AT&T network rings dead

A major American phone system operator suffered from a dead network in more than 20 US states.
The AT&T Inc system failed for four hours last Tuesday preventing customers from making their usual voice calls over an internet connection.
An AT&T spokeswoman Mari Melguizo said: “The outage started at about 10.30am but the service was restored to most subscribers at 2.45pm. However the full extent of the outage is unknown.”
The network failure highlights possible problems with relying on Voice over Internet Protocol
A crashed server meant that the whole internet phoning system was rendered ineffectual.Customers who were trying to use AT&T’s U Verse VoIP phone service were greeted with no dial tone.
The problem was created by an IP network failure in the United States. There are an estimated 1.15 million AT&T U Verse Voice customers.

VoIP creates huge company savings

An American company is saving a staggering $20,000 per month by using VoIP instead of a traditional office phone system.

Aquent is a recruitment firm based in Boston and the company decided that its previous phone system had become outdated and turned instead to a VoIP solution.

Not only is the company now saving on the cost of each and every phone call but the VoIP telephone system requires no training to implement or costly maintenance.

An Aquent spokesperson said: “There have been many benefits of switching to VoIP but one of the main pluses is integrating all forms of communication within the company."

With the VoIP system employees can now send voicemails in the form of email attachments or engage in video conferencing, which is ideal for communicating with their colleagues who are working from home.

Skype hesitant about developing mobile software for Windows Phone 7

The Skype Asia and Pacific Vice President said at a meeting in Sydney that the VoIP company would not be developing mobile software for the Windows Phone 7.
The announcement followed news that the internet calling provider has scrapped its Windows Mobile app, saying that the OS was not up to standard.
A Skype spokesperson commented: "We try and focus on where the best experience is, not only where the need is. We feel that Skype can best develop by serving its existing operating systems – Android, Symbian, BlackBerry and iPhone.
Skype qualified this hesitancy by adding: “We are giving consideration to developing a Skype app for Windows Phone 7 but the question is how quickly we’re going to get around to it. We feel that the best areas for us to develop are on the operating systems that we currently support.”
Skype is currently the world’s most successful VoIP calling application and it has more than 520 million users worldwide. Skype has just released new low-cost calling plans as well as a beta Skype 5.0 version which allows five way video calling.
Industry analysts have seen Skype’s rejection of the Microsoft app as a serious blow to the Microsoft’s hopes of infiltrating the smartphone market.

NTA creates VoIP solution for mobile phones

The UK VoIP provider is to launch the True Mobile VoIP solution which gives customers VoIP flexibility through the use of a SIM.
The VoIP solution is expected to reduce costs for NTA mobile users. The company gives VoIP access without relying on WiFi, a SIP client or VoIP software.
NTA Managing Director Paul White said: “We will now be able to take our customer’s existing mobile phone and make it an extension of the NTA network.
“This pioneering move means mobile phones can now have the same impressive functionality as an office-based VoIP system.”
Mr White added that NTA is the first VoIP provider to offer pure-play VoIP for mobile customers, in addition to Mobile VoIP Extensions which do not have area limitations or expensive mobile forwarding charges.
Various different telephone numbers can be assigned to the NTA SIM card, whether they are mobile or landline numbers. The SIM gives many of the traditional benefits associated with VoIP such as call recording, call transfer and fax to email capabilities.
The service will cost £7.99 per month (plus £0.99 for number hosting) when it is launched on May 28, 2010.

CallTower forges Unified Communications partnership with InterCall

A leading provider of Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) has partnered with the one of the world's largest collaboration services and conferencing providers InterCall.
The partnership will combine the audio conferencing expertise of InterCall with CallTower’s UCaaS in order to deliver cost savings, reliability and productivity to businesses.
Executive VP of InterCall Unified Communications Services, Bob Wise, said: "Many SMBs are interested in the benefits of increased productivity and cost savings which are delivered by Unified Communications.
“However, they are worried about complicated implementations, hardware expenses and the daily management requirements.
"This solution provides an easy, low cost and scalable Unified Communications service to meet market needs."
The Hosted Unified Communications Service includes central hosting and the management of Microsoft® Office Communicator r2, Blackberry Enterprise Server, Microsoft® Exchange, Cisco Unified Communications Manager, and Microsoft® SharePoint.
Executive VP of sales, business development and marketing at CallTower, Bob Barnes, said: "Our move from being the number 1 conferencing provider to the number 1 collaboration provider is a natural process that reflects market progress.”

Blackberry uses PBX and WiFi support to give employees central contact point

The BlackBerry Mobile Voice System 5 (MVS5) employs PBX and WiFi support to allow workers to use their landline phone number and extension from their BlackBerry smartphone.
They can also receive and make calls, or look up corporate directory numbers on their home WiFi network using their BlackBerry mobile device.

BlackBerry MVS5 calls are routed through a Private Branch Exchange (PBX) which is supplied by Cisco Systems. The PBX connects telephone extensions from inside and outside the corporation. The result is a product similar to Google Voice where you can have one number for all your calls.

The impressive new product will be available from all major American stores this summer including Wal-Mart. It was originally unveiled by RIM, the maker of Blackberry, at its Wireless Enterprise Symposium.

In a press release RIM said: "With MVS5 employees are now more accessible via their work number and also enjoy the convenience of extension dialling from their BlackBerry smartphone. Furthermore they have the flexibility to move calls from their BlackBerry to their desk phone."

By putting calls through to both the BlackBerry and the desk phone, employees stay connected with colleagues. And when mobile workers use WiFi for mobile calls they actually save their companies international roaming charges and long-distance fees.

BlackBerry MVS 5 includes BlackBerry MVS Server, which enables communication between PBX and the BlackBerry Enterprise Server.
There is also a BlackBerry MVS smartphone client software application which can be distributed over the air to BlackBerry smartphones through BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Android points the way with new sat nav system

Sat navs may soon be a thing of the past given the advances in smartphone technology.
The Android platform is the latest operating system to make use of Google’s maps and provide drivers with a step-by-step guide to their route.
Android provides a free download from the Google Maps market which is easy to download.



Then, by clicking ‘Navigate’, the phone downloads the entire route you wish to take (so having a signal is not necessary during your trip).
Previously only available in the United States of America, Google Maps can now be accessed by Android users in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Owners of HTC Desire, Nexus One or Motorola Milestone phones with version 1.6 of the Android operating system or above can make use of the maps technology, though it is still only in Beta.

Probably the biggest advance is a compatibility with Google Street view which allows you to actually see the street you should be driving down as you look for the turning. You can then use real pictures of buildings or landmarks as a reference. Google Street view can be brought up with a simple double tap on the screen.
Utilising both touch-screen technology and the latest in voice-recognition, the Android can find exactly which address, shop or business you are looking for.
As the system is web-based the latest maps are always available, unless you have signalling problems. There could also be high costs for people using their Androids abroad.

Also, if you enter a generic term such as ‘hotel’ it will come up with advertised hotels nearby. This could disrupt the advertising revenue streams currently employed by sat nav companies.
The phone system can also deliver live traffic updates using a colour-coded system to tell you whether certain roads are jammed.