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The average conference call lasts 33 minutes and has six participants.
At an average price of 16 cents per minute per caller,
businesses are paying $4 billion per year for this essential voice
service. Today we're announcing a pilot program to make conference
calling free for a global audience. This won't please the telecom
titans who profit from this service, but businesses should relish this
newfound savings and freedom to communicate without worrying about
costs.
SIPphone is partnering with FreeConferenceCall to
let any U.S. telephone and any PC user worldwide participate in
high-quality conference calls with up to 10 participants per call and a
maximum of 6 hours per call. This service is available with no monthly
fees, no setup fees, no per
minute charges - no charges whatsoever.
To use the service, users simply visit FreeConferenceCall and
sign up for a free dial-in number and access code. They can use this
info to join a call from any U.S. phone. International callers can download Gizmo Project
for Linux, Windows or Mac and dial "fcc" or "freeconferencecall" and
enter in the
same access code to participate in the conference. Those with an actual
SIP phone can
dial 1-747-555-CONF
(2663) and the access code.
FreeConferenceCall is a company started in 2001 by free calling pioneer
David Erickson. With a focus on the U.S. market, they've grown quickly
and now deliver 2% of the 25 billion-minute conferencing market. By
partnering with SIPphone, FreeConferenceCall is extending their
offering to a worldwide audience. Any user connected to the Internet
can join those US callers in a free conference call. This is how I do
all conference calls and the call quality is superb even when there's a
mix of PC and traditional telephone users.
As you probably surmise, it's the standard SIP protocol that makes
this expansion possible. David, at FreeConferenceCall predicts his
business
will grow to handle 10% of all conference calls by the end of 2007. I
think
he's underestimating the growth he will see, because there's no reason
every business shouldn't begin taking advantage of this service
immediately and shave billions off their costs. Give this service a try
from any traditional phone or PC and I think you'll agree. It's also
another example of how all
calls will soon be free as the world moves to VOIP (voice over IP).
--
Michael
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