OWWA and Microsoft to Provide Global Communication Services for OFW’s and their Families
FROM: http://www.microsoft.com/philippines/pressroom/0607_04.asp Manila, Philippines – The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and Microsoft Corp. announce they are working together on Konek Ka D’yan 2 (Connect! 2), a pilot service that will soon allow Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) to speak with their families utilizing some of the most cost-effective methods (WiFi and Mobile Voice over Internet Protocol or VoIP) and to remit their earnings and digitally transfer them to their designated beneficiaries from a Windows Mobile 5.0 (WiFi/cellular enabled) device. Hailed as the “new heroes of the Philippine economy” with their regular remittances to the country amounting to $10.7 billion in 2005 alone (or 10% of the Philippine annual gross domestic product), OFWs are sea- and land-based Filipino workers who struggle to maintain family connections while contributing to their economic well-being from around the world. Currently estimated at 8 million (15% of the working age population) and growing at a rate of 50,000 net new OFWs per month, these Filipinos can spend a significant portion of their earnings to stay in touch with family members while abroad, and are part of the reason that the Philippines is the text messaging capital of the world, sending an average of 200 million text messages a day, at a cost of around Php 0.90 per message. “Some OFWs can spend as much as US$100 (Php 5,300) a month to simply stay connected,” said Marianito Roque, Administrator of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. “This new service will significantly reduce those costs by utilizing available WiFi and VoIP services to turn an international call into a free or local call. For Filipino seamen, in particular, this is quite significant because many of their host ships are WiFi-enabled.” Konek Ka D’yan 2 will provide global communication services to OFWs through low cost, long-term loans for purchase of Windows Mobile 5.0 (WiFi/Cellular enabled) phones to take with them and use in their country of employment. This is complementary to the Konek Ka D’yan! program launched in April by OWWA and Microsoft, wherein personal computers (PCs) with broadband service are being made available to OFW’s family homes through OWWA’s Family Assistance Loans (FAL). The first phase of this trial with OFWs is currently underway. “We believe Konek Ka D’yan 2 will provide valuable support for our countrymen to strengthen their family ties through better communication and allow them more options for the management of their money,” said Antonio Javier Jr., Managing Director, Microsoft Philippines. The Konek Ka D’yan 2 pilot service will utilize Microsoft Office Live Communications Server (LCS) and a Microsoft Communicator-based User Interface (UI) through which OFWs can interact with their families via Instant Messaging, Presence (the ability to see the online availability and status of your contacts) and VoIP. Participating OFWs and their beneficiaries may be provided with debit bankcards and digital accounts powered by Microsoft Windows Live ID. The digital accounts are intended to allow OFWs to digitally transfer remitted funds directly to their designated recipients using either the Windows Mobile 5.0 phones or PCs, eliminating secondary remittance fees that are typically charged to send and receive funds today. “Konek Ka D’yan shows how our software platform approach can bring revolutionary economics and intelligence to bear on communications, and make a real impact on people’s daily lives,” said Gurdeep Pall, corporate vice president of Microsoft’s Unified Communications Group. “This pilot is a powerful affirmation of our vision for unified communications.” Stated Roque, “We are very, very pleased at how Microsoft – the first IT company to approach us with a vision of empowering OFWs through technology – continues to look out for better opportunities for OFW families to stay intact. Konek Ka D’yan 2 will definitely make a positive impact in the way our OFWs will be relating with their loved ones, it’s quite exciting how technology makes it all possible.” Starting in 2004, OWWA and Microsoft have been working closely to enable OFWs maximize their full potential through technology. Tulay: An Unlimited Potential Program for Overseas Filipino Workers gives participants, mostly domestic helpers, access to both technology and technology training, in the hope that this will give them the skills to find better employment opportunities as well as help bridge the physical divide between them and their families in the Philippines.
