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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 (1809)	11/9/1998 9:32:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3178

High Expectations Blamed For Telecom Competition Squabbles November 9, 1998 MARIETTA, GEORGIA, U.S.A., Rows between telephone companies, such as Thursday'sepisode in which AT&T Co. [NYSE:T] called a press conference to complain about Bell Atlantic Corp.'s [NYSE:BEL] performance in switching business customers to AT&T's local phone service in New York, result from a "chicken and egg" problem that might be solved by warning consumers to expect some problems in the early days of local phone competition, telecommunications consultant Jeffrey Kagan says. Kagan, president of Kagan Telecom Associates and author of the 1997 book " Winning Communications Strategies," told Newsbytes he does not believe regional Bell operating companies such as Bell Atlantic are deliberately causing delays or problems with orders from AT&T and other would-be local-exchange competitors. "I think it's simply a case of blazing new trails and having to work out the bugs as they go along," he said. Kagan said it is inevitable there will be problems in implementing local competition, just as there were when long-distance competition began in the early 1980s. The difference is that consumers then expected some hiccups, and were prepared to accept them in exchange for savings, but consumers today are cutting phone companies very little slack, and carriers such as AT&T are worried about possible damage to their highly valued brand names if customers have bad experiences. The best answer, Kagan said, would be for the entire phone industry to work together to tell consumers they should not expect perfection during the transition period to local competition. "It's in everyone's best interest for the consumer to be educated," Kagan told Newsbytes. The new competitors would benefit from protecting themselves against customer dissatisfaction by better managing expectations. The incumbent carriers would benefit because the sooner local competition becomes a reality, the sooner they will be allowed to enter the long-distance market. Much of the problem at the moment is that the only way to work the kinks out of systems for things like hot cuts -- the process of switching a local connection from one carrier to another -- is to use them to process plenty of real live orders. But competitors are hesitating to ramp up their local-service marketing and start putting those orders through because they are afraid problems with the orders will annoy their customers and send them back to incumbents in a huff. By persuading customers to cut them some slack, telephone companies could get on with putting the orders through and working the bugs out of the systems, Kagan said. That kind of cooperation would be better than mutual recriminations. "What AT&T did yesterday just throws fuel on the fire. It doesn't solve the problem." In yesterday's press conference, Michael Morrisey, AT&T's vice- president of law and government affairs, told reporters that Bell Atlantic failed to execute 89 to 99 percent of orders for hot cuts within the agreed-upon five-day period. He did not say the failures were deliberate, though he suggested Bell Atlantic was less than enthusiastic about helping customers move to AT&T. A Bell Atlantic spokesman described the AT&T complaint as "another in a long series of delaying tactics" aimed at keeping Bell Atlantic out of the long-distance business. The AT&T complaint was not unique. Recently the Colorado Public Utilities Commission supported complaints by long-distance carriers interested in entering the local market about the way US West Inc. handled the unbundling of network elements in that state. Competitive local exchange carriers across the country have complained about the incumbent carriers' procedures for interconnecting competitors' networks with their own.

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1809)	11/10/1998 7:50:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3178

