Gawker
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phones
Google Voice Is Cool, But Do You Need It?
You've read about the features, you saw the invites going out, but you might be wondering what, exactly, Google Voice could do for you. Here's our guide for the curious and uninvited on whether your phones need some Google juice. [Lifehacker] -
ooma
How Ashton Kutcher killed a startup guy's Hollywood dream
It was a fantasy left over from the last boom: Hire a movie star to pitch your startup, and the dusting of tinsel will turbocharge sales. Those William Shatner ads sold plane tickets for Priceline, right? But the career of hard-partying entrepreneur Andrew Frame did not follow that script. We hear he was just fired as CEO of the Internet-phone startup he cofounded, Ooma. His most notable decision, hiring actor Ashton Kutcher as "creative director," did not pan out; Kutcher made a few incomprehensible videos, and then faded from the scene. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by ElvisWorley: $250? When I can buy a Magic Jack for a fraction of the price and get the same free service. 2 Responses | Other threads
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breakdowns
Skype apologizes for Chinese privacy breach
Josh Silverman, president of eBay's Skype Internet-calling service, has issued a mea culpa blog post. The short version: Tom Online, Skype's Chinese partner, is storing instant messages sent over the service — and storing them insecurely, to boot. [Skype Blogs] -
road warrior
American Airlines' misdirected Internet-calling ban
American Airlines has debuted in-flight Wi-Fi from Aircell, giving more aspiring business-class passengers the chance to look busy on their laptops. The service bans Skype and other VOIP phone services. The only people really complaining that you can't make Internet phone calls are tech-blog commenters — exactly the kind of people who can't be trusted to not shout into their new phones in the first place. Why doesn't American just ban them? That seems easier.
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Comment by categorically: Amazing how out of touch these people are. I don't want to sit next to them and have them... more » | Other threads
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launches
Skype 4.0 Beta: It's all about telemarketing
The acquisition of Skype has been something of an albatross around eBay's neck — what, exactly, does an auction site need voice-over-IP and chat software for? With the new release, it's starting to make a bit more sense. Not as a chat client for early-adopter technology fetishists, but as a telemarketing tool. Here's how! More »
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By Jackson WestComment by Abhi 2.0: @Dror ... trick question from VW ... broadband speeds in India will ensure that Skype's most useful feature will be... more » | Other threads
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voip
AT&T plots Skype rival
AT&T and as many as 15 other big phone companies are planning to launch a rival to Skype in 2009. Why don't they just buy it from eBay? That seems easier. [GigaOm]
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By Owen ThomasComment by tootingbec: Ya know, the telcos have legacy businesses to protect from services like Skype, and right now only nerds have heard... more » | Other threads
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outsourcing
Yahoo hands the phone to Jajah
Mountain View-based Internet phone company Jajah will soon provide the technology, billing and customer care for phone features in Yahoo's instant-messaging service Yahoo Messenger, the AP reports. The deal is part of Yahoo management's cost-cutting plans to turn much of its feature development over to third parties. Yahoo Messenger has 97 million users, but Yahoo won't say how many actually use its Internet phone service — probably because the number isn't nearly as impressive. -
exits
Jeff Pulver resigns from eponymous tradeshow producer Pulvermedia
Jumping ship from a company that had already lost the confidence of its investors, Jeff Pulver, the pioneering VOIP promoter, has left Pulvermedia, the company he founded to put on tech tradeshows like VON.Just wanted to share the news that I have resigned as a director from Pulvermedia. And I am not able to say anything else nor can I address any questions about this.
