VoIP Monitor - VoIP Bloggers

FreedomVOICE Recommends VoIP Expert Profiles to Follow on Twitter

VoIP Monitor — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:50:23 GMT

FreedomVOICE announces 25 VoIP and hosted VoIP experts to follow on Twitter. The list of VoIP and hosted VoIP experts can be found on the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP Blog. VoIP and hosted VoIP experts abound on Twitter. But where do you turn to find these inspired few? You can try your luck on search.twitter.com or other engines. You can dig through popular Twitter profile followers. Or, you can look at top Twitter profile lists.

FreedomVOICE has created this VoIP expert Twitter profile list to help tech enthusiasts find valuable profiles to follow on Twitter. Each of the Twitter profiles listed here reports on VoIP and/or tech news and offers valuable information. Visit the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP Blog to see the recommended VoIP and hosted VoIP profiles on Twitter.

If FreedomVOICE has not mentioned an expert you enjoy following, or if you are a VoIP or hosted VoIP expert yourself, please add your Twitter profile information to the blog by leaving a comment.

FreedomVOICE would like to welcome all VoIP and tech enthusiast to post their Twitter profile information to the blog. Through doing this, FreedomVOICE hopes to connect like minded individuals and enhance the Twitter experience.

Visit the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP Blog to see who made the list and add your own Twitter profile!

FreedomVOICE Announces New Blog and Nationwide Business Tip Contest

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 17:13:06 GMT

FreedomVOICE announced the launch of a nationwide contest to find the most valuable small business tip. FreedomVOICE will be holding the small business tip contest on the new FreedomVOICE Blog.

“The new FreedomVOICE Blog will be a vibrant area for company and industry news, discussion, and frequently asked questions,” says Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE. “But overall, the main purpose of the blog is to act as a resource for small businesses across the nation. We are holding this small business tip contest on the new FreedomVOICE Blog to open up the floor for constructive dialogue.”

To enter a small business tip in the FreedomVOICE Small Business Tip Contest, all an individual has to do is leave a comment with the small business tip they are submitting on the “FreedomVOICE Small Business Tip Contest” blog. Business tips must be less than 200 words and should be geared towards businesses with 50 employees or less. The user who submits the top business tip will be awarded an HP Mini 110-1012NR XP Edition 10.1" Widescreen Netbook Computer. Winners will be announced on the FreedomVOICE Blog on October 20th.

FreedomVOICE encourages users to visit the “FreedomVOICE Small Business Tip Contest” blog to submit their business tip, and to visit the FreedomVOICE Blog home page to browse other blog topics such as social media, marketing tips, company news, and virtual office service.

Those interested in becoming a guest blogger on the FreedomVOICE Blog should contact the media representative listed at the bottom of this release.

GigaOM Announces Mobilize LaunchPad Winners

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 18:16:04 GMT

GigaOM announces the winners of the Mobile LaunchPad, which recognizes the 10 best mobile startups of the year, at Mobilize 09. The companies honored as LaunchPad winners for the best mobile startups include:

Distimo - Analytic engine for all app storefronts
Glympse - Social updates of your location with universal location
IQ Engines - Auto labeling of images
Locle - Location services enabler for social apps
Metaio - Augmented reality platform for mobiles
Ondeego - Platform and storefront for enterprise apps
Pageonce - Real time travel plan management
SquareConnect - Your mobile as a remote control
Toktumi - Second number and PBX on your iPhone
Waze - Social mobile generated traffic updates

Candidates for Mobilize LaunchPad are chosen from several groups, including Mobile Web & Enterprise; Mobile Broadband; and Mobile Lifestyle Enabler Apps. To qualify, companies must have a sustainable business plan that attracts venture funding and be less than 18 months old.

"The competition for these awards was so intense that at one point we had 15 winners! It was quite a challenge to cut it down to 10." says Surj Patel, Mobilize 09 Conference Chair. "There is no doubt that these companies are amongst some of the brightest opportunities in the mobile space today, and we're proud to recognize them."

Winners will present their companies live on the Launchpad at Mobilize 09 on Sept. 10. The one-day conference, which is held in San Francisco, draws venture capitalists, investors and C-level executives from around the world.

Mobilize 09 will feature two keynote speakers: Dr. Sanjay K. Jha, Co-CEO of Motorola Inc. and CEO of Mobile Devices, who will present his first public address since joining the company; and Cole Brodman, CTO and Innovation Officer with T-Mobile. Leaders from more than 45 other top companies - including INQ, Qualcomm, HP, Intel, Cisco, Sony Ericsson, AT&T, Microsoft, and Dell - also appear in the lineup.

The cost of the conference is $545, with groups of five or more receiving discounted rates. For more information about Mobilize 09 or to purchase tickets, visit .

FreedomVOICE Announces 2009 FreedomIQ VoIP Phone Buyer's Guide

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 16:28:08 GMT

FreedomVOICE released a premier VoIP phone buyer's guide for the FreedomIQ service. The guide will help decision makers select the best VoIP phone for their business.