Asterisk Consultants, Philippines
List is from: http://www.voip-info.org/wiki/view/Asterisk+consultants+Asia Please email us if you wish to be included in this list. EACOMM Corporation VoIP EACOMM Corporation’s Integrated Solutions division offers Asterisk consultancy, Asterisk-based PBX systems, and Asterisk based CTI software development. EACOMM is also a reseller of Digium TDM Cards to the Philippine Market. Contact: Odney Fajilan Telephone: +63 2 438 2986 Home page: http://voip.eacomm.com Email: solutions@eacomm.com Echo Systems Echo is offering ip pbx systems based on Asterisk. We specialize on outsourcing work for asterisk development. We also offer turn key call center solution both inbound and outbound call centers. Contact: Mark Escueta Mobile: +63 917 8479099 Telephone: US TOLL FREE +1 888 8636640 Home page: http://www.asterisk.com.ph Email: support@asterisk.com.ph GlobalSoftPH Co. http://www.globalsoftph.com We offer: Asterisk Development IP PBX Integration with IP / PSTN Interconnection Prepaid Calling Card Solution Prepaid / Postpaid Service Solutions Callback Solutions Softswitch Development VoIP Gateway VoIP – PSTN VoIP Billing System Call Center Solution Contact: Nathaniel Angelo Torres Telephone: +63 2 719 2371 Mobile: +63 917 621 9309 US DID: +1 703 940 0146 Home page: http://www.globalsoftph.com Email: nat@globalsoftph.com LinuzBizCentral Linuzbizcentral is offering Linux Based VoIP support and installation based on Asterisk, Digium hardware and IP phones. We also provide Linux support and consultancy, and we also provide Linux servers for businesses. Contact: Glynn Condez Mobile: +65 9798 4664 Homepage:http://www.linuzbizcentral.info Email:info@linuzbizcentral.info Q Software Research Corporation Since 1997, QSR has been in the forefront of providing Linux and Open Source Solutions in the Philippines. QSR offers consultancy and implementation of custom Asterisk deployments, specializing in Interactive Voice Response Systems (IVRS), and inter connection with existing databases as well as integration with office workflow systems. Contact: Ian Sison Phone:+63 (2) 7473994 Mobile: +63 (917) 5390601 Homepage:http://www.qsr.com.ph Email:info@qsr.com.ph Polerio Inc. Polerio is offering broad range of Linux products and services in the Philippines. These linux powered servers include VoIP using Asterisk and SER, IPBX, VPN, Library, Email, and Video Conferencing server. We provide pre-packaged customized Polerio Linux System with latest Asterisk VoIP binaries included suitable for small to medium enterprise that has the feature of average traditional PABX. Features include Call Transfer, VoiceMail, IVR, Call Queing, Communication Recording, Web-based call status panel. The VoIP box is pre-configured with 2 Trunk Lines x 6 Local Lines, 4 Trunk Lines x 12 Local Lines. For more info dont hesitate to call or arrange a meeting to us. Contact 1: Melinda T. Babao, CEO Polerio Inc. Telephone: +63 2 8300 639 and +63 2 632 9042 Fax: +63 2 8300 645 Mobile: +63 917 630 4740 Home page: http://www.polerio.com Email: admin@polerio.com Address 1: Suite 11-C Strata 100 Emerald Ave. Ortigas Center, Pasig City. Philippines Address 2: Suite 502 Raha Sulayman Bldg. 108 Benavidez St. Legazpi Village Makati City. Philippines Contact 2: Polerio T. Babao III, CTO Polerio Inc. US Mobile phone: 773-414-0970 Home page: http://www.polerio.com Email: admin@polerio.com Address: 4219 W Devon Chicago IL. 60646 U.S.
VoIP Providers, Philippines
From VoIP-Info Wiki…email us to update this list please… RESIDENTIAL: Sky Internet VOIP Works only in the Philippines!! Has DID with unlimited incoming minutes. Unlimited local calls to other PSTN numbers. Provides ATA. Metro Manila @ P499/month. Provincial @ P999/month. VOICCOM Has incoming/outgoing flat rate calling plan U.S.A., Canada, U.K., France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Mexico City Mexico & Guadalajara Mexico. US phone number, router and ATA or Iphone available. VODINI Has virtual US phone number DID , virtual Manil phone number DID , unlimited call from Manila to anywhere over internet, several flat plan packages for most countries, A-Z rate avialiable, VODINI SIP services supported to any country if VOIP ports are blocked too BUSINESS IPsmarx Technology, Inc. Provides International Wholesale Traffic to the Philipines.
