly, there may be some connection between the company, Kinmirai Tsuushin Inc., and the Japanese underground. That's just what VoIP needs, doesn't it? On the other hand, the man did receive just over 8Mln yen in dividends - less than what he put in. But does that sound like organized crime? There are other lawsuits pending against the company, who collected funds from around 1,000 investors. [via Asterisk VoIP News]

Interesting way to make money, but no evidence of wrongdoing, aside from not openly telling investors that returns were not guaranteed. It's certainly better than the two young Americans who were stealing VoIP service from other vendors and resold around ten million minutes worth.

Is Wi-Fi Bad For Us?

George Ou of ZDNet writes about a UK woman who claims that Wi-Fi makes her sick. He then lays out a test scenario that he'd like to give her to prove that she can in fact detect when a Wi-Fi access point is present, like she claims. This isn't the first that I've read about something like this. Just about a month back, about someone in the UK - possibly the same woman - claiming they were getting headaches after installing a Wi-Fi router. This woman, Kate Figes, says Wi-Fi leaves her feeling exhausted, nauseous and sleepless.

Ou calls it "EMF junk science" but the WHO (World Health Organization, not the band that causes hearing loss) has an EMF project, due to public concern about health and electromagnetic fields. Figes isn't the only person claiming this. The WHO's brochure on EMF (PDF, 2 pgs) that "[no] major public health risks have emerged from several decades of EMF research but uncertainties remain." Maybe these people are the proverbial canaries in the coalmine of an cumulative illness that takes time to manifest.

I've certainly found myself more fatigued since installing my Wi-Fi router, but that could be for several reasons, including the fact that I always feel fatigued come Oct/Nov, during Daylight Savings Time change (or whatever it's called). As well, since installing my router, I also spend many more hours working on my computer than previously. Sleep is something I do because I have to. And lack of sleep gives me headaches. A few minutes outside in fresh air almost always seems to make a difference.

It's an easy correlation to assume it has something to do with Wi-Fi, but I'm certainly hoping it doesn't. Imagine what'll happen to the fledgling municipal Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi VoIP phone industry if it does.

Click-to-Call Ubiquity - Not Quite There

CNBC TV just ran a segment in which one of their guests said that "most [e-commerce] websites" now have a click-to-call button. Would that were true, that'd be great. But what do you expect when even VoIP supplier/ resellers don't even have click-to-call buttons? That's right, you heard me. Very few of the VoIP sales sites I see have a click-to-call button.

Though if you have a small operation, it may not be the best thing to have. But you should give some semblance of trying. You're probably worried that if you don't have your own click-to-call solution, that using someone else's (for example, SightSpeed's free video click-to-call service) may draw customers away from you. Well, I wouldn't be surprised if some soft VoIP provider out there would be willing to white label their solution for you, if you can't get any sort of partnership going. Anyone know of such a solution? At worst, make sure that your business information is available for Google Maps click-to-call functionality.

On the other hand, the natural evolution of an industry involves the weeding out of competitors who can't compete.

What's IMail?

No, it's not some iPhone alternate device Apple has submitted patents for. It's a combination of IM + email - essentially any email client that allows users to start a chat session with other users. Most popular example is probably Google Mail's in-client (webmail) chat popup. To be honest, in terms of usability, it has to be the worst form of IM available. I love Google Talk's clean, simple IM interface. I despise Google Mail's in-client chat because it disrupts my work. If I'm typing an email and a chat pops up, it's incredibly annoying and screws with my concentration. I don't think any other software (except a certain operating system) could make me fume more.

So I'm surprised that Zimbra plans to do the same [21Talks] sort of thing. On the other hand, if Google integrated the chat some where to the side of the email client, left or right, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. What's more, I'm really surprised that they haven't tied a click-to-call feature directly from Google Mail. Maybe that's something for the near future, given how they've taken a liking to click-to-call VoIP lately.

VoIP Becomes More Free For Schools

The US FCC's E-Rate program means US$2B in federal grants for K-12 schools to Internet, telephone, and hardware costs. While that doesn't mean all schools will opt for VoIP, there are provisions on the application form for VoIP as well as mobile devices such as RIM's BlackBerry and Palm Treo. [via ExtremeVoIP]

A number of schools in the US have started using IP communications for their intercom system, and others for actual VoIP outbound calling. The most important technical issue for schools in this case should be the implementation of E911 emergency calling.

Unyte vs AIM Pro: Desktop Sharing - I'll Show You Mine

Earlier, I mentioned Unyte, a Skype plugin that allows collaboration (desktop sharing), web conferencing, and more. I downloaded and installed Unyte and took it through a few tests. The interface is clean, and it appears easy to find everything. You can pick through your Skype contact list and decide whom you want to share with (though you need Unyte+ for more than one person). A comparison of Unyte to AIM Pro's desktop sharing is given below.

I tried it in both modes, and it's fairly similar to AIM Pro's desktop sharing features. (I ran Unyte + Skype on my desktop, and another Skype account on my laptop.) The main differences:

• Unyte's interface can be in one of 12 languages, including English. Though to be honest, I never checked for this in AIM Pro.
• Unyte has two modes: a display share only, and a controlled share between all parts. I.e., remote desktop control.
• AIM Pro will let you see the Windows start bar at the bottom of the screen. Unless I missed it, Unyte doesn't have that.
• Unyte is integrated with Skype, so you can easily determine sharing.
• AIM Pro only shares one on one; at least, I don't think you can have a conference share.
• Unyte lets you pick what to share, out of the applications already running. But if you pass control over to another person, theycan start an app by clicking on your desktop icon (remotely).
• Unyte actual shared session runs in an Internet Explorer window on the other party's computer, so they don't need Unyte. With AIM Pro, the shared session starts up in a browser (mine started in Firefox) then switches to a separate window. However, this could still be a browser window, as Firefox allows this through XUL. The documentation says that it'll work with IE, Firefox or Safari on any platform, so it must be defaulting to IE on my laptop.