“There are literally hundreds of VoIP phones to choose from,” says Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE. “This buyer’s guide lists our most popular phones and gives business owners the information they need to make an informed decision.”

The guide takes a close look at 7 VoIP phones recommended by FreedomVOICE for the FreedomIQ service. In addition to providing product shots and a full range of information on each phone, many of the phones featured in the online guide offer a video review. No matter what VoIP phone capabilities a business is looking for, the VoIP Phone Buyer's Guide has an option to support that business.

“This year’s lineup of VoIP phones is the best we’ve ever had to offer. Our goal is to stay on the cutting edge so our customers have the best equipment and features available right at their fingertips,” says Thomas.

With a dedication to quality, FreedomVOICE has long been recognized as an authority in VoIP equipment, call quality, and customer service. Due to this, the company only selects top-of-the-line products to integrate with the award-winning FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP PBX. The 2009 FreedomIQ VoIP Phone Buyer's Guide provides business owners with an opportunity to look at quality VoIP phones to use with the exceptional FreedomIQ service.

Check out the 2009 FreedomIQ VoIP Phone Buyer's Guide to find the perfect VoIP phone for your business.

FreedomIQ VoIP Blog Q&A - Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth 3

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 17:22:42 GMT

In last week’s segment of “Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth,” David Byrd, VP of Marketing and Sales at Broadvox and Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE, provided valuable answers to questions on security, bandwidth, equipment, and costs.

This week, we bring you the final segment of the 3part series. Read the Q&A below to hear Byrd and Thomas respond to questions on SIP trunking, best practices for shopping an IP-PBX, the main benefits of the two technologies, and the best system for each business.

Moderator: The first two questions are for David Byrd. David, Broadvox provides the service, not the equipment. So what tips can you offer to distinguish between the different SIP trunking providers?

Byrd: Our engineering and customer service really set us apart from other SIP Trunking providers. Our personnel are credited with being able to do things that other carriers can’t or won’t do. What has allowed the company to grow even during these times at double-digit rates has a lot to do with the investment we put into our network two years ago. Our network reliability has improved by almost a full 9 and our voice quality has improved as well. In general, IP networks have improved substantially.

If you’re in this business as a real player then improvements in infrastructure and quality are the kinds of investments you’re making. Many VoIP companies are not making these kinds of investments. They are buying time on other networks or standing pat with their network infrastructure. They are not investing in QoS, they’re not investing in engineering, and after awhile customers figure that out.

Moderator: If I’m a business’s owner and I’ve decided that I want to go the IP-PBX route, how do I shop that? What do I look for?

Byrd: The first thing that I try to get my guys to ask is, “What type of PBX is the customer working with?” If we have not done operability testing with that equipment, then we should not be trying to sell them service. It’s extremely important.

If it’s a TDM platform, then we have to inform them that they have to buy additional gear. But if it’s an IP-PBX then we need to know the maker of that PBX. The good news is we interoperate with more IP-PBXs than any other service provider in the country. Encountering incompatible IP-PBXs doesn’t happen very often, but we still have to say no to certain platforms.

The next step is to find out how many lines the client currently has, in terms of phone lines, not end users, and then we will try to draw a match against our local calling plan with unbundled minutes or our local and long distance plan which is bundled in one price. We find most small businesses tend to go with our unlimited local calling plan and purchase long distance separately. But the “GO!Anywhere Trunk” does address a certain audience; probably 1 in 3 businesses don’t want to worry about the cost of their long distance bill. If that is the case, then they can get local and long distance with a GO!Anywhere package.

Next, there is the question regarding connectivity. Existing connectivity needs to be tested to ensure it works properly. If you’re using a carrier who is going to sell you service without testing Internet connectivity then you are dealing with someone who does not have quality as one of their key criteria.

The final step is the issue of voice quality. We try to get people to understand that if they want to cut costs they can use G.729. People can use G.729 to compress up to 48 calls on to a single T1. Otherwise, we’ll start with G.711. If they’ve got sufficient broadband and it’s not going to mean additional costs we’ll support 18 calls per T1. But if it looks like they are going to have unnecessary T1s or bonded T1s then we’ll recommend G.729. That is saving $300 to $400 a month in terms of connectivity and most people can’t hear any difference between the two codecs.

Moderator: This question is addressed to both of you. Overall, what are the main benefits of the solution you provide?

Byrd: On the benefit side, moving to an IP-PBX platform is going to reduce costs. The platform is the next generation for telecommunications services and cross departmental application services. Overall, a converged network will make it simpler to manage your communications and transition to unified communications.

Thomas: I think the benefits are the same for hosted. I think you’re reducing your costs. You are no longer just getting a phone system, you’re getting a suite of applications which help your business run smarter and be a lot more productive. Also, the tools the system provides will let you monitor what your employees are doing. Those are all critical business issues if you ask me. The nature of VoIP and the fact that you can process the information centrally lets you create something that is a much bigger resource to the company than making and receiving calls.