CICT tells gov’t agencies to build intranets for VoIP
By Erwin Oliva POSTED WITH PERMISSION FROM Inq7.net. Original article at: http://technology.inq7.net/infotech/infotech/view_article.php?article_id=13771 GOVERNMENT agencies in the Philippines have been instructed to start building intranets for voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) use, a top government information technology official told INQ7.net. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had previously instructed the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) to work for increase VoIP use in government. VoIP uses the Internet instead of the traditional telephone network to route voice calls, resulting in lower costs. CICT chairman Ramon Sales said most government agencies are now buying “switches” to be installed in their offices. This is currently being done to build intranets, or private networks, within the agencies. Once government agencies are ready, the CICT will push common carriers like the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Globe Telecom to connect the intranets of the government agencies into their commercial networks….. To View the Full Article Click Here: http://technology.inq7.net/infotech/infotech/view_article.php?article_id=13771
EACOMM Corporation Toll-Free Number
To further improve and promote our products and services to North America, we have now subscribed to a Toll Free number for the US and Canada. US/Canadian companies interested in our products and services can call: +1-800 270 8091 to get in touch with EACOMM Corporation.
Digium Pricelist for Philippine Market – July 2006
The Pricelist for Digium Products has been revised to take into account current USD-PHP exchange rates. For more information, contact us at +63 2 438 2986. Download the latest Digium Pricelist Here NOTE:Â EACOMM Integrated Solutions division can assist in the installation of these cards as well us setting up your Asterisk Server to the specifications you wish. Consultancy rates start at Php 1,000.00/hour. Setup/Support assistance can be on-site or remotely through SSH to your Asterisk Server. Extended maintenance and support of your Asterisk/Digium setup are also available on a monthly retainer basis. For more information regarding our Asterisk Consultancy Services, e-mail the integrated solutions division at: solutions@eacomm.com or contact us at +63 2 438 2986.
Asterisk Developers Needed
We’re looking for Engineers to develop various Asterisk-based Web Applications and to maintain and service existing Asterisk Installations. Applicant’s skill set should include: Web Programming in PHP/MySQL/AJAX Experience in Linux and its different flavors Experience in Asterisk installation, scripting, maintenance, concepts, etc…. Experience with VoIP products such as TDM Cards, IP Phones, ATA’s, etc… Experience in Network Engineering/Design would be a plus… University-level Educational Background in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or Electronics Engineering Interested parties should e-mail their resumes to: solutions@eacomm.com.
Full-time and Freelance Graphics Artists Needed
EACOMM Corporation’s Creative Division is looking for Graphics Artists with at least two years experience in Photoshop and Flash. Openings are available for full-time, contractual, and free-lance applicants. Job entails developing various layouts for web, print, and CD-ROM deployment, as well as photo retouching and restoration. Applicants with academic background in Fine Arts courses would be preferred. Email your resume and portfolio to creative@eacomm.com. Only applicants with portfolios will be evaluated.
DO-CMS Website Relaunched!
EACOMM Corporation is proud to announce the new and improved website of our flag ship website management system product: The Dynamic Online Content Management System (DO-CMS). DO-CMS is a Website Content Management System specifically designed for small and medium scale businesses and organizations. It has a very straightforward and easy to use interface and is fully customizable to any front-end web layout, including a Flash-based front-end. DO-CMS is what powers over 80% of our web projects both locally and abroad. This is just the first phase of a concerted effort to improve our CMS engine that is now powering dozens of websites across the Globe. Watchout in the next few weeks for more exciting announcements! Register now to try out the do-cms interface for yourself! For inquiries and reseller opportunities contact web@eacomm.com or call us at + 63 2 438 2986.
