Tech Watch | InfoWorld Staff » Yahoo rings up VoIP purchase

June 15, 2005 | Comments: (0)

Yahoo rings up VoIP purchase

TAGS: Telecom

Yahoo has acquired DialPad Communications, a six-year-old startup whose software sets up calls over the Internet for a fraction of the price of regular telephone service.

No financial terms of the deal were announced.

Yahoo said it will use DialPad to expand its product offerings in the fast-growing area of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

DialPad has 40 employees and competes with several other startups that route calls from computers into the phone system. According to the company website, the company has been offering calling plans for about two years and has more than 14 million users.

The acquisition is not Yahoo's only VoIP announcement this year. Last month, Yahoo introduced a test version of its instant messaging software with an Internet telephony component that allowed users to make free computer-to-computer calls.

Activity in the VoIP space has been moving quickly lately. This week MCI rolled-out its MCI Advantage service in Europe. MCI Advantage is a portfolio of IP-based services designed for companies converging their voice and data networks.

As VoIP grows in popularity, so too is concern that tying telephony services in with IT networks can cause additional security problems. Last week, SurfControl, an Internet security provider, issued a warning to enterprise IT departments to establish policies regarding the use of free and paid-for desktop VoIP services.

Posted by Bob Francis on June 15, 2005 09:00 AM

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