Coming Soon: Ring.to a new OBiTALK ASP with Absolutely FREE Calling!
nitzan:
Quote from: swg0101 on May 17, 2014, 08:21:00 pm
1. Wait until at least 100,000 users sign up, add limited free international calling + SIP + mobile calling to attract new users.
2. Offer free service for at least 2 years to indicate stability.
3. Slowly transition to a tiered model where outbound minutes are limited to offer "free" usage, with the option to buy more usage or "referrals" to "earn" usage. Inbound minutes remain unlimited (this is because carriers get paid with inbound calls).
I think you're giving them too much credit. More likely they are in panic mode because Google Voice is one of their largest customers if not the largest, and if/when GV blocks XMPP Bandwidth stands to lose millions of numbers which Google was paying for until now. My speculation is that this is a desperate attempt to keep these numbers in-house, but they haven't actually thought this through i.e. how exactly to monetize it. Likely once they realize they can't/fail to monetize it (you can't start charging for a free service - 99% of people will leave immediately) they'll just discontinue it. I suspect this will eventually happen with Google Voice too - they seemed to have lost interest and wanting to cut costs, so it's just a matter of time.
swg0101:
;D, good point, although I am curious whether the discontinuation of XMPP services will actually lead to porting away or whether users will try to "workaround" the issue and keep the pool of numbers relatively the same.
For example, Callcentric offers free NY numbers from Telengy, and I am pretty sure many users will opt for that for forwarding to get a means for an inbound SIP trunk (bonus: Callcentric offers CNAM lookups for free). That said, Telengy is known to have issues with GV forwarding and sometimes phone just don't ring at all. Interestingly, all free numbers assigned by Callcentric has a LRN of 16465701001, and wholesale rates to that prefix doesn't seem all that expensive (although slightly higher than AT&T). I am not quite sure how Google does their routing, although some prefixes Telengy use has quite a high rate, when determined from the prefix itself, and not the LRN. I do have better success in terms of forwarding when using prefixes that are cheaper, so it is quite possible Google bases its forwarding strategy on prefix rather on LRN.
Nonetheless, you make a great point about "panic mode," since their site seems to be crafted up in a hurry, and many features and offerings there are just not ready for prime-time. Like you said, it looks like it was made by a startup who doesn't know what they are doing, although I do want to give them credit for having a forum that attempts to "hear its users."
This link in itself is interesting, because it may suggest that there is an issue with calls originating from Bandwidth and terminating at the same CLEC:
https://bandwidth.uservoice.com/knowledgebase/articles/334657-call-forwarding-not-working-via-google-voice
Curious if that means if Google is using LRN after all... :D
KCChris:
Quote from: AlanB on May 17, 2014, 04:34:25 pm
Quote from: swg0101 on May 16, 2014, 05:27:11 pm
Sounds like a bait and switch technique to me... although the integration shouldn't require any firmware changes since they currently use SIP for the integration. If you currently use Groove IP, you can even get a number without porting an existing one over... their site does seem to be quite buggy at the moment..
It's not bait and switch. Any Obi bought before May 1 works fine ( although maybe not on GV for long)
Many companies offer incentives for new customers that don't apply to past purchases. We may not like it but it's not bait and switch.
I agree that it's not technically bait-and-switch, but it doesn't do much for the attitude of your loyal customer base. It seems silly for me to have to throw away (or try to sell) my perfectly capable and functioning device so Obihai can make a little more money off me.
Now that being said, the Ring.to integration could require some development on their part, and definitely would add value to the device I currently own, so I feel that some sort of one time Right To Use fee charged by Obihai could be a reasonable way to handle current owners.
Apple did something similar back in 2006 (for a different reason) with their iMacs - charging users $3 to get a software update to enable 802.11n wireless. If Obihai looked at the bottom-line margin contribution each new unit would give them and charged current users a RTU fee similar to that to enable Ring.to I'm betting that they would end up ahead in the deal. They could even put a "green" spin on it and make some press about how they are enabling new features without sending more electronics to the landfill.
Just my $.02.
ToddAllen:
I signed up for Ring.to via my existing paid/registered copy of GrooveIP for an Android phone. I didn't have to provide any existing account info or credit card #, etc. It offered a new phone # so I didn't have to port an existing one. After signing up GrooveIP is working and call quality is good. My only issue/complaint is I don't see a way to set the outbound caller id.
swg0101:
According to their forums, I believe they are working towards giving users an option to set the caller ID soon. I do see that they do provide you with real early-media unlike GV that only connects you after the remote picks up.
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