Xten Lite and Eyebeam Softphones
Xten Lite and Eyebeam, both products of Counterpath (http://www.counterpath.com/), are the BEST Softphones in market, period. For sheer usability, compatibility with almost any VoIP provider, and sheer volume deployed, it almost doesn’t make sense to try to compete against it or use any other softphone. Softphones basically allows you to have complete telephone functionality (sometimes more) in your computer. However, since a softphone competes with your PC’s resources, it’s typically less reliable than having a separate IP phone or ATA on your desk. Of course it helps the Xten Lite is available for free! But that doesn’t mean it’s not full-featured or difficult to use, or for that matter ugly. It’s a beatifully designed piece of software that’s perfect for calling using your PC. Eyebeam has much more loads of features, with it’s support for G.729 compression one of our favorites. It can also do call transfers and 3-way conference calling, which the Xten lite doesn’t support. Its more expensive version is also a Video Phone, although good luck finding someone else to video call. Unless you’re in dire need of an IAX softphone, Eyebeam and Xten lite is really the way to go when it comes to softphones. We look forward to seeing who will come out with a competing product that’s as nice as this one. 😉
“Dial D For Disruption†– Article on Asterisk from Forbes Magazine
*We found this article very inspiring and informative that we hope Forbes won’t mind we post it in our blog. :)* View the Source: http://www.forbes.com/free_forbes/2006/0410/063.html Dial D for Disruption Quentin Hardy 04.10.06 Want to build a phone company for $100? Give Mark Spencer a ring. In a research park outside the low-key bustle of downtown Huntsville, Ala. Mark Spencer finishes his barbecue and resumes wreaking havoc on the multibillion-dollar phone equipment business. Spencer is the inventor of Asterisk, a free software program that establishes phone calls over the Internet and handles voicemail, caller ID, teleconferencing and a host of novel features for the phone. With Asterisk loaded onto a computer, a decent-size company can rip out its traditional phone switch, even some of its newfangled Internet telephone gear, and say good-bye to 80% of its telecom equipment costs. Not good news for Cisco (nasdaq: CSCO – news – people ), Nortel or Avaya (nyse: AV – news – people ). “We have to figure out ways to get into everything: Carriers, businesses, equipment companies,” says Spencer. “For better or worse, I don’t tend to think small.” Spencer, who is all of 29 years old, is poised to disrupt the $7 billion market for office telecom switches (often called PBXs) much the way the Linux open-source computer operating system crushed the price of business computing and brought woe to established leaders such as Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT – news – people ) and Sun Microsystems (nasdaq: SUNW – news – people ). Since Spencer released Asterisk to the world in 1999 as a phone operating system, it has been downloaded 500,000 times, and it continues to be downloaded 1,000 times per day. Some 350 contributors have taken it from a rocky voice system to one with clear calling and more than 100 features. Electric utility Southern Co. is using Asterisk in a pilot program to translate voicemail into text messages for 30 managers’ BlackBerrys. The town of Manchester, Conn. is about to begin using Asterisk to run an application tied to the 911 service that will cost less than $1 million, half the price it would have paid had it used traditional phone equipment, and at 10% of the operating costs. Outsourcing company Sutherland Global Services has tested Asterisk in 400-person call centers, finding it cuts telephone costs by two-thirds. In Rensselaer, Ind. computer science professor Brian Capouch has built a commercial-class phone system that already touches 20 communities and covers more than 1,000 square miles with just $100 in personal computer equipment and $125 to customize each location. For a little more he built an Asterisk system of motion detectors and Web cameras that send video to his office laptop and can call any phone when something happens at his house. One of his students created a business sending other kids automated wake-up calls. Other Asterisk hacks include a way to pay your parking meter by phone. “You couldn’t set out to build a system like this. No one company could do it all. When you open source, people just keep improving things,” says Spencer. Asterisk could lead to the creation of thousands of businesses, as people begin thinking about the phone the same way they saw the personal computer in 1980, as a platform on which to build. Spencer had this in mind when he named his software after the symbol used in Unix computer programming to signify “everything.” Digium, the company Spencer created in 1999, now has 50 employees and more than $10 million in revenue from selling hardware loaded with a tested business edition of the otherwise free Asterisk, much the way Red Hat (nasdaq: RHAT – news – people ) charges for a widely used standard for Linux. Digium makes a profit, though Spencer won’t say how much. Overhead is low. Spencer pays less than $15 a square foot for space (per year) and does up his own quarters in geek chic: reworked computer guts, testing screens, a fridge filled with caffeinated sodas and a sculpture he made of a robot holding a rotary phone. He shares his office with a 23-year-old programmer who was still a teen when they met. Spencer once had to write a note to his principal years ago when a job conflicted with the school day. Spencer’s parents are professors at Auburn University (his American father teaches education, his Egyptian mother French). In eighth grade he wrote a grading program for his teacher and sold it for $5. While still in high school, Spencer hung around Auburn’s electrical engineering department, designing integrated circuit structures for fun. “I’d go over to his house [to discuss semiconductors] and