MOBIVOX announces the Beta launch of its groundbreaking hosted service, making it the first ever communication provider to bring Skype to ANY mobile device. The service also offers free international fixed and mobile calls between MOBIVOX users. Best of all, MOBIVOX works with every mobile phone and requires NO download on the mobile or on the PC. MOBIVOX is underpinned by a global infrastructure and extensive proprietary technology. The service is now available in 23 countries including the US and the UK at www.mobivox.com.

MOBIVOX brings mobile consumers a unique and powerful suite of communications services, allowing users to do much more with their existing mobile phone and enjoy:

VoIPVoIP.com is designed for the US business and residential markets which features one VoIP account providing VoIP solutions anywhere in the US with or without a VoIP device.

VoIPVoIP.com enables customers use their VoIP service like Vonage to replace their phone company at home and at the office, or like Skype to make free phone/video calls with other VoIPVoIP users, or like Truphone to make free calls with their mobile phones, or like PennyTalk as a phone card when high-speed Internet connection is not available. What's more, they can receive calls under any phone number from 30+ countries regardless of where they live.

Raketu introduced its new Global Short Message Service Text Service. Through Raketu, consumers can now send SMS text messages to the mobile phones of their friends, family, and co-workers anywhere in the world. Raketu offers a flat rate for each text message sent to a given country regardless of the location of where the message originates. Raketu currently offers the lowest published rates of any SMS text message provider in any country globally.

“In China consumers send 750 million SMS text messages each day and in 2007 it is estimated that the Western Europe SMS market will reach 25 billion euros,” said Greg Parker, CEO of Raketu. “Raketu is taking one more step in reducing the cost of communications globally, offering not only free calling to over 40 countries around the world, but now the cheapest SMS text message rates available anywhere in the world.”

In an ongoing effort to help military families and loved ones stay connected around the world, Verizon Business is providing free phone calls during the weeks around Mother's Day, Father's Day and U.S. Independence Day for U.S. military personnel stationed in Iraq.

Verizon Business will provide the free calls from May 10-16 in honor of Mother's Day in the United States; June 14-20 for Father's Day in the United States; and July 1-7 for U.S. Independence Day.

Verizon Business has deployed to Iraq a state-of-the-art mobile communications facility, enabling military personnel to make calls 24-hours-a-day anywhere in the world.

NextAlarm announced at The Cable Show support for two-way voice monitoring. NextAlarm’s two-way voice service, unlike that of other alarm companies, is compatible with VoIP and digital phone service. NextAlarm offers this feature for a minimal surcharge.

Using NextAlarm’s patented Alarm Broadband Network – the industry’s first low-cost broadband solution for security system monitoring – two-way voice gives subscribers many advantages. For example, when an alarm system sends a signal, two-way voice makes it possible to patch in a dispatcher who can listen in on the home through microphones in the keypads and/or speak through the keypads and pass information on to authorities. In addition, anyone at the site can easily speak with the dispatcher without having to reach for a telephone. This is especially helpful in the event of a medical emergency.

ABN allows customers to enjoy the benefits and cost savings of VoIP service, while still allowing their alarm systems to accurately communicate with monitoring centers. ABN operates over a standard cable adapter or DSL connection and works with any alarm system capable of sending signals using the contact ID format. In addition, ABN requires no changes to a subscriber’s existing alarm system. All a subscriber has to do is simply plug the ABN adapter into their home network and plug their alarm panel into the adapter rather than into a regular phone line.

eOn Communications Corporation has made generally available its new eNterprise VoIP family of telephones. eNterprise telephones are offered as VoIP compliant desktop options for eOn Communications’ Millennium Converged Communications Platform.

The eNterprise VoIP telephones leverage IEFT’s SIP for IP broadband connectivity, IEEE 802.af to provide flexible Power over Ethernet options, liquid crystal displays and easy one-touch operation to the hundreds of time proven business communications features of the Millennium. Enterprises of any size can now leverage the economics and flexibility offered by converged networks without compromise in business communications features or platform reliability.

SightSpeed has been awarded Killer App Magazine’s Editor’s Choice award for Innovation for both SightSpeed video conferencing and the recently introduced VLIP.com.

The Killer App Editor’s Choice award is given to those companies who have distinguished themselves by creating robust, dynamic applications that clearly demonstrate their vision for expanding the possibilities of what can be done on the Internet through broadband.

“SightSpeed was selected to receive the Killer App Editor’s Choice award for Innovation because of its continuing focus on finding new ways to leverage the common webcam that transform people’s lives,” said Geoff Daily, assistant editor of Killer App Magazine. “SightSpeed’s personal video services enable high quality multi-party calling and recording, easy-to-use click-to-call buttons and Vlip.com, which introduces a new paradigm for collaborative online communication.”