These are the differences that stand out for me. A few other features are that Unyte lets you quickly click a checkbox to turn off all sharing. You can be selective of which applications you use. The other parties don't need Unyte, as noted above, but they need Skype 2.0 or later. The host can only use Windows 2000/2003 or XP.

Overall, I'm pretty impressed. I can see immediate applications of this, as I hire a few writers from across the world, and I can very quickly give them a live training session.

I haven't tried Skype 3.0 for Windows Beta, so I cannot comment on Skype's own desktop sharing features, or whether they'll affect Unyte in any way. Unyte is Skype-certified, so I'm assuming Skype isn't going to directly compete with their own partners. (More on that once I find out details.)

Dream Phones, Voice2.0, Voice3.0

Luca Filigheddu describes "voice 3.0" for the future, and lists his dream mobile phone, inspired by an engaging post by Ken Camp. The phone would have several VoIP-related services, multiple
identities, video, configuration of availability, remotely stored contact lists, rich presence information and more. Sounds good to me. Sign me up. Except we're going to have to wait a few years for this before more than just us VoIP bloggers are using the term "voice 3.0".

For the present, I've listed my own VoIPmas wishes. Basically, I won't be happy with anything short of a Buck Rogers cellular wristwatch with WiFi for VoIP, Bluetooth (or Wibree), and a HUD (heads-up display) for video in. Not sure about video out, though the wrist watch should suffice. And so exactly what should we expect for voice 4.0? Portable Star Trek-like holodecks?

Unyte + Skype For Desktop Sharing

Skype's latest version 3.0 for Windows already has desktop sharing, but I haven't tried it out yet. Unyte, however, has a plugin that works with Skype - two, actually. One is free and allows desktop viewing. The other, Unyte+, costs $30+/year and allows desktop application sharing, shared control and scheduling web conferencing, etc. It has what appears to be good integration with Skype, as it lets you pick your conference participants from your Skype contact list. You can also select which applications to display/ share.

The free version only allows 1:1 viewing (that is, one person showing their desktop to one other person. Unyte+ supports 1-25 users. You can download both versions for free, though after 30 days, Unyte+ has to be upgraded to a paid version. No idea how Skype's own native support for desktop sharing (in version 3.0) will affect Unyte. It looks quite interesting, and a comparison of Unyte to AIM Pro's desktop sharing will be posted shortly.

VoIP Roundup - Mon Nov 20/06

California Hospitals Implement Multi-Language VoIP Project
A number of public hospitals in California are implement VoIP technology with live multi-language call support in order to serve the large non-English speaking community AT&T is part of the project. Implementation was completed recently. [via TMCNet]

Phonezoo Ringtones Social Network
Diehard cell phone ringtone lovers now have a social network of their own. Phonezoo lets you create your own ringtones, share them with other members, and discover what they have. You can even rate and discuss each ringtone. [via Roam4free] Color me cynical, but do people have nothing better to do, or am I hopelessly out of touch?

How Now, Apple iPhone?
So if Apple really does come out with a so-called iPhone, how do you think it'll operate? Unlocked with SIM cards? Carriers? Daniel Raffel at O'Reilly Emerging Telephony provides his insights, concluding that a carrier partnership might be more painful to them.

VoIP Roundup - Fri Nov 17/06

Free Asterisk Voice Prompts Until Nov 21, 2006
Digium recently changed the deal on their Asterisk voice prompts, so Ward Mundy at Nerd Vittles has generously decided to give away a block of IVR (Interactive Voice Response) prompts, 20 words or less (hyphenated words are multiple) until Nov 21, 2006. If you don't know what voice prompts are, you probably don't need them :)

Verizon Business Conferencing
Everyone's getting into the VoIP conferencing market, and Verizon Business is the latest.

Google Maps Click-to-Call
[UPDATED]Thanks to the new click-to-call integration, you can find a business on Google Maps and then click on the displayed phone number to initiate a call to the business. Of course, you can't do this with Google Talk. You enter your phone number into an available form field on the map result, and a call is initiated. Google's service rings up the business and then you.

Show Me The Money In VoIP - What's With Vonage Shareholders?

Having once held share options, which couldn't be sold until they matured - thus costing me profit - I find this very odd on the surface: a bunch of major Vonage shareholders have petitioned [Russell Shaw] the US SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) to delay a change that would make it easier to sell their stock. Insiders and some other shareholders typically have to wait a grace period after an IPO before they can sell. But let's dig deeper.

As Russell points out, one of the petitioners is Jeffrey Citron, Chairman, once worth nearly a billion on paper. Are they trying to suggest to the public that maybe something good is going to happen, hence they don't want to sell their stock just yet? Maybe those with the greatest number of shares are pushing for this so that remaining major shareholders won't bail out and sell off their stock. That makes a great deal of sense. Even though the petitioners own about 2/3 of total shares, a sell-off from the remaining 1/3 might devalue the stock even further, causing the 2/3 owners to lose even more money. Keep in mind that the latter have been invested since the IPO, and they've lost about half their investment.

But pure play VoIP providers like Vonage are not the ones making money in VoIP. For them, I fear, it's going to be an uphill battle. And maybe being acquired might not be such a bad thing. Maybe.