Moderator: Who would you recommend your solution to and what should business owners keep in mind when making a hosted or IP-PBX phone system purchase?

Byrd: Clearly, small businesses should be looking at hosting services. They should be examining it for multiple reasons: rates of expansions for their business, because it can be more flexible, etc. I’ll be blunt; if you buy a platform that can accept no more than a T1 and your business grows quickly, you’re going to be stuck. It’s not for everyone to go out and buy an IP-PBX. We also talked about just having the technological skills, of being able to select, install and manage your system. Therefore, I think it’s clear that small businesses need to examine their existing IT and growth curve of their business and make a decision based on that.

It becomes less complicated the bigger you get. If you already have an IT infrastructure and you already have all of these capabilities it’s less of a question as to whether or not you want to outsource. The decision becomes strategic rather based upon capabilities. Strategic decisions can be driven by a number of business factors several of which we described earlier.

Thomas: I think it comes down to whether or not you want to take on that responsibility and what your company makeup and situation is. Do you have the desire and resources to put towards managing the equipment?

Originally when we started off with the hosted PBX platform I expected that the largest companies would shy away from it, and that we’d mostly have an uptake with the smaller companies. What I’ve seen is that now there is a trend towards larger companies using the hosted service. So from my point of view I recommend the service to anybody to at least evaluate and see if it’s the right fit for them.

FreedomIQ VoIP Blog Q&A - Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth 2

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 21:49:34 GMT

In last week’s segment of “Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth,” David Bryd, VP of Marketing and Sales at Broadvox and Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE, address technical differences, common road blocks, and the issue of company size.

This week, the two VoIP industry leaders provide valuable answers to questions on security differences, bandwidth, equipment, and costs. One again, David Byrd will be representing premised based VoIP and Eric Thomas will be representing hosted VoIP.

Read this exciting interview addressing real issues with hosted vs. premise based business VoIP system below.

Moderator: Security is a major concern in any company. Are there security differences between a hosted and premise based system? What security differences should business owners consider when making purchasing decisions?

Thomas: I think the simple answer is that whenever you have more equipment in-house you have more security issues. That’s my perspective on it. So you need someone who is really going to pay attention to the details like changing passwords from default passwords, shutting down ports that aren’t going to be in use, etc., whereas in a hosted environment these things are taken care of for you.

Byrd: When mixing phone calls within a data network there is very little opportunity for eavesdropping once the calls reach us. The issue is really the connection between the customer and us. We get a lot of questions about what can we do to provide better security, but there are steps customers need to take with regard to their firewall, virus protection and internal security. So, it really puts the responsibility back on the customer to secure their system and it indicates that the company should have a given level of expertise to secure it properly.

Moderator: Does bandwidth become an issue when switching to VoIP? How does each of your products deal with bandwidth?

Byrd: To me the issue of bandwidth seems to be about the same for both technologies. If you have good bandwidth then the service will work well.

Thomas: Where I see the difference is with companies that support remote workers. Really the issue of how much bandwidth you need is about the same for either implementation. But what you do have to consider is the level of bandwidth being used at all the different company locations and you have to trouble shoot any issues that come up. It’s really in trouble shooting the issues that come with bandwidth and connectivity where the two technologies differ. Because with hosted, you have an expert team to help you with those issues and with premise based you have to deal with these issues internally.

Moderator: Obviously premise based and hosted systems require different equipment. What type of equipment is needed for each and how does the installation process work?

Byrd: When we’re talking about a premise based system, in addition to the phone infrastructure, routers and so forth which are common to either premise or hosted, you need a PBX and may or may not need an integrated access device or media gateway. Those would be the larger more capital extensive components. In nearly all cases, you’re not going to have those installed by the customer. You’re going to have a third party installing them.

Thomas: On the hosted side of things, in terms of how you set up your network, I feel like it would be fairly similar. The big difference comes when you have to put phones at locations. What’s nice about hosted is that all you need are the phones and an internet connection, everything else is outsourced to the hosted provider. So the install is significantly simpler, and so is the equipment required.

Moderator: What are the main costs associated with your product?

Thomas: So in the hosted situation you’re basically bundling the system and the service. The cost is a little bit of equipment, you have to pay for phones upfront unless you’re using a rental program or already have them on hand, and then the ongoing service which includes your unlimited domestic long distance and local calls.

When you’re talking about hosted, you have to be careful you don’t shop it on price only. There are a lot of people out there with low price offerings that are selling mostly on price, but their service is most likely not business phone quality, and you don’t want that representing your company.

There are really three types of business VoIP service as far as pricing is concerned. You have the lowest cost product being a hosted service with poor quality sound. Next you have a medium priced hosted service which sounds just like the public telephone network or better, and then the highest class being the IP-PBX which will sound similar to the public switched telephone network.

Byrd: I’m not sure about pricing on the hardware side because it is not what we do. We don’t sell the equipment, we offer the service and various calling plans.