Silence implies that either it was offered in exchange for something, or that lawyers are involved and lawsuits are pending. (Photo by Randy Stewart)
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By Jackson WestComment by Dweezil: This is why you should not name companies after yourself. more » | Other threads
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deathwatch
Pulvermedia falls, may not be able to get up
New York-based VOIP trade publisher and event organizer Pulvermedia has been written off by investor TICC Capital Group according to sources cited by GigaOm's Om Malik. In a classy move, TICC allegedly shut down the company's bank accounts while founder Jeff Pulver was proselytizing in San Jose at Spring VON, resulting in a string of bounced checks. Ouch. (Photo by Jonathan Klinger)
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By Jackson WestComment by snidleywhiplash: All i care about is when can I expect the spam for VON crap to finally stop?!?! more » | Other threads
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vonage
Internet telephone provider Vonage has reached a settlement in its patent dispute with Nortel. Vonage won't pay for past damages, and both companies have agreed to a cross-licensing deal instead. The settlement ends the last of the company's pending legal battles with major telecom carriers and equipment makers. If the Internet telephone company has truly put its legal problems in its past — not a forgone conclusion — the company may now move on to address problems. Problems like providing reliable service at a profit. Oh yes, that. [Reuters] -
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Comment by GinaMuchava: Jeff certainly wins the award for Self Important Blowhard 1.0 more » | Other threads
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patents
Voice innovator challenged in new book
A new book from journalist Seth Shulman argues that aggressive lawyers and a corrupt patent examiner helped one oft-acclaimed engineer profit from the stolen ideas of another. The accused? No, it's not Vonage founder Jeffrey Citron. More » -
blogging for dollars
Unknown VOIP service a failure, says GigaOm
An actual headline from Om Malik at GigaOm today: "Like Gaboogie, Foonz Losing Its Voice Too." The extra "too" really clears things up, doesn't it? TechCrunch picked up the story with a sardonic cliche: "News flash. There's just no money in giving people free calls." The actual news flash: There's just no money in drawing conclusions about technology from the failures of startups no one has even heard of.
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By Owen ThomasComment by Owen Thomas: @0x6772: Thanks for spotting that! Link has been fixed. more » | Other threads
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breakdowns
If a Vonage falls in the woods, does it make a sound?
Users of Vonage's internet telephone service have been reporting a major service failure, ongoing since Friday. The problems are varied, but it comes down to this: Vonage seems to be missing the "phone" and "service" parts of "phone service." In some cases, incoming calls are not connecting. Vonage is forwarding the attempted calls to subscriber landlines and cellphones, but repeatedly, and late. As a result, the call forwarding feature becomes a series of phantom calls clogging up the customer's only reliable phone service. Some are reporting no service at all. More »
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By Tim FaulknerComment by FLConsumer: I buy VoIP wholesale anymore and have my own VoIP PBX which runs several lawfirms around the state. I... more » | Other threads
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skype
Skype to lay off 30 in European offices
Skype will fire 30 employees in London and Estonia, Om Malik reports. Skype, a subsidiary of eBay, has not yet confirmed the news. The 30 headed for the door will join Skype cofounder Niklas Zennstrom, who in October resigned as Skype CEO as eBay took a $1.4 billion asset-impairment charge on the company it purchased for $2.5 billion in 2005. More » -
your privacy is an illusion
German police struggle to tap Skype calls
Joerg Ziercke, president of Germany's Federal Police Office, told reporters that Skype "creates grave difficulties for us" because of its strong encryption. A traditional land-line phone can be tapped very easily, as can a cell phone — but voice-over-IP calls are routed over countless paths across the Internet, making them difficult to intercept. Ziercke said they were not asking eBay to leave "back doors open" to Skype for law-enforcement authorities. Of course, it's likely the National Security Agency has already done that and passes along any significant intercepted calls to U.S. allies. The other theory? That this is merely a headfake to criminals. If the Polizei does have Skype wiretapping abilities, they'll want to encourage evildoers to speak freely. That's it: I'm switching my secret communications back to smoke signals. -
rumormonger
Is Google looking to walk off with Skype?
According to London's Web entrepreneurs, Google has been flirting with a bid for Skype, eBay's overpriced VOIP startup. Guardian blogger Jemima Kiss is just the latest to offer eBay CEO Meg Whitman advice in the guise of rumor after a $900 million writedown: Last month Portfolio's Felix Salmon recommended it sell to News Corp. Compared to its other pushes into the telecom business, like the Android cell-phone operating system and a hot pursuit of wireless spectrum, buying Skype may prove downright cheap. Skype has been running ragged ever since August's major outage. Perhaps even Google isn't above some bargain-hunting.
