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To: hcirteg who wrote (6280)	6/7/1999 11:17:00 AM
From: Mark Oliver	Respond to of 10081

This sounds like a pretty uninspired product. Why don't they just use Portico? Was GTE one of the carriers mentioned in trials? Now, GTE will be merging with BellAtlantic, but they will be selling off a lot of their Wireless holdings. Regards, Mark GTE Takes A Unified Message By Louis Trager June 7, 1999 7:33 AM ET GTE is announcing today the first wholesale unified messaging service to be offered widely by a major company. The service - making e-mail, faxes and phone messages accessible by phone or computer - will be the first to offer flat monthly rates with toll-free local access numbers, instead of adding fees based on usage of an "800" number, the company said. It will prioritize messages uniquely by communications medium - say, voice-mail ahead of e-mail, with faxes last. The carrier's Internet Protocol Telecom unit is making GTE Unified Messaging available to Internet service providers wishing to cut customer defections and to supply services that generate higher profit margins than commodity data access. "It's a natural extension of e-mail, so that's why it's a natural fit for ISPs," Product Manager Roger Smith said. zdnet.com

To: hcirteg who wrote (6280)	6/7/1999 11:22:00 AM
From: Mark Oliver	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 10081

Two Companies Offer Free Message Services By Kathleen Cholewka June 7, 1999 10:04 AM ET The buzz on Internet-based unified messaging services is reaching a fever pitch. Two companies are launching free Internet services that let users receive voice-mail and fax transmissions in their e-mail in-boxes. Their business plan: Give out the service for free, partner with popular portals and telecom carriers, build up a substantial user base and then sell premium services to specific users. San Mateo, Calif.-based start-up Onebox.com today is unveiling its free online service. It hopes to sell premiums such as a "follow me" service, which allows end users to receive all of their incoming voice and data calls at one phone number. The vendor has not set pricing on its premium services. Users sign up for the unified messaging service with Onebox.com and receive a free local phone number, to which other users can send voice and fax messages. What's more, according to Julie Farris, Onebox.com's vice president of marketing, the company uses its patented software that allows it to use only a small number of local telephone numbers and essentially treat its customers like they are part of an office network with thousands of extensions. Subscribers send voice-mail in a compressed .WAV file format and faxes in .GIF files. The messages, which are stored on Onebox.com's network servers, are downloaded on demand to the user's PC or telephone. One competitive advantage is that end users can forward their Onebox.com messages to other users whether they have accounts or not. In addition, Onebox.com service supports America Online's instant messaging, which provides notification when messages arrive in the in-box. The vendor's EMC, Oracle and Sun Microsystems servers are hosted by Exodus Communications and MCI WorldCom. Farris said the company plans to announce today a strategic partnership with a major portal as well. Meanwhile, competition is fierce among vendors in the Internet fax and Internet voice-mail markets. New York-based Internet fax company Comfax, for example, last week launched a similar free service called MessageClick. MessageClick's voice-mail messages require users to download a RealAudio player; they can receive only faxes. Since the services eliminate the need for fax hardware or separate fax lines, telecommuters and small office owners can use the services to enhance their businesses on the cheap. According to Joe Covey, vice president of marketing at Comfax, the company uses Netcentric's Internet fax technology and has developed its own voice-mail capability on an Oracle database and Sun servers. The company has distribution agreements with Juno Online Services and At Home. In addition, last month, software vendor RocketTalk announced its free Internet voice-mail service. Farris said free Internet unified messaging services will beat out any such services offered by traditional telephone companies. "The AT&T-type carriers will love us because we can get them into local service markets," she said. zdnet.com