The pricing of our service depends on what a business needs. Regarding our costs for supporting businesses with a normal level of calling, I think we have a very aggressive price for unlimited local and long distance service. We service call centers and customer support organizations too, which have a much greater demand in terms of capacity and usage. We offer them a different kind of product. The product pricing is between retail and wholesale. It’s a product meant for heavy use and high capacity. Our service offerings have the ability to adapt and work well for a variety of business models. The value we bring is the service we put behind the product.

Check back next week for the final segment of this 3part series when Byrd and Thomas reveal ways to distinguish between SIP trunking providers, tell us how to shop an IP-PBX, explain the main benefits of the two technologies, and recommend the perfect system for each business demographic.

FreedomIQ VoIP Blog Q&A - Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 18:16:37 GMT

FreedomVOICE, creators of the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP PBX, announce that Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE, and David Byrd, VP of Sales and Marketing at Broadvox, have provided honest answers to tough questions on VoIP technology. The enlightening Q&A will be featured on the new FreedomIQ VoIP Blog.

When asked about the motive behind this dialogue, Eric Thomas had this to say: “Everyone buying business VoIP phone systems these days is faced with the same issue, how to choose between a hosted and premise based PBX. This presents a daunting task for anyone trying to wade through the mountain of information available on the web. But choosing is simpler than you think if you focus on the real issues, and that is what we’re addressing here.”

Acting as the hosted VoIP representative, Eric Thomas, CEO of FreedomVOICE, has more than 13 years of experience in the development of virtual office solutions and more than 8 years of experience in VoIP. The popular FreedomVOICE business VoIP solution is known as the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP PBX.

Representing premise based VoIP, David Byrd, VP of Sales and Marketing at Broadvox, has over 20 years of telecom sales and marketing experience. Byrd has held numerous executive positions with companies such as Hewlett-Packard, Sprint, Ericsson, Telcordia, i2 Technologies and Planet Hollywood Online.

These two VoIP experts have no business relationship and have been asked to answer questions honestly and as unbiased as possible. The 1st segment of this 3part series will focus on big questions such as the main points of confusion and is a company’s size an issue when choosing between the VoIP systems? New segments will be posted each week.

Read the first segment of “Hosted VoIP vs. Premise Based VoIP: The Honest Truth.” Just posted!

FreedomVOICE Connects with Customers Launching New Blog for FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP PBX

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 18:06:42 GMT

FreedomVOICE announces the launch of the brand new FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP Blog. The blog will act as a resource for the VoIP industry. FreedomVOICE feels that the FreedomIQ Hosted VoIP PBX is the perfect product to be represented by a blog. Blogs are a tool for free expression, and this is something the company values as an integral part of their corporate culture.

Proving to be very knowledgeable in their online efforts, FreedomVOICE has also connected with their customers though LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.

In an effort to make the blog as interactive as possible, FreedomVOICE is allowing guest bloggers to supply content for the site. Guest bloggers should be familiar with the FreedomIQ product and have sufficient experience in the VoIP industry. If you are interested in becoming a guest blogger, contact the media contact listed at the bottom of the page.

SecureLogix CTO Mark Collier to Lead VoIP Security Panel Discussion at Fall VoiceCon

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:24:30 GMT

SecureLogix's CTO and VP of Engineering Mark Collier will moderate a panel discussion of the current state of VoIP security risks at the VoiceCon San Francisco conference and exhibition. The conference is being held Nov. 10–13 at the Moscone North Convention Center in San Francisco. Collier is a telephony security expert and co-author of the book Hacking Exposed: VoIP. He is also the author of the widely read VoIP Security Blog.

The panel discussion, entitled “Protecting Your Investment: Top VoIP Security Threats,” will be held on Nov 13, 2008 from 8:00–8:45 a.m. Mr. Collier will lead a discussion of the current state of VoIP security threats and the outlook for the future. As VoIP becomes more widely deployed in the enterprise, it will naturally become a tempting target for hackers. At the same time, enterprise VoIP systems will be affected by attacks that target the underlying IP infrastructure. The panel participants will discuss the most serious current voice network attacks, the likeliest threats for the near future, and how best to prioritize resources to defend against the likeliest threats to IP telephony systems to keep voice traffic up and running securely.

About Mark Collier

Mark Collier is CTO and VP of Engineering for SecureLogix Corporation, an enterprise telephony management and security company. Mr. Collier is responsible for technology research, development and related intellectual property, including a special focus on VoIP security solutions. In addition to his corporate R&D work, he has completed publicly funded research into current and future threats to VoIP systems, protocols and application services. Mr. Collier is a frequently quoted author and presenter on the topic of voice and VoIP security, and has co-authored a book on VoIP security entitled Hacking Exposed: VoIP. Mr. Collier is a founding member of the VoIP Security Alliance, an industry group focused on VoIP security education.