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Comment by macbeach: Well, doesn't eBay specialize in selling slightly used and/or broken things? I'll start the bidding at a buck... more » | Other threads
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michael cerda
Ooma creator says startup founders are "f—--d"
Jangl CEO Michael Cerda faced down a crowd of entrepreneurs at a Stirr event in Potrero Hill, and, in an unusual moment for Silicon Valley, spoke the truth. "How many of you guys are founders?" he asked. Cerda waited a beat, looked at the raised hands, and said, "You're all fucked." Until that moment, no one had really been paying attention to the "Founder's Hacks" program, even with Twitter's Evan Williams and Friendster founder Jonathan Abrams on the stage. Stirr founder Sanford Barr had been walking around shushing people like we were naughty sixth-graders. With the crowd's attention, Cerda launched into the tale of a previous startup — and most in the audience assumed he was talking about Ooma, the VOIP gadget company he started in 2003 with George Oscar Bluth II lookalike Andrew Frame. More »
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Comment by janglex: The unfortunate truth is that Michael wasn't talking about a former company. He was talking about very current events at... more » | Other threads
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acquisitions
Private-equity firm Platinum Equity Partners has acquired Covad, a VOIP and broadband service provider, for $1.02 a share. [GigaOm] -
deathwatch
At this point, does Vonage just exist to get sued?
AT&T is taking Vonage to court over patent infringements, just like everybody else. AT&T seeks an injunction, alleging Vonage infringed on a patent related to VOIP calls on standard telephone devices. Who knew there was anything left to gain from suing Vonage? Verizon and Sprint already had their way with the company when judges ruled in their favor in two prior suits. (Photo by Torbert Timson) -
reality check
Jajah adds to eBay's click-to-call nightmare
We'd hardly blame Meg Whitman if, after this week, she decided to hang up on the phone business altogether. On Monday eBay said they were taking a $1.4 billion charge related to their acquisition of VOIP startup Skype. On Tuesday, we noted that one of Whitman's major goals in buying Skype, bolstering its auction business in China, where rivals were using click-to-call features on their auctions to close sales, has turned into a complete failure. And then, yesterday, things somehow managed to get worse. More »
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Comment by Reginaldo: There was never any deal between Jajah and eBay. Spin all the way. [www.theregister.co.uk] That is all. more » | Other threads
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your privacy is an illusion
Free calls never cost so much
There's a new Skype competitor, dubbed ThePudding, on the Web. And ThePudding is completely free*. All you have to do is agree to let Pudding Media listen in on your calls. To compensate users for the breach of privacy, the company claims, "ThePudding uses breakthrough technology that makes your conversations fun and interesting." In other words, anyone using ThePudding will be served contextual ads based upon topics overheard in your conversation! It's like Google's Gmail, but for talking. Remember when we were freaked out by the idea of Google scanning our email to pick out relevant ads? And how we all got over it? More »
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Comment by KEHT: What about non-english/half-english slang gibberish? Бла-бла-бла-damn! :) more » | Other threads
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clips
Ooma gets creepier
So, you thought that yesterday's video from telecom startup Ooma was bad? Oh, it gets weirder. More » -
voip
Say hello — and goodbye — to Ooma
Ooma, the voice-over-Internet gadget maker founded by entrepreneur and celebrity doppelganger Andrew Frame, finally makes its official debut. Starting today, the $399 box, which routes calls from regular phones over the Internet, goes on sale to the general public. Now you won't have to rely on blog giveaways to get your hands on the device. Assuming you want to. More » -
voip
Google is continuing its recently acquired Internet phone service GrandCentral's Project CARE, handing out free phone numbers to San Francisco's homeless today at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Hopefully these "phone numbers for life" will last more than a few months. [VentureBeat] -
deathwatch
Bon voyage, Vonage!