NetSpeak and Motorola Announce Three-Phase Joint Development Effort to Offer Voice-Over IP Solutions November 10, 1998 BOCA RATON, Fla., and AUSTIN, Texas, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ NetSpeak(R) Corporation (Nasdaq: NSPK) and Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) announced a three- part strategy to expand functionality and interoperability between the two companies' Voice over IP (VoIP) products. The strategy is designed to allow interoperability between products and enhance functionality for Motorola's market-leading Vanguard platform. The first phase of the joint development project extends Vanguard's connection reach by providing telephone-to-IP address translation and call- routing capabilities. In the second phase of the project, access to the NetSpeak Connection Server, an enhanced H.323 gatekeeper, will be extended to allow for the management of Vanguard user accounts, providing authentication and verification for debit card and billing applications. Vanguard users will be able to employ NetSpeak applications for real-time credit card authorization and centralized back-end data collection. Vanguard will also be interoperable with the NetSpeak Gateway Exchange, allowing the Vanguard network to include Gateway Exchanges that provide port capacities to 96 T1 or 120 E1 ports. Phase three will feature enhanced call control, Quality of Service (QoS) capabilities and audio services. "By working together, Motorola and NetSpeak are making it easier for service providers and enterprises to implement voice-over IP technology," said Sean Parham, Director of Motorola's Internet Product Operations. " Focusing on interoperability allows Motorola and NetSpeak to offer complete industry- leading solutions to the marketplace." The NetSpeak Connection Server (CS) is the cornerstone of NetSpeak Solutions. The CS provides gatekeeper functionality for NetSpeak Gateway Exchanges, IP telephony servers and WebPhone(R) telephony clients. The CS dynamically resolves routing requests, provides account authentication, tracks online users and maintains Gateway Exchange and WebPhone routing information in a centralized location. "This announcement signifies a major first step toward the development of a fully interoperable, standards-based, joint product offering with Motorola, " said Robin Rednor, Vice President of OEM Sales at NetSpeak. "We are pleased to be working with Motorola and look forward to enhancing our respective VoIP solutions through this exciting partnership." Motorola's strength lies in its data/voice convergence technology, which is at the heart of every one of the voice ports shipping today. The integration of Motorola's Digital Signal Processor (DSP) technology enables packet voice telephony applications to flow efficiently and reliably over data networks. All 70,000+ shipped voice ports on Vanguard products incorporate this DSP technology. Motorola's IP telephony offerings provide a full line of hardware and software solutions. Vanguard products offer standards support, SNMP management and scalability starting with the Vanguard 320 for small offices. About Motorola The Motorola Internet and Networking Group (ING) delivers Smart Access Technology to connect people and organizations in a world of converging communications. ING provides a full complement of wireline and wireless access solutions, including corporate networking, broadband communications, wireless content services and platform software. Please visit mot.com for more information. Motorola is a global leader in advanced electronic systems and services. It liberates the power of technology by creating software-enhanced products that provide integrated customer solutions and Internet access via wireless and satellite communications, as well as computing, networking and automotive electronics. Motorola also provides essential digital building blocks in the form of embedded semiconductors, controls and systems. Sales in 1997 were $29.8 billion. About NetSpeak Corporation NetSpeak Corporation, based in Boca Raton, Fla., develops, markets, licenses and supports a suite of intelligent software modules which provide business solutions for concurrent, real-time interactive voice, video and data communications over packetized data networks such as the Internet and Local Area Networks (LANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs). NetSpeak's products allow organizations to build new voice and video-enabled communications networks, or to add these communications capabilities to their existing enterprise. For additional information visit NetSpeak's World Wide Web site at netspeak.com. NetSpeak, NetSpeak Logo, WebPhone and Mini WebPhone are Trademarks of NetSpeak Corporation. Other brand and product names may be Registered Trademarks or Trademarks of their respective holders. Forward-looking statements (statements which are not historical facts) in this release are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including those risks and uncertainties detailed in the Company's filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. SOURCE NetSpeak Corporation

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1809)	11/10/1998 7:59:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Respond to of 3178