Packet8 Ad Shoots Down SunRocket

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 20:56:14 GMT

After hearing from Giga Om that Packet8 has been selected as the replacement VoIP service provider for SunRocket customers I immediately went to checkout Packet8's home page. Upon arrival I noticed their great little advertisement that you see here. I couldn't help but laugh and spread the word. You really get the warm fuzzy feeling that Packet8 has a lot of sympathy for SunRocket's implosion.

Just refresh to watch the entertaining animation again.

SunRocket VoIP Provider Implodes Creating a Dash for its Customers

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 17:40:18 GMT

As many have already heard, SunRocket has ceased operations and closed its doors. Many VoIP bloggers have been hinting at this outcome since early June. Well now it seems the vultures are out as Tom Keating writes SunRocket ceases, Vonage fights for the scraps. Should we be surprised? Not really and Vonage isn't the only one going after SunRockets customer base as Nuvio is now accelerating number porting for SunRocket customers in as little as 24 to 48 hours. Having noticed a recent increase in VoIP provider press releases trying to win over SunRocket's customer base and get them signed up, it would appear the hyenas have shown up to fight for whatever remains.

We provide a list of VoIP providers and services that allows you to make your own decision on what VoIP provider will best suit your needs. We also invite visitors to comment about their own personal experiences in dealing with VoIP providers.

Russell Shaw on ShoreTel's IPO

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 19:09:14 GMT

ShoreTel’s IPO should elevate their competitive posture in enterprise VoIP by ZDNet's Russell Shaw -- You may not have heard of ShoreTel, so some factoidness to get you started. I consider them a leader in the Enterprise VoIP space. ShoreTel 7 has some new features, including Programmable Toolbars that enable end users to execute telephony applications via the Personal Call Manager as well as the Contact Center. There’s also a new [...]

VoIP Monitor Speed Linking for 6-04-2007

VoIP Monitor — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 21:23:28 GMT

It's been awhile since I did some speed linking (link love) for the VoIP blogosphere. Soooo, here are some recent articles that caught my attention from some great VoIP bloggers.

Skype cuts SMS rates again [ blog.tmcnet.com/blog/tom-keating ]

Vodafone Offering Lower Prices For Mobile Data--VoIP Is A Maybe [ andyabramson.blogs.com ]

Court says VoIP companies must pay USF [ saunderslog.com ]

and

Federal Appeals Court Ruled that VoIP Providers Must Pay USF Fees [ solokay.blogspot.com ]

Linksys WIP320 Review [ www.smithonvoip.com ]

Attackers targets VoIP [ solokay.blogspot.com ]

iPhone vs Nokia N95 [ lucafiligheddu.blogspot.com ] also the iPhone release date is now 6/29/07 :(

Vonage VOIP to cost more? [ voipguides.blogspot.com ]

Everpeace EP-880: This VoIP phone cannot be tapped [ www.voip-weblog.com ]

VoIP Monitor Blogosphere News for 5-15-2007

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 15 May 2007 22:52:13 GMT

I was just doing a little catching up around the VoIP blogosphere and came across many great articles. So without further a due let's get to the good stuff and let VoIP Monitor keep you in the loop.

Fellow writer and friend Garrett Smith shares his insight on why the Skype - WalMart Deal Will Be a Flop.

Chris Hansen save the UK! SkypeJournal.com writes on, UK: Paedophiles use Skype to find and pursue likely targets. I think they meant Pedophiles, but I'd call them much worse.

VoIP Guide writes about a Jaduka hack to make free calls anywhere in the world in Best VOIP Solution for Free Calls.

I wanted to write on this article last week after I came across it over the Google newswire, however I simply ran out of time. The good news is voip-weblog.com has a great write up about it at Don't fall into the trap of VoIP Pyramid Scheme.

TheVOIPGirl shares Fring, Talkster, Nimbuzz and Barablu Reviewed.

And what would a VoIP blogosphere update be without the latest from Tom Keating? Well it just wouldn't as much fun, simple as that. Tom has a reminder of what summer fun used to be with a Slip 'n Slide and now the NEW Banzai Falls Twin Blast Rapids Waterslide. I couldn't help but think back to all the old neighborhood friends who broke bones on the WHAM-O Slip 'n Slide. Ahhh memories...

VoIP Monitor Speedlinking for 4-26-2007

VoIP Monitor — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 21:37:25 GMT

With today being 'Thirsty Thursday' hopefully these articles will help quench your thirst for some VoIP news. Just be sure to read in moderation.

Tricks and Tips: Use Skype as a Home Security System
Fring enables VOIP on N95
Senate committee extends E911 provisions to VoIP providers
Broadband Service Providers Face Wiretapping Deadline
Skype claims 10m Extras downloads
Free Wi-Fi for all in San Francisco

VoIP Monitor Speedlinking for 4-5-2007

VoIP Monitor — Thu, 05 Apr 2007 22:32:57 GMT

Just have time for a quick news roundup post today. So let's get right too it!