The internet phone provider Vonage is hanging on for dear life, somehow fending off a Titanic-like doom. Hauled into court by Verizon, Vonage was found guilty of patent infringements. Although fined $58 million penalty and forced to abandon any infringing technology, the VOIP Internet-telephone service provider overturned a ruling that would have barred it from conducting business altogether. Not that it's conducting business in a particularly admirable manner. More »
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Comment by Bryan Price: That's pretty funny! The two SunRocket users I know have both gone with different VOIP providers. One with... more » | Other threads
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followup
Skype tries to kiss and make up with jilted users
As an apology for its two-day absence from their lives, Skype is giving paying subscribers seven days of free service. Skype hopes that its "faithful," "love"-filled, relationship can be mended through the simple gesture of buying a gift. Flowers, candy, a contract credit — it's all the same, right?
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By Tim FaulknerComment by seanpercival: I dont even remember what i paid for skype, but it was very little. Isnt 7 days worth like under... more » | Other threads
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google
Promises, promises. Google has had some trouble moving into its new GrandCentral domain. Shortly after acquiring the Internet phone service, Google had to notify 434 customers that the "one number for life" GrandCentral had promised them would soon go out of service. [GigaOM] -
separated at birth
Ooma's arrested product development
Valleywag has already noted the curious resemblance of Andrew Frame, the founder of VOIP startup Ooma, to "Arrested Development" character George Oscar Bluth II, a failed magician. But that's not the only curious resemblance we've spotted, now that Ooma's launched its long-delayed product. It turns out that Ooma's Hub, a $399 pice of hardware for making cheap Internet calls, competes with a $99 product that does the same thing and is already on the market. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Owen Thomas: @Matt_: Hate to call you out again for your poor reading-comprehension skills, but you don't have to buy the box... more » | Other threads
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ooma
Andrew Frame's startup is older than it looks
When was Ooma, the VOIP startup founded by entrepreneur Andrew Frame and supported by actor Ashton Kutcher, actually founded? Seems like such a simple question. The company says it was founded by Frame in 2005. But former CEO Michael Cerda, in a detailed account, says it actually got started in the fall of 2003. And the Internet Archive shows an Ooma site dating back to 2004. Does it matter? Of course. The age of a startup matters as much in Silicon Valley as the age of a star in Hollywood.
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By Owen ThomasComment by YaffaEriphyle: I'm amazed how little discussion there's been about the limits Ooma has recently placed on their so-called "unlimited" calling. ... more » | Other threads
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voip
In Estonia, Skype girds for battle
Why does eBay subsidiary Skype have a Swedish military transport in its Estonian development center? Could it be preparing to take the fight for VOIP customers against new competitors like Ooma to a new battlefield? Read more. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by Eric Rice: Wait, it's a big fuck-off vehicle with big fuck-off tires, but no big fuck-off guns? Or do they magically appear... more » | Other threads
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deathwatch
Why Ooma is dooma'd
At first I was loath to even join in what Uncov calls the "A-list rub and tug" on Ooma, the telecom startup launched by Andrew Frame, the entrepreneur who looks like a model, and Ashton Kutcher, the Hollywood star who actually was a model. Like its founders, Ooma is all looks, no substance. Launched late, Ooma's product, a piece of hardware that lets you place free phone calls over the Internet, looks set to flop, as insiders predicted, because its creators fundamentally misunderstand both consumers and technology. But at least the box, like Frame and Kutcher, is pretty. Read on to learn why looks don't matter in telecom — and why we're putting Ooma on immediate deathwatch. More »
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By Owen ThomasComment by dean.collins: Hey Owen, I think it's time for you to eat crow and admit you were wrong in your hasty assumptions. Dont worry... more » | Other threads
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telephony
SunRocket VoIP Is Dead, Run Away While You Still Can