Worldwide Online Corp - Company Announcement November 10, 1998 TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)Worldwide Online Cor(NASDAQ:WWDI) Worldwide Online, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Worldwide Data Inc (NASD BB - WWDI) is pleased to announce that they have completed the first phase of testing for their new Voice Over IP service. This service, based on Cisco Systems, Inc.'s (NASD - CSCO) 3600 series routers, connects Toronto to New York City and allows clients to fax, or make telephone calls, over the Internet, at significant cost savings. Bronson Conrad, CEO of Worldwide Online Corp, was showcasing the successful transmission of a telephone call over the Internet. "This isn't your 'typical' Internet telephone service" said Conrad. "I'm using my regular telephone to call other telephones in the New York area, but at virtually no cost." During a recent internet telephone call between Toronto and New York City, the managing director of a large New York-based trust company was astounded to learn that he was taking part in a demonstration: "The quality was so clear that I didn't notice the difference", he said. Romeo Colacitti, President of Worldwide Online said "Throughout the service development cycle, Cisco Systems was the obvious choice to partner with - both for the superior FXO/FXS voice technology of the routers and the engineering and support services that we need to help us meet the demands of our international customers "As the leader in networking for the Internet, Cisco is leading the way in the construction of a New World communications infrastructure based on Internet protocol," said Araldo Menegon, director, Canadian Service Provider Operations, Cisco Systems Canada Co. "With Cisco technology, companies like Worldwide Online and their innovative use of the Internet are truly changing the way people live, work, learn and play. We congratulate Worldwide Online on their leadership in this field." Preparations are underway for Worldwide Online to make the service available to clients in Hong Kong and Rome, and they expect to have an additional 10-12 countries accessing their service by mid-1999. Worldwide Online Corp, a wholly owned subsidiary of Worldwide Data Inc (NASD BB - WWDI), is a premier internet service provider and internet business solution provider. They offer internet access for companies of all sizes as well as a full-suite of internet-based business and development solutions for clients around the world. Cisco Systems Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, is a multinational coproration with more that $8 billion (U.S.) in annual revenues and more than 15,000 employees worldwide. Cisco Systems Canada Co. was established by Cisco Systems in 1990 and is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The company has more than 150 employees in Canada. Cisco produces networking solutions for enterprise organizations, service providers and small/medium businesses. With 80 per cent of the backbone of the global Internet built with Cisco Systems, Cisco is empowering the Internet generation. Additional information on the company and its products can be accessed on the Internet at cisco.com or cisco.com. E. Allan McCaffrey Vice President, Investor Relations

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (1809)	11/10/1998 8:30:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Respond to of 3178

CTI News>> SiteBridge Corporation Announces Reseller Agreement With CTS, Top Canadian Call Center Integrator November 10, 1998 NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE) Partnership With Computer Telephony Solutions Gives Canadian Companies Ability to Web-Enable Sales Force Automation and Call Center Applications SiteBridge Corporation announced today that it has signed a reseller agreement with Computer Telephony Solutions (CTS), a leading sales force automation and call center integrator in Canada. Effective immediately, CTS, which provides world class sales automation and call center performance to companies in the financial services, telecommunications, insurance and healthcare sectors, will be offering SiteBridge's CustomerNow(tm), an enterprise-class application that brings sales professionals together with customers over the Web. CTS is one of the few companies in Canada that has expertise in implementing advanced client/server call center solutions. With the addition of CustomerNow, CTS offers its clients a WebCentre solution, which will allow customers to conduct live, one-to-one sessions with service agents over the Web. By combining the visual power of the Web with live phone calls, CustomerNow enables sales representatives to maximize the value of each customer interaction, leading to shortened sales cycles. "In choosing a Web-based application that enhances sales force automation and call center operations, we found SiteBridge's CustomerNow to be the only product of its kind that works across all browsers and platforms," said Martin Johnson, Managing Director of CTS. "This is a critical feature that will help us provide our corporate clients with a powerful business-to-business application that is ideal for online sales and service environments. In fact, we use the product ourselves as part of our internal online sales and service initiatives." The enabling technology behind CustomerNow's ability to work across all browsers and platforms is SiteBridge's patent-pending WorksEverywhere(tm) architecture. This unique technology platform detects the user's environment and configures the optimal user interface based on the customer's browser version and hardware platform. In addition, CustomerNow is built with open APIs and easily integrates with existing sales force automation and call center operations. "CTS is the technology leader in the Canadian call center market, and their decision to offer CustomerNow as the backbone of their sales automation offering is a clear indication of their forward-thinking, customer-oriented approach," said Mark Cooper, Vice President of Marketing for SiteBridge. "CustomerNow benefits CTS' clients by maximizing the effectiveness of each customer interaction, shortening their sales cycles and giving them a competitive edge in their markets. CTS' recognition of this advantage demonstrates that they share our vision for the future of sales and customer service, and we're excited to work with them to continue developing and deploying enterprise-class sales and service solutions."