VoIP Providers Aiming for Stimulus Funding
Some VoIP companies are looking to broadband stimulus funds to boost deployment and market expansion, experts said.
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VoIP service provider 8x8 is looking at both the NTIA’s Broadband Technology Opportunities Program and the RUS’ Broadband Initiatives Program, CEO Bryan Marin told us. He didn’t elaborate on the company’s approach, but said 8x8, a member of the California Broadband Task Force, has been involved in state VoIP regulatory issues from the company’s start. Spreading broadband access isn’t enough, he said, saying that should be followed up compelling applications like VoIP. But Vonage doesn’t plan to pursue the stimulus money, a spokesman said.
The stimulus act will help service providers, fixed and mobile expand their service territories and speed up the deployment of broadband, especially in tier 2 and 3 rural markets, said Scott Hoffpauir, chief technology officer of VoIP application vendor BroadSoft. For providers, the law will create new and significant revenue streams, he said. In addition to providing access, providers can layer on value-added services like VoIP, he said. The stimulus package means more broadband deployments and opportunity for more advanced multimedia communications over IP, he said. The company’s rural local exchange carrier and IOC customers will be going after the money, a BroadSoft spokeswoman said. BroadSoft won’t go after the money, since it’s not a service provider, she said. The company expects most of the stimulus dollars to go to rural and independent operating carriers to expand their service territories and accelerate buildout, she said. Suppliers most likely to directly benefit are those involved in fiber projects and 3G/4G with a tangible benefit to VoIP, Avian Securities analyst Catharine Trebnick said.
VoIP application developers like Sabse could benefit from service providers that manage to land some of the stimulus money, said Yogesh Patel, CEO of Sabse, the technology provider for VoIP service firm Jaxtr. His company is interested in applying but is still studying the stimulus rules and guidelines, he said. Time is short and the company is aiming for the second and third application deadlines, he said. But the programs seemed to favor service providers instead of application vendors, he said. The company is working with two midsized carriers and is talking to more service companies, he said. The stimulus money, the nudge from federal officials as to Internet telephony’s usefulness as an application and the proliferation of broadband could help bring VoIP onto more devices and to rural areas, he said. A short-term goal is to push mobile VoIP, while expanding VoIP to remote communities is a long-term goal with the help of the stimulus package, he said.