Looking For VoIP Values. Great tips to consider if your organization is looking into VoIP.
VoIP Supply Named ONE of WNY’s Best Places to Work. I keep in contact with Garrett Smith of VoIP Supply and I'm happy to pass along my congrats to VoIP Supply being named on of the best places to work!
Tom Keating has been busy this week with his thoughts on Vonage inks deal with VoIP Inc bypassing Verizon patent claim and Vonage NOT Saved by VoIP, Inc.
Review of KX-WP1050, the Latest Wi-Fi Phone from Panasonic.
Joost, not that cool and I agree. After beta testing it months ago I'm still not overly impressed with Joost.
India to ban VOIP -Skype, Yahoo, Vonage?
Gumiyo users brought closer with Jajah.

VoIP Monitor Speedlinking - 22 March 2007

VoIP Monitor — Thu, 22 Mar 2007 20:59:37 GMT

I'm always checking VoIP bloggers websites for the latest and greatest news to bring to my readers attention. Today while looking at Jeff Pulver's blog it appears he's rolled out the red carpet and taken up the roll of paparazzi at Spring VON 2007. He's provided us with many pictures of attendee's and a great inside look of the event.

While over looking these pictures I couldn't help myself when I ran across a Patrick Dempsey look-a-like. I don't know this gentleman’s name and I hope he doesn't mind me drawing the similarity. You decide 'does he or doesn't he' look like Patrick Dempsey of Grey's Anatomy?

In other VoIP speedlinking news:

VoIP Monitor Weekly News Roundup

VoIP Monitor — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 20:52:32 GMT

Since today's VoIP news is rather slow, but no slower than any other Friday. Why not provide a weekly roundup of what VoIP bloggers have been writing. Just incase you missed it.

Yesterday I did a quick post on Herb Greenberg's take on "The MagicJack" which included a nice video. It seems other VoIP bloggers were picking up on the same story and provided their take on the topic. Tom Keating writes, magicJack - New VoIP Player launches and Paul Kapustka of GigaOM in MagicJack, Simpler VoIP than Skype?

Skype made news this week as it tops 500 million downloads which reminded me of this post Digg Hits 750,000 Sock Puppets (Great image included). In other Skype news Andy Abramson has hinted at Is Skype Getting Sexy? and Gautam of voip-weblog.com on Skype Prime Beta - get paid for the calls.

Last but not least this weeks big news came yesterday when the "Vonage" hit the fan. Great titles referenced everything, but Anita Ward's "Ring my Bell" song.

Speedlinking VoIP News - 21 February 2007

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 10:27:54 GMT

GrandCentral is adding support for the free Gizmo Project Internet VoIP service scheduled to be announced later today.

Jyve, a maker of Skype plug-ins aims to take on Google with it's "ask engine". Where searches provide a live chat, instant message or phone call from a person with expertise on the searched topic.

Last but not least is yet another Verizon customer service horror story.

It's early so be sure to check back for the latest in VoIP news and hopefully I can expand on these stories more.

Early Valentines Day and Late VoIP News Roundup

VoIP Monitor — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 20:15:00 GMT

With Valentines Day just around the corner Tom Keating gives us a heads up on a Vonage-gram for Valentine's Day. I'd also like to point out a few more sweet innovative Valentine gifts for your loved one. Thanks to Fortune Small Business February 2007 for spotlighting these products made by small companies, incase you feel like helping out the little guy.

Plush Puffs Marshmallows: $8 for six as pictured in this post thanks for the image.
Little Flower's Candy's Sea Salt Caramels: $26 a pound.
Hammond's Candies' Lollipops: $15 for four.
The Popcorn Suite's Strawberry Shortcake: $24 for four boxes.

Alec Saunders writes that Pat Phelan’s AllFreeCalls, now in Ireland. AllFreeCalls.ie lets Irish residents make a local call, and then enter the number of the place they wish to call. It’s a two stage calling system, financed by termination revenues from the local telco.

VoIP news earlier this week featured 25 Skype hacks some you might not have known about.

I've been meaning to highlight Leanne Tremblay aka VOIPGirl's blog for awhile now. Leanne reports PhoneGnome Feature: Reach Beyond. A feature that helps you stay connected to 10 frequently called non-PhoneGnome numbers.

Andy Abramson chimes in on Truphone Gets Google Eyed and Is GTalking and so does Gautam in The engagement of Truphone and Google Talk which comes with a nice Truphone video demo giving you an idea on the look and feel of how it all works.

Fellow blogger Jan Geirnaert over at www.Skype-Gadgets.com is attending 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain this Feb. 12th-15th. We wish him a safe flight from his "fortress" in Malaysia and look forward to an insiders view of the event. Keep up the great work Jan.

VoIPMonitor VoIP News Roundup Yehaw

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 22:13:57 GMT

Just some VoIP news that I thought deserved some highlighting for today. So lets just jump right in.

First off I'd like to point out that the Phone tax refund is no scam. Taxpayers who paid excise taxes for Internet-based phone service, known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), are also eligible for the refund. The refunds range from $30 to $60, depending on the number of exemptions you claim on your tax return. So check out this article for information and a brief history on how the federal government first imposed a federal excise tax on phone services and how to get some money back.

