April 2nd, 2007
USA Weekend bites at Jajah p.r. pitch
To read the puff piece by Reed Tucker in yesterday's USA Weekend Sunday newspaper supplement, you'd think there were only two Internet phone services- Vonage and Jajah.
Well, give Jajah credit for another p.r. coup. We're talking about a publication stuffed into more than 23,400,000 individual Sunday newspaper copies.
"Unlike Vonage, for instance, Jajah allows you to use your existing phone and phone line," Reed writes. "You don't have to buy a special headset or other equipment to plug into your computer in order to make a call. With Jajah, there's also no monthly fee. (Vonage's premium plan costs $25 per month.)"
But here's the thing, Reed. There are plenty of services that let you use your existing phone instrument and line- and/or don't charge a monthly fee. You don't always need a headset either. And in contrast to Jajah's 3 cents a minute rate to Europe (and much higher in other places) for calls between registered and unregistered users, some of those other services charge either less, or- in the case of Vonage- are free to select nations in Jajah's three-cents-a minute group.
Ever heard of Skype, dude?
"Only suckers pay for long-distance anymore," Reed adds.
That may be true, Reed, but there's more than one way to get free world calling.
Russell Shaw is an enterprise computing journalist, analyst and author based in Portland, Oregon. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