Voip.com announces its Mobile Line2 service. Mobile Line2 allows users to have a second phone line connected to one cell phone, making it possible to make VOIP calls through a cellular phone have a conference call between up to five people on one phone. To obtain a Mobile Line2-ready phone line, users must simply sign up for a new number online and download Mobile Line2 software to their cell phone.

Mobile Line2 makes it possible for users to add a second phone line to their cellular phone service. The VOIP technology not only makes it possible for customers to select a phone number with an area code pointing to any state in the U.S., but the system also enables users to track phone calls, manage their accounts, forward calls and perform a wide variety of advanced functions that increase their cell phone usability and features.

Busta is growing in popularity having already built a substantial user base in over 210 countries. Busta is a Web 2.0 gadget with an ultra slim 140kb software footprint which takes just a few seconds to load using broadband or a few minutes to add to a browser on a dial up connection.

Busta has more functionality than Skype but is 99% smaller in size. Busta includes free voice and the Busta system means that users to log on anywhere, get access to their messages, text, voice or video mail, and make calls, send SMS messages, and access or update address books. Phone calls are charged per second, with the first 10 seconds always free.

To add Busta to the Google desktop takes just a few minutes, opening a Busta account is easy and normally includes free phone or text credits which allow users to try before they buy.

JupiterResearch projects that the VoIP telephony market will top 25 million US households by 2012, driven by greater broadband subscribership and the expansion by cable operators into new markets. In a report titled, “US Broadband Telephony Forecast, 2007 to 2012: Cable MSOs assert their dominance in the VoIP market,” JupiterResearch found the ability to successfully bundle broadband telephony with other relevant services will continue to drive consumers’ adoption of cable-based VoIP, which currently accounts for 71 percent of the VoIP telephony market.

According to the study, growth in cable-based VoIP will drive the market going forward. After more than 10 years in the telephony business, cable operators have finally struck a chord with consumers, as demonstrated by the acquisition of about 3.6 million new VoIP telephony customers in 2006.

Talkster announces that Technology Marketing Corporation’s Communications Solutions has named the Talkster beta service as a recipient of a 2006 Product of the Year Award.

Talkster, the first and only service that lets people place free calls from their cell phones to instant messaging services like MSN, Google Talk and Gizmo Project without software, is consolidating the many voice- and text-based communications services people use every day into an easy-to-use service that works from a single familiar device: the mobile phone. The Talkster beta service showcases Talkster’s Web services-based technology, the foundation for Talkster’s forthcoming enterprise service offering.

Sprint set in motion its expanded offering of cable telephony services designed to help cable companies benefit from increasing growth opportunities in the commercial services market. Sprint now provides VoIP services to 14 leading cable companies, supporting over 1.7 million residential customers on its network and, through its cable partners, reaches approximately 34 million homes passed.

Sprint’s continued expansion into the cable market has created a revenue stream with strong growth potential. Sprint’s annualized revenue from this business has now grown to $400 million. Sprint is now using the power of its telecom assets and communications expertise to expand its delivery of telephony solutions to include commercial services.

The majority of the state's emergency call centers now receive 9-1-1 calls from customers whose telephone service relies upon VoIP technology. In a recently released report, the Texas Commission on State Emergency Communications provided a status of statewide efforts to provide 9-1-1 service to VoIP telephone subscribers. The CSEC VoIP Deployment Report is available at http://www.911.state.tx.us.

VoIP is the term broadly used to describe telephone services that transmit voice communications over a digital data network using Internet protocol technology. Since VoIP telephony is increasingly being adopted by the public, it is critical that VoIP customers have access to emergency services through dialing 9-1-1.

NextAlarm will add affordable video monitoring service to its value priced, high quality VoIP-based alarm monitoring services for homes and small businesses called NEXTVIEW.

NEXTVIEW works with existing alarm systems and is easy to set up, view and manage through the customer portal interface at NextAlarm.com. Each camera can be associated with one or more zones (i.e. "front door view," "back door view," etc.). Subscribers can also access images through their cell phone. The system captures still photos every few minutes, and switches to live video during an alarm event. Archived video and stills can be reviewed any time. NextAlarm’s dispatch centers also have access to view cameras when an alarm is triggered.

Fusion is expanding its portfolio of advanced IP-based voice and data solutions designed especially for businesses. The launch of Fusion's IP Connect and IP Call Termination services makes it easy for companies that are not yet ready to move away from their traditional phone systems to enjoy the powerful benefits of VoIP.

IP Connect combines a company's interoffice, local, U.S. long distance, and international calling on a single IP circuit connected to its existing telephone system. Companies that want to maintain their local network access facilities can choose Fusion's IP Call Termination for outbound U.S. and international long distance calling. Both services deliver high quality, scalable, and secure connections over Fusion's carrier-class, managed IP network. Fusion's solutions include Quality of Service routers that prioritize voice traffic, guaranteeing superior voice quality while maintaining the integrity of data communications.