he’d be finishing writing a symphony on his synthesizer,” says Thaddeus Roppel, an Auburn professor and early mentor. “He kept up with his high school homework, too.” While on a full scholarship at Auburn, Spencer started Digium as a Linux consultant. He sold one-seventh of the firm for $500,000 to Adtran, a Huntsville telecom equipment maker where he had interned two years before. He wanted a really cool phone switch to handle sales orders, but when he learned that it would cost $10,000, he began writing Asterisk. “I’d never touched a traditional pbx,” Spencer says. But he knew a ton about open-source software, whose source code is given away in order to attract improvements. He had earlier built an instant-messaging client called Gaim, which has become popular among the open-source crowd. Spencer based Asterisk on Apache (nyse: APA – news – people ), the freebie software that powers many a Web server. Aided by a couple of Internet telephone veterans, he put the telephone switch at the center of the operating system and made it possible to connect it to almost any Internet phone system (except Skype). Asterisk was still a hobby until the spring of 2001, when the tech crash killed Digium’s Linux business. Spencer saw there was interest in Net phones and shifted gears. By the end of the year Digium was selling
Choosing a VoIP Gateway
A crucial decision for any person doing VoIP is selecting your VoIP Gateway. This organization will be the one providing you your route back to the analog telephone world from the world of VoIP telephony. They’re sometimes referred to as A2Z termination as they typically will provide you access to call EVERY SINGLE COUNTRY on Earth at cheaper rates than calling Long Distance! There are of course the popular ones such as Vonage, Net2phone, etc…but guess what…there are probably Hundreds if not Thousands of gateways to choose from already. So here are some tips: Shop Around for Costs. Most gateways will post the rates they offer. These rates vary depending on where they’re located and their target market. Find one with the cheapest rates to the destination you’re likely to be calling most! Try before you Buy! Most gateways will offer you a few minutes free. So start registering to different gateways and compare the voice quality. Note that VoIP gateways are not created equal! Some will have lousy connections over cheap bandwidths. Determine your Latency to the Server. One of the worst disadvantages of VoIP is latency. Basically this is due to the distance your voice has to travel to your server, onwards to the other party and then back again. An easy way to check this is to ‘ping’ the provider you’re evaluating. A good rule of thumb is that Latency should not be more than 200ms. Also, good practive would be to have a VoIP gateway ‘near’ the primary region you intend to call. For example, if you need to call Japan often, it doesn’t make sense to go with a Europe-based gateway…as the signal goes all the way around the world before going back to Japan. Research the company. Since deploying a VoIP gateway has become so cheap, it would pay to research the company your looking to go with. Make sure they have a track record and are not fly by night operations. Although since this is a young industry, you might find it difficult…a rule you can follow is to go with businesses that have other services/products…e.g. a lot of NEW gateways are also OLD ISP’s. Thus, you have a proxy track record you can base your decision on. Don’t tie yourself up longterm. As mentioned, this is a young industry. Eventually the players will consolidate and the market leaders will emerge. Thus, it wouldn’t be wise to commit to a company and find out you betted on the wrong horse a year down the line. Keep your options open, jump from provider to provider if you wish or have subscriptions to multiple providers! Most providers offer call as you go accounts, hence you can have $10 here and $10 there and have no long term or heavy investment in one player. I’m sure I’ll think of more tips later. But these should be enough to start you on your GoogleQuest. 🙂
TigerNetcom Telephony Adapters
In the course of our research on Asterisk compatible devices, we encountered these two very nice devices from a small Startup Shenzen Company: TigerNetCom. Gate 103 The Gate 103 is similar to the Linksys PAP2 or the more recent SPA2002. It’s a dual FXS port Analog Telephone Adapter or ATA. It supports SIP protocol and a the usual codecs you’d expect (G711,G729, etc…). Removing all the technicalities, you can use it to connect 2 “normal” analog phones to the world of VoIP. Still doing testing on its reliability, but so far so good. It’s pretty stable, has a nice web interface and an easy to use phone-based configuration. It’s very affordable, and would probably retail at around US$80.00. It has IP passthrough so you save on setting up another line to your switch as well. GATE 104 The GATE 104, although practically exactly in appearance as the 103 is by far the superior product. It has one FXS and one FXO port. This means, if you have this at home, and you have a friend in another country, that friend can call this device’s FXO port and he will get a dial tone in YOUR Country, thus saving him IDD Charges. ALSO, your other friends in your own country can call your phone number, get a dialtone, and they’re connected to the VoIP network and the world of 1 cent/minute calling! I don’t know about you guys, but I find that simply fantastic! As it lets your friends with no broadband or VoIP capability benefit from your VoIP connection! A similar ‘high-end’ device would be the Linksys SPA3000 which offers the same functionality at a bit of a higher price. VERDICT? Both devices are excellent low-cost alternatives to the more popular brands. Both use Texas Instruments chipsets (not China-made ones) and thus some reliability can be expected. Voice quality is better than most IP phones we’ve tested. Go out and buy one if you can! Or visit http://www.tigernetcom.com and resell them in your neck of the woods!
