VoIP De-Mystified

1
VoIP De-Mystified

• How to
• Compare
• Shop for
• Choose
• The optimal VoIP plan for your needs.

2
Persimmon Telecommunications

• Brings together a team of experts to help you
  make the best choice for your Telecommunications
  services
• Cost Effective Connections

3
Joe Budelis

• Harvard PhD in Decision Control
• 30 years experience
• Areas Project Management, IT, Analysis,
  Telecommunications
• Long Term Positions
• Mobil Corporation
• Morgan Stanley Dean Witter
• ShopForT1.com, Telarus, Commission River

4
What we bring to you

• Telecommunications expertise
• Consulting services
• To help you find the best option(s) for your
  Telecommunications needs
• To assist you with questions or issues that arise
  during provisioning and during the contract term
• To help you determine if contract renewal or a
  switch to another service is most beneficial

5
Specialties

• T1, DS3 and Fixed Wireless lines
• Fractional, Full, Bonded, Point-to-Point Ts
• Data, Voice and Integrated Ts
• OC3, MPLS, Ethernet and DSL lines
• Phone Service
• Local and Long Distance Phone Service
• Toll Free Service
• VoIP
• Cell Phone Service
• Audio Conferencing
• Domain Registration and Web hosting
• Fax Services

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What is VoIP?

• Voice over Internet Protocol
• Uses broadband internet connection for phone
  service
• Also known as
• Broadband phone service
• I-net telephony
• Internet phone service
• IP Phone service

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How does it Work?

• Router shares broadband connection with PC(s)
• Digital Terminal Adapter (aka dta or phone
  adapter) is interface between
• Router and
• Normal analog phone
• Alternatively, some plans use an IP phone

8
VoIP Background

• Initially VoIP was implemented PC-to-PC
• Using a PC as your phone is still an option with
  some plans
• Voice quality was originally poor
• Improvements in technology have greatly improved
  voice quality
• Most users can not tell the difference most of
  the time

9
VoIP Advantages

• Low cost toll calls
• Phone portability you can use your VoIP phone
  from any broadband connection
• Low cost to have phone numbers in distant
  locations
• Many features available via software at a low
  cost or no additional cost
• Features are upgradeable via software download
• Calls to others on same service are always free

10
VoIP Disadvantages

• Phone line is down if broadband connection is
  down
• Phone adapter and/or router occasionally must be
  rebooted
• Voice quality degrades if internet connection has
  latency, jitter or significant packet loss

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911 Service

• Not all VoIP vendors offer 911 service in all
  areas and, when they do
• You must enter into a database precisely the
  location where you will be using the dta
• You must update the location in the database when
  you move the dta
• Some vendors require that the shipping and
  billing addresses be the same as the address
  where you will use the service

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Basic VoIP ServiceTypical Features

• Voice mail
• CallerID with or without name
• CallerID Blocking
• 3-way Conferencing
• Call Waiting
• Call Waiting ID
• Call Forwarding
• On-line Account Management
• Call Transfer
• Virtual Numbers

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Basic Home, Home Office Plans

• Pay Monthly - Annual Plans
• 9.99 and 14.99 plans for 200 and 500 mins
• 19.99-24.99 per mo for unlimited calls to USA,
  Puerto Rico, Canada numbers and some other
  countries
• All-Inclusive Annual Plan
• Unlimited call plans
• 199 per year
• Extra charges for DA and International
• Various charges may add up to about 5/mo

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Business Options

• Basic VoIP Service Vendor provides IP phone or
  dta that you can use with any analog phone or
  phone system
• Hosted PBX Service Vendor provides dta and
  phone instrument with features that, in the past,
  were only available on high end PBX systems
• Integrated T1 T1 shared between voice and data
  carrier provides QoS to voice

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Hosted PBX ServiceTypical Additional Features

• Autoattendant
• Customizable
• Dial by extension
• Dial by name
• Company directory
• 3- or 4-digit extension to extension dialing
• Conference bridge
• Multiple Call Handling
• Ring Groups
• Switchboard
• Call Park / Call Pickup
• Do Not Disturb

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Hosted PBX Option

• Virtual Office
• 49.99/month Unlimited USA Canada calls
• 99.99 equipment cost
• Virtual Office Speakerphone
• DTA
• 1.50/mo FET 3 Federal Excise Tax
• 1.50/mo RRF Regulatory Recovery Fee
• 1.99 E911 Service Fee
• 39.99 activation fee
• 24.99/month metered extension _at_ 250 outbound
  mins/mo 2.9 cents a minute thereafter
• 30-day (max 300 minutes) money back guarantee

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Basic VoIP Business Options

• Business 2000 Plan
• 2000 inbound/outbound mins/mo USA and Canada
• Includes voicemail, caller ID, call waiting,
  three-way calling, find me/follow-me,
  simultaneous ring, call forwarding, and more.
• Unlimited calls to other Packet8 numbers
• 39.99 per month
• 3.5 cpm for additional USA/Canada outbound calls
  after 2000 outband mins

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How to Choose a VoIP Plan?

• See Plan Comparisons on the VoIP Comparison
  spreadsheet at
• http//shopforld.com/VoIP.xls
• Use the first column as a checklist of features
  which are most important to you?