Show Me The Money In VoIP - The Fabled Skype ROI

Recently, I did some rough math on how long it might take eBay to recoup their US$2.6B purchase of Skype last year. My admittedly rough calcs showed about 4 years (17 quarters), not counting inflation and taxes, based on recently observed quarterly increases in gross revenues. But Russell Shaw thinks that it'll take years for the ROI to show on Skype, which is in agreement with Kevin O'Brien's Where's the return on investment. Oh ye of little faith! Didn't I just agree with Andy Abramson that eBay has too many smarts to not monetize Skype in some manner? Granted they'll need some "disruptor" type management to replace those old-school Skypers heading for the door.

Russell also says that Skype doesn't understand how business users think, in relation to the quietly released Skype 3.0 for Windows - Business version, and explains his reasoning. Jim Courtney of Skype Journal echoes this sentiment, partly because Skype did so little to promote this version. Now I have to agree with Russell there, despite reserving judgement the other day. Their software, pre-eBay, was never intended for enterprise. This new "business" version has a few concessions for enterprises, but there's a lot that's left out, such as an IP PBX, etc.

If eBay is smart, they'll buy Canadian Pika Technologies, who've married Skype to an Asterisk IP PBX. Though I don't know how the open source license would work in this case. Still, an alliance with a company as smart as Pika would do post-eBay Skype a world of good in terms of business solution potential.

AIM 6.0 Released

I've gotta say that I was impressed with AIM Pro, which came out just a couple of months ago, but 6.0 doesn't seem to have a lot of new features. Nuno at 21 Talks says that there's the ability to send messages to offline users, and a dashboard for managing mobile alerts and forwarding instant messages to cell phones.

I'll be honest, I don't know how AIM 6.0 compares with AIM Pro 1.1, but the latter's desktop sharing feature was really impressive, despite being a bit buggy and slow at times. (Though I ran it on a desktop and laptop simultaneously, both of which used a Wi-Fi connection.) Not sure, either, how either release factors into AOL's plans, but they have been reinventing themselves. First, they'd announced coast-to-coast broadband Internet service in the US, leaving their dialup model. Then they started selling off their European Internet provider divisions. More recently, they've decided to a leave a subscription model and are steering towards an ad-based model of operating, thus laying off many workers.

Business Skype 3.0 For Windows?

Skype's gone release mad these past few days. First it was Skype 3.0 for Windows Beta, then yesterday 2.5 for Mac Beta. They also released an update for 3.0 Windows Beta, and very quietly, Skype 3.0 for Windows - Business Version. What gives? Why not announce it? Are they shy because they themselves said Skype's not meant for the enterprise? The download page does say that it's only for experienced users, because they're still working on it.

The so-called "business friendly features" include a Windows Installer (MSI), increased security, easy deployment, admin control, and multiple account management from the "Business Control Panel". And then there's the standard features. I'll have to look into these further at some point in the near future (probably after it's out of beta), but this version could go a long way towards assuaging the fears that several companies and a few universities have had about security and other issues. And since it's still free, the monetization will have to come from SkypeIn, SkypeOut, and Skype-certified Wi-Fi phones, I guess.

Now, marrying Skype with an IP PBX, such as Pika Technologies has done, makes sense.

Skype On Mobiles Redux

So apparently TalkPlus CEO Jeff Black made a call using TalkPlus from a mobile and to a Skype test user (echo123, which can't be faked - no SkypeIn number). What I'm wondering is what are the implications of that. I've had no luck running Skype on my Palm Treo 650 or any other VoIP soft client (though I can use Mino Wireless' bridge). If there's a solution, I'm not aware of it. So what if TalkPlus works on my Palm? Then why doesn't Skype? But if Talkplus doesn't work, then I'm no better or worse than now. Besides that, though, the implications of the experiment are that TalkPlus have managed to create a mobile client, without Skype components, that can talk to Skype's network. And this means that Skype could lose their revenue stream for SkypeIn numbers. TalkPlus recently received US5.5M in VC financing, so they're probably motivated to become disruptors themselves.

Motorola On Acquisition Trend

Motorola recently bought Symbol Technologies, a well-known RFID equipment manufacturer. Now they've purchased [Law of Mobility] Good Technology, a make of e-mail mobility. Law of Mobility wonders if Moto will buy Palm next, and analyzes that scenario. My feeling is that while they might try, I can't see why Palm would sell, despite recent drops in quarterly earnings. Palm has its own name, built up over several years. Though it might give them a serious advantage over RIM and their Blackberry products.

Caller IP talks about the purchase as well, and mentions Radicati's report (PDF, 2 pgs) that wireless email will take off. But the market will be driven by Microsoft and RIM, according to the report. However, with Motorola's acquisition of Good, things might just change.

Semi-Anonymous VoIP Online Dating

Almost every guy that's ever gone nightclubbing probably has the same goal: meet someone. For whatever reasons. And no doubt some have scored a phone number. Out of those, there are the guys that got a real number and those that got a fake one. If you sit back and think about it, it's understandable. Some guys are relentless, and women generally aren't very confrontational; at least not in the past. So to defuse the situation, some of them hand out a fake number. Well online dating has changed the entire dating game, the environment, the rules, etc., but the objective is essentially the same: meet someone compatible. But for women especially, some semblance of anonymity is desirable. To that end, a new service, MatchTalk, from dating site Match.com, uses VoIP technology from Jangl to set up calls between two members without revealing phone numbers.

It's nothing new; Jangl offers their own semi-anonymous calling. Match.com has just integrated Jangl tech [Alec Saunders] into their offering. MatchTalk sets up a unique phone number between each two members that want to connect, so their own phone numbers don't have to be handed out until and if they are ready. This is a step up from Verbdate, which reveals your Skype username if you allow it to be public. Now if someone just added semi-anonymous video calling, touch, smell, etc., nightclubs might just go out of style. But seriously, long-distance relationships would be easier to maintain.