As of last night, Sunrocket VoIP is unplugged, and they didn't warn any of their 200,000+ customers, who had been attracted to the service by deals which offered $99 buy-one-year, get-one-year-free unlimited calling to the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Now they're experiencing spotty service, full outages, and a feeling of panic. [Consumerist]
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By Ben PopkenComment by samalexis: I switched to Lingo for their 79.95/mo, unlimited business plan last week. Along with one month free subscription, I received... more » | Other threads
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jaxtr
You can call me, babe, but you can't have my number
NICK DOUGLAS — Some time when modern folk started storing our phones in our pants, we decided we no longer wanted everyone to know our numbers. At the same time, we started inventing ways to use phones that didn't involve that distasteful habit of actually talking on phones: voicemail, Skype, and texting from computers. The chimera of all this tech is Jaxtr, a service that lets you take calls, texts, or voicemail from anyone on the web, without handing them your phone number. So I tried it. Go ahead, leave me a message. More »
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By Nick DouglasComment by wglass: The explanation for the weird city names is simple. The programmers are lazy. Rather than presenting a simple... more » | Other threads
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wireless
iPhoneyGate: Dlink VOIP Phone Config'd To "LinksysSucks"
Rivalries are entertaining to watch. You've got Pepsi and Coke, Paris and Lindsay, and apparently there's one between networking giants Dlink and Linksys, the latter being infamous for iPhoneyGate. Yahoo Tech's Chris Null received a reviewable engineering sample of DLink's revolutionary GSM/VOIP combo cellphone two days after the whole iPhoneyGate scandal went down, and the SSID was set to "LinksysSucks." (Click the image.) This message makes sense, if you consider the contrasting engineering culture of the two networking companies. And that this phone is way more functional than the Linksys iPhone. [Gizmodo] -
cellphones
The iPhone is Dead: Long Live the Apple Cellphone Thingy-Ma-Bob
Apple doesn't own the iPhone trademark. What does that mean? This isn't a simple case of cybersquatting, as with the hijacked sex.com. Nor is it an academic exercise, like when Josh Quittner bought McDonalds.com for a Wired story. [Gizmodo]
5,512
By Brian LamComment by Echophiliac: Ahr, and what would the problem be with callin' yer cell the McPhone, moight I ask? Tis a foine name... more » | Other threads
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cellphones
The iPhone Lives: But the Trademark Belongs to Cisco
It's not what any of us expected. The iPhone is a voip phone made by Linksys. Cisco, their parent company, has owned that trademark since 1996. And they're announcing their product in a few hours. [Gizmodo]
4,887
By Brian LamComment by TheCiscoKid: Check out www.iphonewars.com this site is 5 days old and is starting to warm up. Number one on Yahoo for... more » | Other threads
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aol
Morning news: Steve Case is sorry, five years after that means anything
- AMD (Advanced Micro Devices) pays $5.4 billion for ATI Technologies, which is about 5 times the fake valuation of YouTube and twice the fake valuation of Facebook. [NYT]
- One more score for the tiered Internet. The quality of the average Voice-over-IP call is falling, and not just because of the Vonage operator breathing heavily in the background. [CNET]
- AOL co-founder Steve Case tells Charlie Rose, "Yes, I'm sorry I did it," about merging with Time Warner in 2001. A quick check with every executive at AOL says yeah, they're sorry he did it too. [Reuters]
- Real estate site Zillow, another tool for pretending your house is worth more than it is, takes $25 million in its second round of funding. It has yet to make a profit. [SiliconBeat]
- A judge considers a $90 million Google clickfraud lawsuit; if advertisers win, they get credits to advertise with Google, thus ensuring a gravy train of recursive clickfraud lawsuits for life. [BusinessWeek]
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By Nick DouglasComment by eknirb: But how does Gerry Levin feel? On that deserted Tahiti island or wherever he is? more » | Other threads
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om malik
Om Malik Not All Over Free SkypeOut
Nothing gets past Om Malik. The tech blogger is quickly becoming the industry standard for voice-over-IP news. But as of press time, he hasn't blogged about free Skype-to-phone calling, announced today at Skype's official blog. More »
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By Nick DouglasComment by Anonymous: Malik's a senior writer at B2, not an editor, and as such is known to engage in real reporting that... more » | Other threads
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