My cousin informed me of 1500 free FON Wi-Fi routers at Giveaway Thursday: FON Wi-Fi routers, Joost and some Babelgum. I always love free stuff so do like they say, "give us some Digg love, click here. Help spread the word"

VoIP products who doesn't love them. Tom Keating brought my attention to VoIP products on QVC channel. Like Tom, I'd like to clearly state that I don't watch QVC. Tom's other news includes Skype for Mac 2.5 Goes Gold.

Jan writes about Skype Call forwarding plugin. Testing it now. Something fishy here and gives his scenario of what could happen if it falls into the wrong hands.

Todays last bit of news comes from Andy Abramson on fring and he explains it nicely at Fring Is Here so check it out. A brief description: fring uses your mobile internet connection to make peer-to-peer VoIP calls, send instant messages and talk with VoIP applications such as Skype and Google Talk, at no extra cost.

I posted an image of how fring works above. I know it's tiny, but that's why we use the lightbox script here on VoIPMonitor.net allowing you to simply click the image and see it in full scale. It works great for those over sized product images we receive too.

Todays Round Up of VoIP News

VoIP Monitor — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 20:38:36 GMT

Jan writes about a new Skype Extra Ringjacker - Hijack your friends Ringtone! Ring them up with your music!. Great.... let's hope this doesn't lead to an invasion of ABBA calls. Here's where you can find the Ringjacker download.

Tom Keating comments Skype Pro launches all while giving props where props are due to Rich Tehrani who rummored it last week at ITEXPO.

Alec Saunders, helping to discover a new, yet old VoIP blogger source Thomas Anglero who's been writing Telecom's Tsunami since 2003. I'm always interested in helping spread the word of a new resource of VoIP information. I enjoyed reading Anglero's post on Opening the VoIP community... to everyone. If I can't bring you the news myself, why not share the work of others and help open the gates of the VoIP blogging community. Alec makes a great point that "As with any blogger, the quickest way to get my attention is write something that links to something I’ve written, or drop me an email." Amen to that.

What better way to end todays VoIP blog round up than with an episode of VoIP cops busy in Bangladesh and even More “Cops” in Bangladesh. Busts include $360,000 worth of VoIP equipment being rounded up in the latest 14th and 15th crack downs.

Gizmo Project rolls out GizmoCall, Bloggers Chime In

VoIP Monitor — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 18:22:32 GMT

Andy Abramson and Om Malik talk about Gizmo Project's release of GizmoCall, a new web based calling service, which is now live.

Andy Abramson says, "So what does this mean? Well for starters since you can point any SIP service to GizmoProject it means that the idea of a softphone as a piece of software becomes unneeded, because any browser now becomes a softphone. That's very similar in approach to VoIPster and Abbeynet, but with a difference. GizmoPoject already has hundreds of thousands of users and they have built some telco relationships with carriers such as SingTel. Gizmo also leverages Level3's network and capabilities and since migrating away from some Tier 2 carriers here in the USA has seen their quality steadily rise."

Om Malik gives GizmoCall a big thumbs up, "From a usability standpoint, this one gets a big thumbs up from me. After installing this tiny plugin, you are given a screen that is pretty much a Flash-based replica of the Gizmo Project soft client."

VoIPMonitor Correction: Alec Saunders Not at ITEXPO

VoIP Monitor — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 21:44:35 GMT

Yesterday in my "Todays VoIP Blog News Your Moment of Zen", I reported that Alec Saunders is at ITEXPO. Turns out this is not true in a report on his blog saunderslog.com. Sorry for any added confusion to my readers and Alec Saunders.

Todays VoIP Blog News Your Moment of Zen

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 20:39:09 GMT

VoIP Weblog reports VoIP Client from Gizmo Project for Nokia N800 Internet Tablet. Looks pretty cool just click on the image for a larger picture.

Andy Abramson points out V-Access Is Real Yawner due to Vonage's lack of innovation. When someone yawns why is it so addicting that you find yourself yawning with them?

Skype for Business and Professionals link blurp fest. Keep that Skype news coming Jan.

Tom Keating has Arrived at ITEXPO with 77 °F and mostly cloudy sky's, but will that put a damper on Internet Telephony Conference & Expo East 2007? No way! Right now I'm wishing I was at the event. VoIPMonitor is still proud to be a media sponsor of the event. So keep the unlucky rest of us updated Tom.

Alec Saunders is also at ITEXPO and I'm not. He interviews Digium's VP Bill Miller and calls out todays Digium full-court press (release). Correction: Alec Saunders is not at ITEXPO

MyVoIPnews reports on Naughty Engin caught. I'd say doing 60mph in a 45mph zone.

Todays VoIP Blog News

VoIP Monitor — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 19:41:47 GMT

Just another day of interesting VoIP news from a few of my favorite sites.

Secure your VoIP network with 25 steps that Jan points out "normal people can read and understand" right on!