VoIP Roundup - Wed Nov 15/06

Skype Enterprise Features Coming?
Skype execs have hinted at upcoming enterprise and call center features. So maybe this will be how eBay finally monetizes Skype?

Speed Demons
The 100-Gigabit Ethernet (100-GbE) technology is here, being demonstrated by a number of companies and the University of California Santa Cruz. A test run sent a signal from Tampa, Florida to Houston, Texas, and back - a first for a live production network. If I understand this correctly, IP backbones will get this technology fairly soon. And as 100-GbE becomes commonplace, likely in several years time, it should mean some incredible real-time video conferencing ability, superfast downloads of movies, and live video broadcasts, to name just a few benefits.

Legal Issues Surrounding VoIP Enterprise Implementations
TechRepublic details legal issues to be aware of when planning a VoIP implementation. They have real alphabet soup of issues, some of which I've only peripherally aware of: SOX/ Sarbox (Sarbanes-Oxley Act), GLBA, HIPAA, E911.

Sony What? Mylo? What's That?

I don't get the freebie gadgets that some of the other VoIP bloggers do, so if I want to test some phone or mobile device, I have to shell out my own cash. Interested in the VoIP capabilities of the Sony Mylo, I walked into my neighborhood Sony Style store late last week and asked the two young male clerks if they were selling it. They looked at each other, then one looked back at me with a bit a of sneer and said, "Sony what? It's replacing the Clio, right?" Uh, pardon me, but you work here, not me. (This is the second gadget store in the same mall with a rude young male clerk. And business owners wonder why some customers would rather buy online.) Diatribe over.

Then again, Luca says the Mylo's not for him. Andy likes the audio and quality and the fact that it has Yahoo Messenger. It also has Skype, which interests me. But he concludes that the novelty of the Mylo wore off for him. (Though some Mylo reviewer did use the Skype file transfer over Wi-Fi because the USB cable was missing.)

So maybe those two rude young idiots saved me some money. Fact is, I stopped buying Sony products since my cassette Walkman in the 1980s. The way I look at it, if I have to shell out a few bucks myself, I think I'm going to wait to see if Apple comes up with an "iPhone". There have been rumours about Apple's VoIP plans for a while, but it's questionable whether any new iPod this year will have VoIP.

Skype Troubles? Make Room For SightSpeed

Since eBay bought Skype not so long ago, the story goes that much of the old guard management has left. The International Herald Tribute (and others) wrote about this and Andy Abramson weighed in on the goings on. His conclusion (hope I'm not misquoting) is that eBay has enough smarts to make Skype profitable, but they need someone to run the show, to be a proper disruptive force. That is, to continue being the disruptive force that Skype was before the purchase and can hopefully still be.

Well, I agree with that assessment, but the company I'm gunning for as the up and coming disruptive force is SightSpeed. Their video calling quality arguably tops Skype's. Sure, they don't have the addon architecture that Skype has recently moved up to with Skype 3.0 for Windows Beta, but maybe that's coming - assuming I haven't somehow missed something on SightSpeed's website. Otherwise, if the ability to develop addons for Sightspeed appears in the next few releases, I think that they will become the primary disruptive force in the soft VoIP niche. (I vaguely recall something that one of the support staff told me a few months back about the existence of an SDK or API or some such, but I think it's only available on a selective basis.)

50 Most Influential People in VoIP

Wow. VoIP News just published Brian Provost's 50 most influential people in VoIP and a lot of deserving people, communities and companies were listed there, along with some surprises (Microsoft, 3com, Intel, US Congress, FCC, and others), including this weblog, under the "daily show - voip bloggers" category. I clicked on the link twice, to make sure that my eyes weren't deceiving me. (Not so long ago, VoIP Now was on Garrett Smith's Top 30 and Luca Filigheddu's Top 30 VoIP blogs lists.) But I think some names were left off the list (more on that later, when I have the nads to come up with my own list, from a different angle). Though it's never easy compiling them, so hat's off to Brian.

If I had to pick just one person to add to the list, it would be Peter Csathy, CEO of SightSpeed. Why do I think he's an influential person in VoIP? Not just because he's the CEO of a company with an impressive video VoIP soft client but also because of his engaging blog, Digital Media Update, where he's been blogging a lot lately about vVoIP and video on mobile, it's importance, it's coming ubiquity, due to the number of camera phones that will ship.

Hey, I've been dreaming of videophones since I was a kid watching The Jetsons TV cartoon in the '70s. I've always figured it's just a matter of time and technology. So you can imagine how pleased I was when I first tried SightSpeed. Yeah, I fawn a lot over SightSpeed, but I make no apologies for doing so. Can't wait for mobile SightSpeed. But it'll mean buying a new smartphone, since my Palm Treo will never handle mobile video calling.

Microsoft Hearts VoIP?

You'd expect a software giant like Microsoft to have already been playing a big role in the IP communications market. But beyond the high number of users (active + inactive) of MSN/ Windows Live Messenger VoIM clients, it's hard to say they have any great involvement in VoIP and related services. They have announced this or that sort of IP communcations-related project in the recent past, but seemingly done little to compete with the dominant forces in the market (beyond launching Windows Live Messenger, which is okay, but not as good as Yahoo Messenger). But CEO Steve Ballmer indicates that they are going to change that with their new Vista operating system, come January 2007.

The Vista OS - which someone touted as not requiring anti-virus software - will integrate a variety of IP-related offerings including VoIP, IM (Instant Messaging), and video-conferencing in desktop and server applications. There will also be Microsoft PBX. * Yawn * I'm not buying it, sorry. They're late to the game (though Garrett Smith thinks otherwise) and can't offer anything new to the individual. However, the Microsoft brand name may encourage enterprise to get more involved in IP communications - so that could be a big sell for them. (In which case I do agree with Garrett.)

