Source: gigaom.com

Source: voipcentral.org

Packet8, the third residential VoIP service provider in USA is offering its services to some 12,000 customers of an unknown company. I guess it would be similar arrangement as it did for the former SunRocket customers. Here the question comes, who is latest VoIP player closing down its operation?

At any case, it is not Vonage, although the residential player is down with patent controversies in recent months. The latest patent defeat is from Sprint Nextel. The court has ordered Vonage to pay $69.5 million fine for infringing Sprint VoIP patents.

Just two months ago, SunRocket closed down their operation despite claiming sizable residential customers. Read our coverage on SunRoket downfall.

Packet8 is the third residential VoIP player in USA behind Vonage and SunRocket with nearly 181,000 customers. The company has earlier reached out an agreement with SunRocket to provide VoIP services to the stranded SunRocketers.

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

8×8, Inc, provider of Packet8 (http://www.packet8.net/) residential, business and video Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone services, today announced it has signed an agreement with a service provider that will soon exit the VoIP market calling for the exclusive recommendation of Packet8 as the replacement VoIP service for its soon-to-be-orphaned subscribers.

According to the agreement, Packet8 will be the only brand presented and promoted to the roughly 12,000 subscribers who will be left without VoIP phone service after the company winds down its VoIP operations over the next three months. In return, 8×8 will offer these subscribers a specially-priced Packet8 monthly service plan along with a free month of service, free activation, free shipping and a free Uniden 165P 5.8 GHz cordless phone to transition to its award-winning VoIP phone service.

"We look forward to welcoming these VoIP consumers to the Packet8 family of subscribers," said 8×8 Vice President of Sales & Marketing Huw Rees. "8×8 has been providing VoIP services since 2002 and, unlike many competitors, has established a strong business model providing subscribers with solid assurance that our service will be operational for the long term and that our reputation for quality and reliability will be maintained."

Just over two months ago, SunRocket, the second largest independent VoIP provider, announced it was shutting down its service and referring its more than 200,000 subscribers to Packet8. 8×8, now the #2 standalone voice and video service provider, was recently awarded its 69th U.S. patent for proprietary VoIP technology employed in the Packet8 service. In addition to residential service, 8×8 provides more than 8,000 U.S. based small businesses with the Packet8 Virtual Office hosted iPBX complete business phone solution.

Source: voipcentral.org

Is dead SunRocket back? The former VoIP giant who closed down its business very recently, has once again hugged media attention by pulling Vonage into a new-found legal controversy.

In a lawsuit, SunRocket has alleged that Vonage illegally obtained companys customer list from a third party and contacted some of the customers for its VoIP services.

SunRocket is now seeking injunctive and declaratory relief from Vonage by claiming its customer list one of its single most valuable remaining assets after shutting down VoIP business.

The former VoIP player adds that such type of illegal practice by Vonage damages companys deals with Unified and 8X8, who are providing VoIP services to former SunRocketers.

However Vonage has strongly denied the charge stating that they obtained the list from a recognized marketing list broker. Hence, there is no violation of SunRockets proprietary rights.

SunRocket had left with 220,000 subscribers when it closed down its operation.

Source: voipcentral.org

Last month, Packet8 has reached out an agreement with SunRocket to provide VoIP service to latters customers. Marking first achievement in this regard, the pure-play VoIP start up has registered nearly 19,000 SunRocket customers. I hope more numbers of SunRocketers would be transferring their numbers to Packet8 in the coming days.

SunRocket has some 200,000 subscribers by the time it closed down. It is in constant touch with its subscribers through email or voicemail campaign insisting them to transform their numbers to Packet8 immediately.

Packet8 says they are charging normal fee and taxes to SunRocket customers to provide VoIP services including E911 emergency service. The customers who registered Packet8 recently are opting out one-year $199 plan from the company.

Packet8 CEO, Bryan Martin said,

We do charge our normal monthly fees and taxes–e911, Universal Service, regulatory recovery, state and local taxes where applicable–on top of the $199 a year fee. Over the course of a year, these fees add up to a substantial amount of money. SunRocket didnt do this.

Packet8 is the third residential VoIP player in USA behind Vonage and SunRocket with nearly 181,000 customers.

Image Source:

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

With the demise of likes of SunRocket and the trouble the companies like Vonage is in because they are single service providers? But the current industry leader ComCast with it’s Digital Voice is continuing to add users to its network. Time warner Cable is not far behind and is adding users at a good rate.
Chloe Albanesius of ZifDavis has done a good job of getting the numbers together and presenting them in a understandable fashion.