Yuxin YWH500 IP Phone
Very affordable, decent looking IP Phone. For Manufacturer’s Specifications: http://www.yntx.com/en/productywh500.htm Our Take on it: Based on the ARED Fox PA1688 Chipset which also powers ATCOM, ARTDIO, and other phones (as far as we can tell). Native SIP Support. Supposedly supports Power over Ethernet…haven’t tested though. Supports IP pass-through, which saves you the need of an extra port available in your switch. Excellent Codec/protocol support Asterisk IAX protocol support via firmware update Has all the expected features of a pbx phone Tends to “hang” sometimes, particularly if you put it in static IP Value for money Verdict: We’d recommend it as a way to introduce yourself to VoIP telephony. We have serious doubts with its long-term reliability, but it looks sturdy enough. Enterprise grade solutions would do well to go with the “known” brands for an additional $20-$40 such as Linksys, Polycom, etc…
Asterisk – the Open Source PBX
No blog about VoIP would be complete without mentioning Asterisk. And you’ll find the a lot of the postings you’ll be seeing here is asterisk-related/asterisk-compatible technologies. Why? Because Asterisk is the reason why VoIP is now accessible not to big call centers, not to telcos, not to closed services like skype, but to EVERYONE. Asterisk is OPEN SOURCE, meaning anyone and everyone can download it, use it, and even contribute to its further development. Asterisk open architecture ensures that it’s compatible with almost any system out there, and with the help of Digium it gives anyone affordable access to the traditional phone system. Using Asterisk your run of the mill computer becomes a full-featured, VoIP-enabled, Enterprise-Grade PBX! And the great thing about it? It’s VERY EASY to set it up! Asterisk is doing to Telecommunications what Apache Server did to Web Services and Linux did to operating systems. It will no doubt leave a huge influence on how the Telecommunications business is structured and operates. They may not admit it, BUT I AM SURE your traditional telcos, and even traditional VoIP system providers are scoffing at Asterisk publicly but playing around with it privately. Here are a couple of links to help you along the way of fully understanding this newest Disruptive Technology: http://www.asterisk.org – home of the asterisk project http://www.digium.com – original makes of TDM cards compatible with asterisk http://www.voip-info.org – Excellent Wiki of and about VoIP, a bit technical, but EXCELLENT http://asteriskathome.sourceforge.net – Excellent way to get you started with asterisk. Burn the application in CD, insert in an old computer, and have asterisk running and functional in less than and hour! http://www.tomsnetworking.com/2006/01/13/how_to_asterisk_pbx/ – Very interesting project for the geek in all of us. Run asterisk as an embedded appliance!
Digium Pricelist for Philippine Market
EACOMM Corporation is an authorized reseller of Digium Products for the Philippine Market. For more information on the various Digium Product Offerings click here. [Download our Price List for Digium Products] For more information about our whole range of VoIP products and solutions, visit: voip.eacomm.com or contact us at by Phone at: +63 2 438 2986 or Email: solutions@eacomm.com
VoIP Made Easy, launched
Greetings! Thanks for visiting our blog. This is basically a blog of and about Voice Over IP technologies, the stuff out there, and trying to put a “common man” spin on what is still a very techie and geeky area. Lots of people are saying we’re in the midst of a “paradigm shift” in the way people communicate. Unknown to many, a lot, if not most of the “traditional” telcos already use VoIP in International Long Distance Calls and have been enjoying huge margins due to the fact that VoIP is A FRACTION of the cost of what they’re billing the consumers. Slowly this information is coming out to the public and the public is slowly realizing that they don’t really need the telcos for communications anymore. Services like Skype and Vonage has emphasized this point further. It’s exciting times for telecommunications. VoIP is really slated to take over ALL voice telecommunications. This is not the future, this is NOW! This blog will hopefully help everyone out there in choosing a right VoIP provider for you and gives everyone (including us) a much clearer picture of the future. ECVoIP Webmaster
Hosting Promo by EACOMM and Dreamhost.com!