There was no word about whether Ballmer raged across the stage screaming like a lunatic while saying how much he loved "this company". This is your brain on Microsoft.

Think this will help your company's share price? Hmm. Could be. Dance little Ballmer, dance.

Why Switch To Asterisk IP PBX?

John Edwards lists 5 good reasons for switching to Asterisk for an IP PBX, and 9-step guide to getting started with Asterisk. Asterisk is of course open source software (OSS) so the full source code is available.

Open source IP telephony is getting a push by companies like Fonality, Digium (makers of Asterisk) and Polycom in terms of new partnerships, hardware and software. While I'm a big fan of open source, history shows a reluctance on the part of middle managers in larger enterprises to accept such software. I'm really hoping that this isn't the case with IP telephony, because such options afford robust, customizable solutions that have as much power as more expensive offerings.

If OSS IP telephony companies are smart, they'll go after the SMBs and not worry about enterprise, who'll want more "name brand" solutions from companies like Cisco or even Microsoft, who have vowed to integrate IP communcations into their new Vista operating system in Jan 2007. My feeling is that there are enough SMBs out there that would benefit OSS IP telephony, and would welcome such an option as well as the price. But since the cost and availability of "experts" who can add modules or debug problems may be a factor, solutions with a  set of plug-and-play SMB/ CRM modules will likely capture the most interest.

VoIP Roundup - Sat Nov 11/06

NZ Telecom Blocking VoIP?
A computer scientist at New Zealand's Otago University is accusing Telecom of limiting bandwidth use for VoIP software on some of their Internet plans, essentially discriminating against certain uses.

Google Talk By Phone On Camrivox
I love Google Talk but Camrivox's decision to offer a phone with Google Talk support just makes me ask "why?" With Google Talk, you can only communicate with fellow users and anyone with a SIP account. Unless I'm missing some crucial new piece of information, you can't call regular landlines from this VoIM client without Talqer. [sources: Digital Lifestyles, PR Web]

UK Businesses Lacking VoIP + VoIM Policy?
An online survey by YouGov suggests that over half of UK businesses have no VoIM or VoIP policy. Email use is generally more common, and policies for it are more likely to be in place.

100 Projects For TrixBox/ Asterisk IP PBX

Nerd Vittles always has great information regarding open source IP PBXes, in particular TrixBox and Asterisk. Now Ward Mundy has put together a list of 100 projects relating to both, some on the Nerd Vittles site, and some elsewhere. (The links are not all projects; some are links to IP communications- related websites.) Categories are:

• Installing a free TrixBox server
• Installing the free Asterisk@Home PBX
• Customizing Asterisk@Home
• Asterisk server hardware
• Additional Asterisk hardware and software
• VoIP provider reviews and configuration tips for Asterisk@Home
• Securing Asterisk
• Additional Asterisk applications
• Where to turn when you need some help

Probably everything a DIY (do-it-yourself) VoIPr can think of. Great job, Ward. I wish I had the time to try some of these. They look like a heck of a lot of fun.

All I Want For VoIPmas Is SuperSkype

Skype just released their 3.0 Beta for Windows. Wow. From 2.5 to 3.0 in only a couple of months. What's this one got that's new? Supposedly Skypecasts and Public Chats, which I thought were already part of Skype. Click-to-call from websites through Skype browser extensions (for IE and Firefox web browsers). Again, this functionality already exists for Skype through other means. A more powerful user interface: new tabbing arrangements, wall paper. Skype Extras, for playing games, sharing desktops, and a whiteboard for notes during Skype calls. (Extras aren't new, but they have been integrated more tightly with the interface.) Enterprise compatibility? This should be interesting.

But to clarify, the Skypecasts are now browsable. Search for a Skypecast then join in. The Public Chat host can moderate conversation and reject or ban users. Public chats are promotable as links in email, web pages or Skype mood messages.

What'd be really cool, though, is built-in recording, with aim to satisfy podcasters. That means searchable meta tags on recordings (a la HotRecorder). Plus the ability to post the podcast to a weblog on the all of the popular blog platforms. There is Skype Recorder v1.2, which is free and activates automatically, but it doesn't have those extra features that would be great for podcasters.

Suggestion to eBay/Skype: buy HotRecorder and hire a team to do weblog posting integration work as well. At that point, I would actually pay for the Skype soft client (provided I can use Paypal, your sister company, to do so).

So, St. Niklas (Zennstrom), all I want for Xmas is a super Skype that does all of the above. Oh yeah. And the ability to mobile Skype from my PalmOS-based Palm Treo 650 running on CDMA EV-DO cellular wireless Internet access. I'm not asking much, am I?

VoIP Roundup - Thur Nov 09/06

Cisco Partner Education Programs
Unified communications (i.e., convergence of voice, video and data over IP) is hot, and Cisco wants its partners to be prepared. So, they're offering a "Master Specializations" certification in this niche. [via Extreme VoIP]

Google Talk Adds Offline Messages
Google Talk has a new feature to help deliver messages if one member of a chat (text) conversation in progress disconnects: offline messages. When the disconnected party signs back in, whenever that is, they will receive the rest of your message. This will also work with other open clients. [via Google Talkabout]

Alcatel Gains Huge Communications Contract
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) has awarded Alcatel a contract of US$300M over several years, starting next year. The contract work includes "the upgrade of UPMC's wired and wireless data infrastructure, enterprise telephony system, and contact platforms and applications to a converged IP infrastructure." The UPMC awarded this contract on several factors including Alcatel's previous installations. [via Lightwave] Earlier this year, Alcatel was awarded a Euros 70M contract by Telekom Malaysia.

