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Technology Stocks : Voice-on-the-net (VON), VoIP, Internet (IP) Telephony -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1662)	10/29/1998 7:49:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3178

Italy goes cellular-telephony> Omnitel Unveils Internet Telephony October 29, 1998 MILAN, ITALY, Newsbytes via NewsEdge Corporation : Omnitel Pronto Italia, the Italian GSM (global system for mobile communications) cellular network, widely regarded as a leader in the European market in terms of innovations, has unveiled its new Internet telephony strategy. Launching the strategy at the SMAU '98 Italian information technology (IT) fair this week, officials said that the plan is to offer both businesses and personal users of the cellular network a variety of Internet telephony services. According to company officials, personal users that have an Omnitel plan and have selected the international calls option will now be able to select Tariffa Internet, an Internet based service that allows them to call the US, Canada and the UK at just 500 lire (30 cents) a minute -- around 50 percent of the normal costs for such call. To use the service, GSM users dial 29 in prefix to the country code, rather than 00, and will see their calls routed across the Internet, rather than normal voice grade international circuits. According to Omnitel, the voice telephony routing option is only the start of a number of Internet services available for its cellular subscribers. The most interesting service is an Internet e-mail mailbox on the company's omnitel.it Web site. While the mailbox can be accesses online as normal, by calling 2266 on their mobiles (after paying just 10,000 lire -- $7 -- for activation), GSM phone users can hear their incoming e-mail spoken though a text-to-speech system. Calls to 2266 cost just 195 lire (12 cents) a minute, Newsbytes notes. Business customers, meanwhile, can benefit from the latest RAM (Rete Aziendale Mobile) offer. Every RAM customer will now be able to program all services linked to the RAM subscription through the Internet. According to Omnitel, this means that options on groups, itemized billing, online statements, call activation levels, and discount programs (Persona and Affari) will now be directly in the hands of the client. Reported by Newsbytes News Network, newsbytes.com . (19981028/Press Contact: Caterina Torcia, Omnitel Press Office +39-0241-433- 241/WIRES TELECOM, BUSINESS, ONLINE/)