EACOMM Corporation in cooperation with Dreamhost.com is offering $50.00 OFF on any ANNUALLY PAID Hosting Plan. Just visit Dreamhost.com, select an ANNUAL plan you like (we recommend the CODE MONSTER SALE!) and type: eacomm50off when asked for a Promotional Code (near the bottom of the Signup page). Enjoy!!!
FH-MSI.com Launched!
EACOMM Corporation is pleased to announce the newest DO-CMS Powered Website: Friendly Hills Medical Services Incorporated (FH-MSI). FH-MSI.com is one the first sites to utilize the newest, more user friendly, more secure version of DO-CMS. DO-CMS allows users with little or no knowledge of HTML to easily update and maintain a website. Find out how DO-CMS can make your website fully interactive yet easy to maintain by emailing us here: info@eacomm.com.
AN URGENT MESSAGE FROM THE PHILIPPINE IT SERVICES INDUSTRY
The Philippine IT Services industry consists of companies in the business of animation, call center and contact center operations, business process outsourcing, medical transcription and software development. Collectively, these companies generated over $2 billion in export revenue in 2005. In total, the industry currently provides employment to 160,000 professionals. Our target is to reach $12 billion in annual revenue by 2010, providing employment to over 1 million Filipinos. We are proud to say that the Philippines is now mentioned as one of the preferred sources of IT services world-wide. While our entry-point into the global market has been our low costs, we are increasingly gaining attention for our quality, reliability and expertise. It is easy to understand why. The Philippines has a pool of qualified professionals, cited frequently as among the best in the world. Local companies are investing in aligning their processes with international standards. Our telecommunications infrastructure is among the most competitive in the region. Our business incentives, grown over several administrations, are designed to attract foreign investment. Our list of high-profile international clients continues to expand. The industry’s impact on the economy can be further multiplied if we consider the trickle-down effect on other local industries. The IT Services companies and their employees have emerged as prime consumers for other goods and services We are confident in our industry’s abilities to reach its targets and to further increase its contribution to the economy. However, we cannot do it alone. A concerted effort among all stakeholders is required. We have to make sure that our schools produce enough graduates for us to hire. We have to make sure that government policies are in place to attract and retain investors. We have to make sure that we maintain an environment where Filipino professionals are given progressive opportunities to enhance their skills, careers & standards of living without the need to leaving our country. We also have to make sure that our foreign customers and partners have the assurance that our ability to fulfill their requirements is not compromised or disrupted because of an unstable external environment. We know that our business fundamentals as an industry remain strong. We have withstood all kinds of crises in the past. But, in our business, the perception of continuity and reliability is a key consideration. The global market is sensitive to isolated local incidents and can interpret these out of proportion. We respect every party’s right to voice an opinion. Our industry has been, and will continue to be, an active participant in promoting transparency and good governance in our society. However, while there are national issues that cannot be ignored and need to be resolved, our call is for everyone to proceed with rationality, sobriety, responsibility and consideration. We have processes in place, let us use them and improve on them where necessary. The Philippine IT Services industry provides an opportunity for the country to achieve long-term economic growth and stability. Let us not waste the opportunity. No less than 1,000,000 jobs depend on it. Signed: Animation Council of the Philippines, Inc. (ACPI) Business Process Outsourcing Association of the Philippines (BPOAP) Medical Transcription Industry Association of the Philippines (MTIAPI) Philippine Software Industry Association (PSIA) IT Services and Electronics Division CITEM Tel: 632-8325044 Fax: 632-8323965 URL: www.e-servicesphils.com EACOMM Corporation is an active member of the Animation Council of the Philippines and a long time supporter and partner of the CITEM and its Annual E-Services Exhibition
Visit us at Hong Kong Filmart!
EACOMM Corporation will be part of the Animation Council of the Philippines delegation to the Hong Kong Filmart, Asia’s premier Film and Entertainment Market. For more information about our participation, kindly email us at info@eacomm.com.