Recording Multi-Person Conversations For Podcasting

Nick Wilson over at Performancing.com asks about "the quickest, cheapest way to do high quality multiple stream podcasts." Meaning, in this case, recording a VoIP conference call and publishing it to a website as a podcast.

There are hosted services and even some that let you initiate a conference call from their website. For example, Gabcast offers free podcast creation and hosting, but there are some limitations. There are toll-free numbers for the US, but in other places, you might have to pay for a long-distance call.

But in my opinion, the quickest, cheapest way to pull off a multi-person podcast is, arguably, with Skype. For a free solution, a Skype conference call will work fine provided a few factors are satisfied:

1. Everyone is using Skype. I.e., not landlines or mobile phones in use.
2. You shut down any unnecessary apps on each participating computer. (For best call quality.)
3. You all have a broadband connection and are not talking during a busy period locally (late afternoon, mid evening, before midnight).

There are a few other tips for better VoIP call quality.

For recording the calls, there's HotRecorder (HotRecorder.com, US$14.95) which is even geared for podcasters. There's a search function based on the text that you attach to each recording. HotRecorder, if it's running on your PC (Windows XP, 2003, only for now), will automatically start recording when a call comes in on Skype, or you activate it. HotRecorder works on Skype conference calls as well.

For a completely free solution, use the Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net) audio editor (with support for Cubase VST plugins) to record the call. Audacity has to be manually started, but it's easy to edit your audio track afterwards - something HotRecorder does not feature. Audacity runs on Windows, Mac OS X and GNU/Linux.

Also see VoIPcasting: recording VoIP and Podcasting.

How Do You Video VoIP?

If you're using a VoIP soft client such as Skype or SightSpeed, you probably already know that both have a video calling mode. Either party on such a call can view and/or transmit video, assuming that both have cameras. The video mode can also be one directional. So if you're not up to showing yourself on call, you don't have to, but you can still see the other party if they enable video from their end. As Peter Csathy, CEO of SightSpeed, points out, keeping video mode turned off can serve multiple purposes, including allowing you to do other work while participating in a voice call. So there are suitable times for non-video, so you don't have to worry about things such as video calling etiquette.

VoIP Roundup - Wed Nov 08/06

FierceVoIP Declares Top 15 VoIP Companies 2006
FierceVoIP (love that name) website's editor Dan Rosenbaum has declared his picks for the top 15 VoIP companies for 2006. The list is presented in alphabetical order and notably missing are Skype, SightSpeed, and Vonage - though I'm not saying I'd necessarily put all of them in my own list. I'll be honest - I've only heard of about half of the companies on Dan's list. I guess I have some reading to do.

NTP Lawyers At It Again
Possibly buoyed by the hundreds of millions they grabbed from RIM, make of BlackBerry mobile devices, NTP is now after Palm, claiming patent violation for a mobile email product used by Palm Treos using the PalmOS platform. Palm already suffered lower than expected profits last quarter (Q3 2006) and obviously, this is the last thing they need. [sources: The Wireless Report]

Verizon Business VoIP
Verizon Business is targeting the international business market with their full offering of VoIP related products and services, which includes a Managed IP PBX, local languages, local ringtones and more. The current focus is on the European market. [via Press XTWorld]

Telecoms Trigger Canadian Stock Market Dive?

Telus Corp. and BCE Inc. (parent of Bell Canada) had recently announced that they planned to convert themselves into income trusts so that shareholders would receive larger untaxed earnings yearly. Telus and Bell Canada are Canada's two largest telecoms, and many pension funds have shares in either or both. But not long after their "income trust" announcements, Jim Flaherty, Finance Minister of the current Conservative government, announced new tax plans on income trusts, which reputedly triggered a Cdn$20+ billion meltdown in the Canadian stock market last week. The stocks of both companies dived between 11-13%, wiping out the value of some pension funds.

My Phone Is Red Hot; Your Phone Ain't Diddly Squat

Patrick Barnard of TMCNet asks how much are you willing to pay for fast wireless mobile broadband? Lucent Technologies has done research that shows that both consumers and businesses are willing to pay a premium. The United States and Canada have only recently started rolling out 3G (third-generation) services such as HSPA (HSUPA/ HSDPA - or supa-dupa, as I call it) and EV-DO wireless broadband networks, whereas these are already available in other parts of the world.

But Russell Shaw (who seems to have cloned himself for other blogs) writes at IP Networked (a new GigaOm web property) that he's skeptical of EV-DO, mainly because market analysis shows that many 3G phone users "fail to understand [3G service] benefits." He says that he is actually subscribing to EV-DO service through SprintNextel, which gives him a discounted rate, but that ROI for him specifically might not be worth it.

For me, EV-DO is only a backup, at present. As an onine-based freelancer writer/ technoblogger, I need a "plan B" in case I have any problems with my cable broadband access, or in case I cannot find Wi-Fi network for my laptop if I'm mobile. While it's expensive and I cannot exceed a maximum of 250Mb/month bandwidth. But given that my revenue would disintegrate without it, if I couldn't otherwise access the Internet, it's worth every cent. And I can probably write it off as a legitimate expense against earnings. It's also good for me, since I plan to move next year, and having had lousy response time from cable installers in the past. EV-DO for me is a security blanket, albeit one that could be less tattered and a bit more comfortable - especially in the area of mobile VoIP, which it sucks badly in, at least on the Palm Treo.

Voice Applications: You'd Better Recognize

One hot voice application space that will be useful in biometrics is voice recognition [Unified Communications]. It's likely less disconcerting to users than, say, fingerprinting, palm vein scans, or facial recognition. This type of app has been around for quite some years, but accurate voice recognition has been waiting expectantly, ready to be called upon - something that's only now happening due to more powerful computers. And there is the potential to use it in mobile phones in the future - at least in my estimation.

