Weekly Erlang: A Digest of Telephony News Traffic

More VoIP Launches Cox Communications will launch VoIP digital telephone service in Las Vegas, Macon, Ga., Central Florida, Gulf Coast Florida and Topeka, Kan., increasing the number of telephone markets to 22, or 70 percent of its total footprint by year-end. On the other side of the coin, MCI announced immediate availability of its VoIP product suite as part of an accelerated launch to meet growing demand. The VoIP wholesale services include carrier IP termination and session initiation protocol (SIP) service. Finally, TelTel, a provider of SIP-based global Internet telephony, announced the availability of its Public SIP Telephone Network (PsipTN), a virtual network capable of carrying voice, multimedia and audio/video content. Score Card Comcast added 15,000 voice subs its second quarter and says it’s on track to hit 250,000 subs by year-end. Charter says it has about 68,000 phone customers, but is behind on its internal deployment plan. Those issues now are “largely resolved,” interim CEO Bob May said. Comcast Adds Backbone(s) Sprint announced it would provide connectivity between traditional phone providers and Comcast Digital Voice in select markets. The arrangement concerns backbones, not wireless integration. “Sprint looks forward to supporting Comcast’s telecommunication needs,” said Jim Patterson, VP Carrier, Cable and Wholesale Markets, Sprint, in a statement. AT&T Global Wholesale Services announced that it had won a contract to provide some national transport and termination services for Comcast Digital Voice. The deal extends AT&T’s existing network support of Comcast. Meanwhile, Level 3 Communications publicized that one of its units is providing Comcast with underlying backbone support for the rollout of Digital Voice. “Level 3 continues to be an important partner and a company that we rely on to provide the infrastructure we need to offer reliable and innovative home services to our customers,” said Catherine Avgiris, SVP finance and administration of Comcast Voice Services, in a statement. Green VoIP Inveneo, a non-profit/social enterprise organization, demonstrated a “bicycle-powered, Linux-based VoIP system” VoIPcycle at the VoIP Developer Conference in San Francisco. The Inveneo technology links a Linux-based PC with a VoIP connection that’s powered by either a bicycle or solar panel. With no moving parts, the ruggedized unit is designed to withstand the African climate and be serviced remotely, if required. Inveneo is working with various international relief organizations to install its unit in remote African villages lacking electricity and phone access. Summer with CableLabs On a less environmental and more domestic note, Auspice will demonstrate its voice service manager for VoIP services to attendees of the CableLabs Summer Conference in two weeks. Old Name, New Service StarVox has reconfigured its business case to add a unified communications platform to its wholesale VoIP services platform and re-launched itself as StarVox Communications with a next-generation network designed to meet the needs of small, medium and large business transitioning from separate legacy voice and data networks to a converged IP-based network. Vonage Watch: Commercial VoIP Vonage linked up with TowerStream, a pre-WiMAX fixed wireless Internet provider, to offer its small business VoIP solutions to TowerStream’s customers. The combined service is available to customers in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, greater Providence and Newport R.I. More Commercial Voice Cox has approved Xtend Networks’ solution for providing T1 voice and data services over the HFC network.