Writer Paul Kapustka for GigaOM points out Vonage’s Tough Road Ahead with Vonage announcing their new V-Access service to counter AT&T's Unity.

Back to the future with this blog on An iPhone ad from 1996 ahh memories.

Welcome to the Aussie 500 Aussies, start your Engins!

VoIP Security in 2007 Crystal Ball Predictions

VoIP Monitor — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 18:46:18 GMT

Mark Collier, a leading voice over IP (VoIP) security scientist, author, and blogger, announced the release of his “VoIP Security Trends and Predictions for 2007.” Mr. Collier’s prognostications have been posted to his popular VoIP security blog at: www.voipsecurityblog.com. Mr. Collier is CTO of SecureLogix Corporation, an enterprise telephony management and security company.

“Enterprise VoIP deployments will continue to ramp in 2007, and the frequency and severity of VoIP-specific attacks will increase as well,” stated Collier. “Here are my top VoIP security trends to watch for in 2007":

1) There is no doubt that VoIP security attacks have taken place, but very few have been widely publicized. I predict that in 2007, we will see enterprise VoIP systems attacked and the results publicized.

2) VoIP is an application running on the data network and will continue to be affected by attacks such as worms, virus, Denial of Service (DoS), etc. While these attacks may not directly target VoIP systems, they will disrupt operations because the underlying platforms are vulnerable to the attack.

3) We will also start to see more VoIP specific attacks, particularly aimed at the enterprise. There is more scrutiny of VoIP systems and attackers will find more issues that are unique to VoIP and the systems that enable it.

4) Attackers will also be developing more tools to exploit these issues. Even now, there are plenty of tools out there, but you can expect to see more tools and extensions to the tools currently available.

5) Denial of Service (DoS) will continue to be the most significant threat to VoIP systems. Many VoIP systems are very vulnerable to fuzzing and flood based attacks, including simple transport and application layer attacks.

6) You can expect enterprises to start deploying the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) for handsets as well as connectivity to the public network. The move to SIP will affect security, because there is a long list of SIP attack tools available for use.

7) Even with the move to SIP, proprietary protocols will continue to dominate VoIP for several years. You will start to see new attack tools that target these protocols as well, especially for vendors with wide deployment (Cisco, Avaya, Nortel, Siemens, etc.).

8) Social threats such as voice phishing and voice SPAM will start to emerge. They will not be common, but their threat level will grow with the increasing adoption of VoIP. Social engineering attacks could start to become disruptive in late 2007.

9) Although vendors will increase their offerings for conversation encryption, it will not be widely employed by enterprises.

10) VoIP deployment has the potential to affect traditional networks. Attacks like DoS, SPIT, and toll fraud may “spill” over and affect legacy systems.”

Great work Mark, now only time will tell as to what 2007 has in store for VoIP security.

Skype with Video-Egg, VoIP for Food and Brake for VoIP

VoIP Monitor — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 23:25:33 GMT

VoIP Blog News:

The new skype embedded environment with video-egg. And it is not Joost but Hans (Skype Software & Hardware Gadgets)

Will VoIP for food (myvoipnews.org)

Other VoIP News:

Qwest Pulls out All the Stops in Upgrading Voice and Data Solutions for JUST BRAKES.

Network Upgrade To Deliver Multi-Meg and IP-Enabled Voice and Data Services.

Max Telecom Selects Navini For Nationwide WiMAX Network in Bulgaria.

VocalTec Receives Class-4 Certificates from the Ministry of Communications in Russia.

TVLocalSearch and TVCallME instantly connected to the local business by telephone with a click of the remote.

Global Crossing's Global Partner Program Surpasses 50-Partner Milestone

Happy hump day to my readers, we can make it just two more days!

VoIPMonitor: Keeps You Plugged Into VoIP

VoIP Monitor — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 20:57:55 GMT

So after writing a nice long post and nearly finished. It was explaining this new category on VoIPMonitor.net when my IE 7.0 crashed. Go figured I hadn't saved, copied or pasted it anywhere either. So, I'll just keep this attempt short and sweet.

With so much daily VoIP news to report, I figured it'd be a great to extend my readers reach to fellow VoIP bloggers by sharing some sites that I read regularly. You might already visit these sites and perhaps you haven't heard of some. I guess too much news can't be a bad thing so without further ado behold the VoIP Bloggers category.

More On The Future of Minutes Dropping To Zero (VoIP Watch by Andy Abramson)

Apple Iphone works on the Windows Mobile 5.0 (Skype Software & Hardware Gadgets)

Wish I was going, ITEXPO just 7 days away (VoIP and Gadgets Blog by Tom Keating)

Jack Bauer's Perfect Mobile Phone for 24 (VoIP and Gadgets Blog by Tom Keating)

Talk for free (for a little while, anyway) on VoIP.com (myvoipnews.org)

Functionality vs. Good Design in Apple iPhone (thevoipgirl.com)

iCall emerges as an alternative to Skype (voip-weblog.com)