To my knowledge, voice biometrics is hypothesized as being accurate - i.e., that human voices are unique enough that they can be used for user authentication purposes in mobile payment, secure access, or other applications. If this is indeed true, or at least sufficient for most authentication purposes, say coupled with a verbally-administered PIN code or password, then all that remains is the horsepower needed for mobile handsets. We live in interesting times.

Putting Your Best Face Forward

If what Ken Camp is saying in Advances in 3G mobile solutions include facial recognition in video, you might want to make sure that you wake up on the right side of the bed. Imagine: your hair is mess, you're bleary-eyed, and depending on your inclination, your face is either unshaven or unmade. And guess what? Your mobile phone doesn't recognize you and won't let you place a call. Damn biometric machines. Always thinking for themselves and getting it wrong.

Of course, I'm exaggerating. You don't have to worry about video calling etiquette for video-based facial authentication. But there are experiments going on that use facial biometrics to control functions on a mobile phone. This includes more important functionality such as contactless payment, access control, and identification. The biggest problem I see with this, which Ken also points out, is environmental conditions (such as darkness) that might give an inaccurate biometric and thus lock you out. It'll probably take a few years for DoCoMo and others to work these issues out. But if they succeed, we'll certainly live in interesting mobile times.

VoIP Systems For Chicago Public Schools

While public schools in Washington state are only using VoIP for their Electrocom intercom system, all of the nearly 700 public schools in Chicago, Illinois, are being converted over to VoIP phone lines over a four-year period by Mitel Networks. Because the new system can pinpoint the room that a call is made from, it will comply with state regulations for e-911 emergency calling. Teachers will also have voicemail, caller ID, and other features. This is considered to be the largest VoIP conversion of any school system in the US.

So you kids better watch out. Who needs parent-teacher night to discuss your troublemaking bottom if those "other features" allow IM chatting between your teacher and parents. But seriously this is good news for VoIP equipment and service providers. In fact, Mitel claims that 95% of all telecom systems they now install are VoIP-based (though not all of their customers are necessarily schools). Rauland-Borg is another player in the school VoIP market.

VoIP Roundup - Mon Nov 06/06

Electrocom VoIP Intercom
First there the VoIP-based home security alarm systems from InnovAlarm, Alarm.com, and others. Now there is Electrocom's VoIP intercom, which they're promoting as a "safety and security solution" for K-12 schools in the US state of Washington. Since data cabling already exists in these schools, installation is minimal. They system works in hands-free mode and allows two-way communication as well as facility-wide paging. [PRWeb via Yahoo News]

Pairing iBlue Mac Mini PBX And Snom VoIP Phones
The iBlue IP PBX from 4s newcom, which is essentially integrated into an Apple Mac Mini, will work with new VoIP phones from snom. Now that's sort of expected considering that 4s newcom is a spinoff of snom. In March of 2005, snom had announced that they were offering a mini IP PBX that could fit into a briefcase.

MyNetFone Satellite VoIP
I've previously commented that satellite VoIP stands little chance against other types of VoIP service. Though I have limited choices for my Internet connection, it actually never occurred to me that there is a market for whom satellite-based Internet, and thus VoIP, would actually be the only option. MyNetFone must have realized this too, when deciding to offer satellite-based VoIP service to rural parts of Australia. ISPhone, by the way, is another Australian satellite-based VoIP service.

UAE To Lift VoIP Ban?

VoIP services have been blocked in the recent past in a number of countries in the Middle East. One of them, Jordan, recently reversed their decision and will unblock Skype in particular. The UAE (United Arab Emirates), however, have held to their ban.

Word is that this ban may be lifted by the TRA (Telecommunications Regulatory Authority). The UAE is blocking Skype and other VoIP services in some of the Emirates, including Dubai. On the other hand, other reports indicate that the TRA has claimed they are not ready to lift the ban just yet. They may be working with Etislalat and Du to license VoIP, but other services, including Skype, would probably remained blocked. That is, mostly legacy/ incumbent telecom providers would be allowed.

Seems to me like the status quo just found a way to remain the status quo - at least in small countries where the powers that be can gain something by blocking and selectively unblocking VoIP. The question is, are they doing this to gain monetarily or so that all calls can be monitored discreetly somewhere in a warehouse? Not to say that larger countries don't do they very same thing, but they don't block VoIP for the entire nation. The interesting thing, if I've understood correctly, is that a very large percentage of the UAE populace is made of foreigners (to them). So having affordable long distance rates to call friends and family is of high importance.

In short, for most people, especially fans of VoIP and VoIM clients such as Skype, AIM, MSN Messenger or Yahoo Messenger, there's no hope for their unblocking in the near future in the UAE.

[sources: Gulf News, TradeArabia, 7Days, VoIP News AU]

Nokia Opens US Mobile Apps Research Center

Palo Alto, California, is the home of the new Nokia Research Center. Nokia has a three-agreement with Stanford University to jointly work on research projects for "collaborative mobile computing and applications". The four areas that their research will focus on are:

• Context-aware content and communities.
• Wireless grids.
• Advanced user interfaces and visual media.
• Innovation radio and sensor networks.

Nokia recently bought an RFID company, and with research into wireless grids and sensor networks, it's possible that they will work on crowdsensing applications. In such apps, each mobile phone would have an RFID chip capable of sensing some environmental condition, such as moisture or heat. Each handset would be a node on a wide grid. If such apps are feasible they could revolutionize local/ regional weather reporting, possibly even traffic reporting.

The research center will initially employ 35 researchers, with plans to expand to 100 or more. Nokia recently introduced a new wireless protocol called Wibree, which is a low-power connectivity protocol designed for small objects and possibly mobile phones. Whether Wibree will play a role in the Palo Alto research center is unclear. They have also been planning VoIP on their line of mobile phones for quite some time.

