Google "to launch free phone calls"

January 24, 2005

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INTERNET search engine brand Google could be set to launch a free telephone service, it emerged today.

The technology, which has been around for some time, would allow people to make free, unlimited calls via a broadband connection, using a headset and a home computer.

Similar software by London-based telephone Skype has been downloaded nearly 54 million times around the world, but large telecommunications firms are yet to properly exploit it.

Julian Hewitt, a senior partner at telecoms consultancy Ovum, said he believed telecoms companies had been looking into the system for a while.

He said: "I am 100% certain that there have been investigations into voice over internet protocol for some time.

"Google are the number one brand on the internet and I believe that the voice over technology will become a standard addition to internet components.

"With Google, if someone was searching for something like car hire, they could say 'here is the list of companies, click here to speak to one of them'.

"You can see the appeal to the customer, and Google would collect something like 10 cents from each call. That seems like the obvious extension to their service."

Telephone

Mr Hewitt said telephone companies such as BT would not necessarily lose out if the new technology took off.

He said: "I expect it would affect them a little, but not too much. The effect would probably be largely additive rather than substitutive.

"Emails for example have been around for a long time, but they haven't reduced the number of phone calls that people make.

"I think this system would just increase the variety of ways of communicating rather than having a negative effect on any particular one."

BT, which connects seven out of 10 British households, has already developed its own internet telephone service - BT Communicator.

Sophisticated

A BT spokesman said: "We are already in this market place. Our product is very sophisticated and we are very pleased with it.

"Google have got a big brand and we've got a big brand. I think it's a bit of an assumption to assume that we might lose out if they develop their own product."

Google, founded in 1996, refused to comment on the reports but also refused to deny they had an interest in developing their own telephone service.

A spokeswoman said: "We don't comment on rumours and speculation."

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Nigel Card, Llandeilo Carmarthenshire (24/01/2005 at 17:17)

If it means that competition will encourage Bt to listen to their customers and provide services that are a little more 'customer friendly' then I say "good luck Google"

Greg Harvey, London (24/01/2005 at 17:38)

Mr. Hewitt seems remarkably blase in the face of VOIP technology for someone in his industry. He's quoted as saying:

"Emails for example have been around for a long time, but they haven't reduced the number of phone calls that people make."

This seems to me a ridiculous statement. Emails were never likely to compete with voice calls as they do not offer the same kind of interaction. They are a completely different type of media. I would be surprised if the telegram industry went unscathed though.

In contrast to email, and when compared to traditional telecoms offerings, VOIP is a different kettle of fish entirely. It offers to do everything your traditional telephone does, but with programs like Skype it will do them for absolutely no call charge whatsoever. It's completely free if, like me, you have broadband anyway. Skype have even devised a way of using their VOIP service to call a normal telephone as well - and though this service isn't free, it undercuts the telephone companies. VOIP is a way of achieving exactly the same thing that BT et al would potentially charge you hundreds of pounds for but it doesn't cost a penny beyond your Internet connection.

I and the company I work for are excellent examples of why Mr. Hewitt ought really to be a little more worried than he evidently is. My current employers introduced me to Skype. We are a small company with an office in Bulgaria and an office in South Africa. We regularly call our international offices (for free) using Skype and very rarely use the old (and expensive) telephone. Why would we? As a business it simply doesn't make sense to pay for something we can get for free.

More interestingly perhaps is this: since I've started using Skype at work and realised how good it actually is, I've been encouraging my mates to get it at home (we all have broadband anyway) and increasingly they are. If this is anything to go by (and I refuse to believe I'm unique here) word of mouth could well make VOIP very popular, very soon.

Now that we are well in to the age of home broadband here in the UK (even my parents have had it for 2 years out in rural Nottinghamshire) the only saviour of the traditional telecoms company is that it will at least own the pipe that the signal comes down.

But with cable TV, Sky and possibly the National Grid all wanting (and already getting) a piece of that pie, I wouldn't be too cocky if I were a big telecoms company.

Andy, Wythenshawe (25/01/2005 at 16:57)

Since when was broadband free, and since when were computers free ... this is NOT a free service, apart from which you can talk to anyone with msn messenger ( or most other im's ) now.

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