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

According to a Yankee group report released on Monday, Comcast os the comcastic service provider.
The Cable TV company with it’s multi service model, bundled VoIP IP Telephony services, managed increase the service, 167 percent in 2006 from 3.9 million subscribers to 6.3 million, the report said. The same report predicts that the number will reach 26.2 million by 2011.

This is certainly comcastic for Comcast given that initial service was plagued by quality concerns and the 911 issues are still lingering. But the company seems to have reached the best segment in the market. Many cable users, however, are not aware that their phone service is basd on VOIP, not the traditional copper phone wiring. In a separate 2006 survey, the Yankee Group found that only 9.5 percent of cable telephony subscribers knew what powered their phone service.

Comcast recently emerged as the telephony leader when it reported 2.4 million subscribers during the first quarter of 2007, an 813 percent increase. Those numbers bested previous champ Vonage, a broadband VoIP provider, which struggled last year after a weak IPO and patent battles with Verizon, the report said.

Despite those issues, however, Vonage still managed to add 1.2 million lines in 2006, a 75 percent subscriber increase. The company also added 166,000 lines during the first quarter of 2007.

Maintaining that growth comes with a price – about $300 to attract every new subscriber, the report said. The hefty cost of acquiring new customers likely contributed to the downfall of another broadband VoIP provider, SunRocket, the Yankee Group suggested.

Nonetheless, the Yankee Group predicts that broadband VoIP will grow from 2.8 million customers in 2006 to 6.4 million in 2011. The growth will likely be led by innovative technologies and decreased pricing, the report said.

Going forward, fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) VoIP could be a major threat, the report said. This segment of the market is "almost negligible when compared with the overall consumer VoIP market" but it could explode in the coming years given ongoing fiber projects like Verizon’s FiOS and AT&T’s U-verse, it said.

Comcast Tops VOIP Providers in 2006

Source: voipcentral.org

TeleBlend, the part of Unified communications Corp, has reached out an agreement with SunRocket to acquire certain limited strategic assets of SunRocket. With this deal, TeleBlend has joined with Packet8 to provide VoIP services to the beleaguered SunRocket customers.

The acquisition may bring a sigh of relief to the stranded the customers. At least they can retain their same number even though transition to TeleBlend.

TeleBlend says,

With this agreement in place, former SunRocket customers who have not transitioned to another provider have a seamless way to transition their service while continuing to use their existing equipment and phone number.

TeleBlend has announced that it would provide SunRocket customers VoIP services at a heavily discounted monthly subscription of $12.95. The company has also created a special site for SunRocket customers to sing up for its service and continue their existing phone numbers.

Image:

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

What is this? We all thought that we are done with Sunrocket by now. But Tom Keating posted about "SunRocket 10 Day Countdown"! So if you are a SunRocket customer and blissfully unaware of that your service provider does not exist, (Teleblend is taking care of the back haul of SunRocket customers and keeping lines open at their cost")
So head over to VoIP and Gadgets and read the letter from SunRocket!

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

What is this? We all thought that we are done with Sunrocket by now. But Tom Keating posted about "SunRocket 10 Day Countdown"! So if you are a SunRocket customer and blissfully unaware of that your service provider does not exist, (Teleblend is taking care of the back haul of SunRocket customers and keeping lines open at their cost")
So head over to VoIP and Gadgets and read the letter from SunRocket!

Source: snapvoip.blogspot.com

As reported by Narayan Bhat of TMC and Russell Shaw of ZDNet, Teleblend has acquired strategic assets of SunRocket, the now defunct VoIP provider. According to the Teleblend site, now the SunRocket customers will be able to keep their old numbers as well as receive service for discount;
SunRocket Subscribers! The best value in Internet phone service is still available. TeleBlend Internet phone service offers you outstanding customer service along with all of the products and features of SunRocket. We have already been successful in getting your services restored and ready to go. Included is a special offer only available to SunRocket customers. Until the end of your annual contract, TeleBlend will give you the exact same services you know and love for only $12.95/month. (if no annual contract, the fee will be $19.95 a month)

Take advantage of:
• No startup costs
• FREE activation
• USE your existing hardware
• FREE and quick transfer of your current number
• UNLIMITED calling to the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico

The terms and conditions could be found here.

Source: voipcentral.org

It may be relief for the customers who got stranded at the untimely death of SunRocket. Packet8 has reached out an agreement with SunRocket to provide VoIP service to the latters customers.

As per the arrangements, the SunRocket customers can smoothly transform their phone numbers to Packet8 and enjoy one month free service under the residential VoIP plan. The customers will not charged up for the change in number.

SunRocket has reportedly agreed to contact its customers through email or voicemail campaign insisting them to transform their numbers to Packet8 immediately.

Packet8 is the third residential VoIP player in USA behind Vonage and SunRocket with nearly 181,000 customers.

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