[additional sources: Press.XTVWorld]

Need To Block Skype?

VoIP Telephony Service blog has a list of six ways to block Skype using a variety of products and methods, plus a reference from another blog about a seventh. Most of the methods detect and block P2P (Peer-to-Peer) traffic, so it wouldn't be just Skype that's being blocked, but also torrents and other related applications. It appears that part of the fear regarding Skype is that customers are not sure what Skype is doing because its streams are encrypted. (At least, that's what the VoIP Planet article that is quoted is saying. Tom Keating also has an article from last year with some more indepth info about blocking Skype.

This is sort of what I was trying to get at when when I said that Skype was ruffling feathers. I love Skype just as much as the next Skype lover (and SightSpeed and a few other apps as well). But their lack of an open standard, as well as their relative popularity, is going to ruffle feathers. Phil Wolff gave a good explanation of why there are feathers being ruffled.

Ahead Of The VoIP Call Center Curb

While some call centers are still considering the use of VoIP, others are already on it. CampusUSA Credit Union installed their VoIP call center system five years ago, and did it in a single weekend. [SearchCRM] The key thing to rapid VoIP deployment is having a plan, of course - knowing what quirks to expect. While companies that have no phone system at all have an easier time of a switch over to VoIP, a relatively quick install can be done.

Small companies have an advantage. But larger companies and/or those with existing phone systems can reduce deployment time - whether for a call center or just a business IP telephony system. If you treat a VoIP system install as a software project, then planning and design should be 50-80% of the time spent. Do you know what network capacity you will need? Peak support hours? Backup systems? Call recording requirements? Start with a list of your required functionality and go from there.

VoIP Support Services Market To Grow

New research from IDC suggests  [CertCities] that the VoIP support services market will reach nearly US$1.3B by 2010. The growth will come partly from the use of non-proprietary VoIP software, which a single company will not have a stranglehold on in terms of services.

This would suggest that OSS (open source software) IP PBXes such as Asterisk will have a huge role to play in the coming years. Since the cost of startup is so much lower for IP telephony, there is likely to be a boom in the number of companies offering plug-and-play add-ons for Asterisk and other OSS VoIP solutions, as well as support. And since the support can be conducted using the solutions themselves (voice calling, video calling), support costs are lowered as well. Look into the future, and voice-recognition -activated animated avatars might be handling the support calls.

Nortel To Provide IP Telephony For NY Times

Nortel has been selected by the New York Times to outfit their new headquarters in Times Square for Spring 2007. Nortel will be setting up the IP communications system and VoIP phones for use by reporters and editors for collaboration through audio conferencing sessions. Services include unified messaging and audio conferencing. [via TMC Net]

The Times recently ran a piece on Wi-Fi VoIP phones, with the most prominent conclusion being that most of them were hard to configure. No indication is given of whether NY Times staff will be using such Wi-Fi handsets. Of course, if the new system supports video calling - something like SightSpeed - to allow reporters to interview people remotely,  that might up the ante. The NY Times website already uses some video content. With the web levelling the playing field between TV broadcasters and print newspapers, video content such as the way MTV uses it would be interesting to see on a newspaper's website.

Skype Employee Defections

Andy Abramson points to Om Malik's reflection about pre-eBay Skype employees that have been leaving recent - some of them highly placed. Not to be a cynic or rain on anyone's parade, but when a huge company takes over another company that wasn't as profit-driven, shakeouts are normal.

Having worked or consulted for many large companies since the early 1990s - including a large telecom- I've seen this happen over and over. There are always people who liked things the way they were and either cannot or do not want to be part of the change. There's nothing wrong with that. Doesn't anyone remember that Skype's URL used to be skype.org - a TLD often but not always associated with "no profit". At least, I don't remember the .com before eBay took over, but I could be wrong.

Now eBay paid a lot of money for Skype - what was it, US$2.6B? And eBay wants Skype to pay off. Well, I've worked in companies that had 20 employees and left after they a hundred. The atmosphere always changes. And telephony and pure Internet companies end up being quite competitive in atmosphere.

VoIP Roundup - Wed Nov 01/06

What TalkPlus Offers
Ken Camp gives an indepth explanation of why TalkPlus is important. They're the mobile VoIP company that just received over US$5M in venture capital. They offer the ability to have multiple phone numbers

You Lose Some, You Win Some
Last year in Q3, Qwest Communications bore a loss in their revenue. This year in Q3, they showed a profit. Earnings were just under US$200M. Verizon Communications also showed a Q3 profit of over 10 times that of Qwest, coming in at US$2B.

Belize: More Skype Blocking
Phil at Skype Journal reports that Belize Telecommunications in Belize (Central America) is interfering with Skype. They have not implemented a full-out block, but some users have witnessed Skype being blocked once in a while.

Anothr.com RSS Reader For Skype

If you don't know what RSS is you're not alone. Instead of giving you a discourse on it, you can go read about RSS at Wikipedia. Some people call them "web feeds" or "news feeds". If you do know RSS/ Atom web feeds, well anothr.com let's you read them from Skype.

I tried it out last week, before Jaanus mentioned it on the Skype blogs. While it functions fine, it rings you up as an incoming call whenever there's a new headline and associated story text to display. This is fine for web feeds that don't have a lot of articles posted, but it could be a disruptive for busier websites. As Jaanus points out, this method isn't for the professional blog reader, who would subscribe to multiple feeds (I read/ browse/ scan the web feeds of over 900 web sites each week or so).

By the way, Asterisk, the open source IP PBX software, has an RSS add-on that reads you one minute headlines/ summaries over Asterisk-based VoIP phone.