Sprint Canada (Call-Net) launches broadband phone service
2004年7月22日 - 11:18PM
PRニュース・ワイアー (英語)
Sprint Canada (Call-Net) launches broadband phone service First
competitive local exchange carrier to launch VOIP; 911 capable,
highly reliable, available to residential consumers and small
office/home offices TORONTO, July 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
Sprint Canada Inc., a subsidiary of Call-Net Enterprises Inc., a
leading provider of telecommunication services to households and
businesses, today launched Sprint Canada Internet Phone
Service(TM), its broadband phone service for households and
small/home offices. Starting at just $19.95 per month, Sprint
Canada Internet Phone Service (IPS) uses voice over Internet
Protocol (VOIP) technology to transmit local and long distance
calls over high speed Internet networks and Sprint Canada's
national local service network. The service is supported by the
Company's state-of-the-industry back office systems. "Sprint Canada
is pleased to offer Canada's first competitive local exchange
carrier (CLEC) compliant broadband phone service," said Bill
Linton, chief executive officer, Sprint Canada. "While consumer
awareness and take-up of voice over IP service is low, our research
shows that consumers are more comfortable adopting a new technology
from a trusted telecommunications company like Sprint Canada. Our
approach is to continue to evolve our voice over IP product as the
market matures and to use the service to grow our off-net consumer
business." Sprint Canada Internet Phone Service works with any
residential high speed Internet service, including light services
offered by telephone digital subscriber line (DSL) or cable. The
starter package includes a VOIP gateway, one telephone number and
line that can travel with the customer wherever they can access
high speed Internet service, an integrated four-port 100 megabits
per second (mbps) Ethernet router and firewall. The service works
with a regular telephone handset and customers can keep their
existing phone number in serviceable areas or add a new one and
select their preferred area code and exchange. Sprint Canada
provides the Internet protocol gateway at a cost of $75 including
four months of basic service. The service is easy to install, and
works right out of the box. The service is available as a
standalone product and includes all standard home phone features
such as operator services, 911, 411, and 711. Call waiting, call
display and voice mail are also available. IPS is also available as
part of bundled package with local home phone service and Fido(R)
wireless service. "This service is ideal for parents sending their
children to university, as a second household or small business
line, for residential customers with a second home, or for heavy
long distance users," added Linton. To order the service, consumers
and small businesses can call 1-800-298-6939 or visit
http://www.sprint.ca/. Sprint Canada was one of the first companies
to offer competitive telecommunication services to Canadian
consumers and businesses in 1986. It launched its local home and
business service in 1999, expanding the number of markets in 2001.
It remains Canada's only competitive national telecommunications
company offering local telephone service to both homes and
businesses in most major markets. As of March 2004, Sprint Canada
had more than 300,000 local home phone lines and business line
equivalents in service. Sprint Canada Inc. Sprint Canada Inc. a
wholly owned subsidiary of Call-Net Enterprises Inc., (TSX: FON,
FON.B), is a leading Canadian integrated communications solutions
provider of home phone, wireless, long distance and IP services to
households, and local, long distance, toll free, enhanced voice,
data and IP services to businesses across Canada. Call-Net,
headquartered in Toronto, owns and operates an extensive national
fibre network, has over 148 co-locations in five major urban areas
including 31 municipalities and maintains network facilities in the
United States and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit
http://www.callnet.ca/ and http://www.sprint.ca/. Note for
Investors: This news release includes statements about expected
future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in
nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. For those
statements, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for
forward-looking statements provisions contained in the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The company cautions that
actual performance will be affected by a number of factors, many of
which are beyond the Company's control. Future events and results
may vary substantially from what the Company currently foresees.
Discussion of the various factors that may affect future results is
contained in the Company's recent filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, the Ontario Securities Commission and SEDAR.
BACKGROUNDER Sprint Canada offers broadband phone service Fully
CLEC-compliant, 911 capable, highly reliable Internet telephony
service available to consumers and small office, home offices
Sprint Canada Internet Phone Service(TM) Features and Benefits -
Works with virtually any residential high speed Internet service,
including light services offered by telephone digital subscriber
line (DSL) or cable. - Starter package includes a voice over
Internet protocol (VOIP) gateway, one telephone number and line
that can travel with the customer wherever they can access high
speed Internet service, an integrated four-port 100 megabytes per
second (mbps) Ethernet router and firewall. - Customers can keep
their existing phone number in serviceable areas or add a new one
and select their preferred area code and exchange (first three
digits of a phone number after the area code) based on
availability. - The service works with a regular telephone set.
Sprint Canada provides the VOIP gateway at a cost of $75 (including
four months of basic service) that connects easily to the telephone
and the customer's high-speed access modem. The service is easy to
install, and works right out of the box. - Available in a bundled
package with local home phone service and Fido(R) wireless service.
