Nokia, the world’s largest maker of phones, and Microsoft announced their alliance late last week. Both investors and employees reacted with dismay: Nokia’s stock dived 14 per cent and Finnish employees used flex time to go home early.

Today, a day ahead of the start of the Mobile World Congress mobile phone trade show in Barcelona, Elop told press, analysts and industry players that apart from the benefits of the alliance that were laid out late last week, Microsoft is paying Nokia billions of dollars to switch to Windows Phone 7.

“This is something I don’t think was completely explained,” Elop said.

Elop, a former Microsoft executive, said Finland-based Nokia had been courted by Google as well, which sought to convince it to use its popular Android software for smart phones. Microsoft’s payments are recognition that Nokia had “substantial value to contribute”, said Elop.

Redmond, Washington-based Microsoft introduced Windows Phone 7 last year, on phones made by LG Electronics and HTC, but has only captured a few percentage points of the smartphone market, according to analysts.

Nokia’s worldwide market share in smartphones was just over 30 per cent in last year’s fourth quarter, down from 40 per cent a year earlier. Those phones use Symbian, a relatively old software package that wasn’t designed to be used with touchscreens.

Money and in-kind contributions will flow both ways in the deal, Elop reiterated. Nokia will be contributing its Ovi mapping service and will be paying Microsoft royalties for the use of its software, as other manufacturers do. It will save money by not continuing development of its own software. The net benefit is still in the billions, he said.

Analysts believe Google pays manufacturers to use Android, but no figures have come to light.

Elop was hired in September to shake things up at Nokia, but he may face an uphill battle in getting employees on board. At the Barcelona event, Elop was asked whether he’s a “Trojan horse” – a Microsoft insider who’s penetrated Nokia and steered it in a direction favorable to Microsoft.

“The obvious answer is ‘No’,” Elop said. “Thanks for asking.”

He said the decision to go with Windows Phone was unanimous in Nokia’s senior management team. Nokia’s board approved the deal a day ahead of the announcement in London.

Adding Nokia’s market share to that of existing Android phones would have left the world with only two real players in smartphone software, Elop said. He didn’t mention the iPhone, but it’s the other dominant force in smartphones. A duopoly would have big ramifications for everyone, he said.

“A decision to go with Windows Phone creates a very different dynamic,” Elop said. “It’s an environment where now, Windows Phone is a challenger.”

Microsoft has made smartphone software for more than a decade. Windows Phone 7 is an attempt to make a clean break with the past, and create an operating system designed for big iPhone-style touch screens.

Information Source smh.com.au

The technology changes place more stress on emergency services, which receive geographic information from fixed-line calls to triple-O, and businesses that send fixed calls to 13-numbers to the nearest shopfront.

The regulator responsible for the numbering plan, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, is expected to start consultations in coming weeks to avoid problems and amend the plan.

Area codes and local identifiers such as 03 for Victoria and 9836 for Camberwell are used by the copper telephone network as a map to send calls to certain states and exchanges, with the last four digits sending the call to a particular port within the exchange.

But telephone calls made over a fibre broadband connection, known within the industry as voice over internet protocol (VOIP), are sent to an internet address and not a physical location. This means it is technically possible for telephone numbers to be taken from any location in Australia to another. It is a similar concept to email, which is sent to an internet address, not a geographic location.

All telephone calls will be sent over the internet when the national broadband network is built to replace the copper telephone network.

While it may be convenient for consumers to keep the same fixed-line number permanently, it could create chaos if households with area codes are allowed to take their number when moving interstate.

Currently about 2 per cent of fixed-line telephone calls are made using VOIP services.

Information Source smh.com.au

These days, it is becoming common for telecommunications providers to use VoIP telephony over public IP networks to connect with other telephony network providers. Infact, many companies are opting IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) which merge internet technologies with mobile using VoIP infrastructure. This enables upgradation in the existing systems while adopting internet technologies like web, email, video conferencing and instant messaging. It also allows existing VoIP systems to interface with the conventional PSTN and mobile phone networks. This is not all, businesses are increasingly beginning to migrate from traditional copper wire telephone systems to VoIP systems in order to reduce phone costs. With this, they get efficient bandwidth and low cost facility. VoIP runs both voice and data communication over a single network, that helps reducing infrastructure costs significantly.

Apart from being used in small-to-medium business markets to multi-national companies, VoIP is also appreciated by end users using it for communication. VoIP enables them to make internet calls from PC to PC and PC to Phone. The PC to PC calls are free of cost while PC to Phone calls are cheap and cost-effective. As all of us are aware of the fact that the international calling is so expensive and not affordable for all. This is why there are so many VoIP resellers available for end users which are facilitating people with their efficient services.

VoIP resellers are gaining popularity as more and more people are availing the services of VoIP. Large numbers of industry players are into this business as it costs nothing as an investment point-of-view. This is the reason people are choosing this medium of business because of minimum risk too. One just needs to buy and sell minutes and have to make business between the two ports. The risk factor is negligible and one can make generate good amount of revenue. This is why VoIP resellers are creating a stir in the VoIP world.