- A wide selection of features are included: - Choice of long
distance provider - Nomadic 911 service (address and location) -
Integrated four port router and firewall - Pay-per-use codes such
as (x)69 - Free yearly phone book delivered to service home -
Directory listing in the White Pages - Place and receive collect
calls - Pay-per-use access to 411 and 555-1212 directory services -
Ability to restrict long distance calls from being made on the line
- Ability to convert VOIP service to and from traditional wireline
service - All Sprint Canada services on one, easy to read monthly
invoice - Yellow Pages listings are available. - Introductory offer
starts at $75 that includes the first four months of basic service
and the gateway. - Free express three-day deliver to the customer's
premise. To order the service, consumers and small businesses can
call 1-800-298- 6939 or order online at http://www.sprint.ca/.
Voice over Internet Protocol Primer - Making phone calls over the
Internet, or voice over Internet protocol (VOIP), is a relatively
new technology that is gaining momentum in the North American
market. - VOIP uses Internet protocol (IP) instead of dedicated
copper loops, to place and receive telephone calls. A standard
telephone is plugged into a VOIP gateway that converts the voice
signals to digital packets, which are then sent across an IP
network to a carrier switch where the call is then directed to its
final destination. - VOIP uses far less bandwidth than conventional
landline calls and has the potential to bring other value added
features to telephony service such as web-based voice mail,
web-based calling, real time usage statistics and integration with
contact management systems such as Microsoft Outlook(TM). - VOIP
service requires a standard telephone, high-speed Internet access,
and the gateway generally supplied by the VOIP telephone service
provider. Installation of VOIP service is relatively
straightforward. Once installed, the telephone instantly has dial
tone. - VOIP service allows customers to choose a telephone number
from any area code they wish and to keep their telephone number for
life, should they move. The phone will operate anywhere in the
world where there is high-speed Internet service, for the price of
a local call. - VOIP does not work with dial-up Internet service.
The quality of voice over IP calls has improved significantly in
the last few years. Voice technology and equipment have advanced in
the past five years to the point that the quality now approaches
that of a landline call. - Despite advances, the drawbacks of VOIP
are: - The service is entirely dependent on an Internet connection
so if the network goes down, or the power goes out, so does the
phone service - Not all VOIP service providers offer nomadic 911(1)
- Households requiring multiple phones need to purchase multiple
cordless phones to plug into the VOIP gateway - Large businesses
and telecommunication companies have been early adopters of the
VOIP technology. For example, large telecommunication providers
like Sprint and AT&T in the U.S. have adopted VOIP to carry
long distance traffic within their own networks. - Currently it is
estimated that less than .01 per cent of the population in North
American are using VOIP technology.
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Sprint Primus Canada Canada(3) Vonage WebCall BabyTel
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CLEC status Yes No No No No
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Supports own VOIP service Yes No No No No
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Consumer protection against ILEC Yes No No No No
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Choice of long distance providers Yes No No No No
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911 service Yes(4) Yes(5) No No No
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White and yellow page listings available Yes No No No No
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Receive collect calls Yes No No No No
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Pay per use codes (e.g. (x)69) Yes No No No No
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10-10 dial around access Under No No No No development
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Home phone service Yes Yes No No No
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Home phone service & wireless bundle Yes No No No No
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System access fee $3.99 $3.95 No No No
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Basic service $19.95 $19.95 $19.99 $29.95 $10.95 $34.99 $39.95
$16.95 $45.99 $49.95 $22.95 $34.95 Above Above plans plans Above
plans include include include all all all available available
available features, features, features, plus plus plus varying
varying varying long amounts amounts distance of long of long rates
or distance distance included minutes
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Basic plus Up to 1 feature $23.95 $26.95
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Basic plus Up to 2 features $25.95 $29.95
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Basic plus 3 features $27.95 $29.95
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Basic plus Up to 4 features $29.95 $34.95
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Basic plus 5 features $31.95 $34.95
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Gateway $75.00 $135.00 - Rented Rented $119.95 includes $79.95 4
months
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Activation or cancellation fee No No $39.00 $19.99 Gateway
activation shipping purchase fee required
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Sprint Canada Internet Phone Service(TM) vs. Competitors(2)
------------------------------------- (1) Allows customers to
change their service address and retain 911 service based upon this
new service address. (2) Based on information available as of July
19, 2004. (3) Customers cannot have Primus home phone service and
Primus high-speed access with VOIP at the same time. (4) Sprint
Canada's VOIP service includes nomadic 911 service which, means
that customers can change their service address and retain 911
based on their new service address. (5) Primus 911 service is not
nomadic. DATASOURCE: Call-Net Enterprises Inc. CONTACT: Karen
O'Leary, (416) 718-6445,
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