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While the world is buzzing about Google’s acquisition of GrandCentral, there are a variety of other startups creating web-based services for managing different aspects of your telephone experience, and in some cases dramatically lowering the cost of staying in touch. Several are also taking advantage of social networks, creating widgets that connect MySpace profiles, Facebook accounts, and blogs to your various communication devices.
With broadband, VoIP, and Web 2.0 goodness, leveraging the Net to improve the antiquated world of telecommunications is an area ripe for new ideas and companies. Here is a look at some of the startups in the space and the problems they are trying to solve:
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In a nutshell, GrandCentral provides you with a phone number that when called simultaneously rings all of the phones you list in your GrandCentral account. With phone numbers constantly changing, GrandCentral in turn gives you one phone number “for life” as the company likes to spin it. Additionally, through your web-based account you can check voicemails, block callers, record calls, and more. The service is a prime example of how the Web and phone can now be bridged.
The company was founded by the same team that sold VoIP service DialPad to Yahoo in 2005.
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Jangl allows people to call you while keeping your phone number anonymous, making it ideal for a dating or classified ad scenario. It works by allowing you to enter an email address of the person you want to call, and then providing you with a random phone number at which to call them. If the user you are trying to call has a Jangl account, their phone will ring, and they can accept the call or send it to Jangl’s own voicemail feature. If the user does not have a Jangl account, the voice message will be sent to their email address.
Additionally, Jangl allows you to create a widget that will let users generate a number to call you at from your social networking profiles or blogs. The company also has an application on Facebook.
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As we reported in May, Jaxtr is a quickly growing “click to call” application of sorts. When you create and post a Jaxtr widget, other users enter their phone number, which will initiate a call to them and then connect them to you. This in turn keeps both numbers private, and allows the Jaxtr user to access other web-based features such as voicemail and blocking specified phone numbers. In addition to the 100,000+ users who have posted a Jaxtr widget, the company’s Facebook app called “MyPhone” currently has about 6,000 users.
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RingCentral is primarily focused on helping small businesses look big by providing them with a toll-free number and Virtual PBX. Through RingCentral’s web interface, you can setup call routing (“Press 1 for Sales, 2 for Support, etc, etc.”), manage voicemail, and screen callers, among other features. Additionally, through your account you can setup a poor man’s GrandCentral and have the service try multiple numbers until it reaches you. For example, if there is no answer at your office phone, the service will then try your mobile, then your home phone, and ultimately push the caller to voicemail if there is no response.
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JAJAH combines the anonymity that Jangl and Jaxtr provide with the added feature of determining how people can contact you at different times. For example, at night you may only want users to be able to email or text message you, while during the day you prefer phone calls. JAJAH will sooner offer a “Buttons” product which is essentially a widget that displays these contact options on your profile or blog.
On the calling side, the service acts like a VoIP provider without any equipment or downloads. You simply enter your phone number and the person you would like to call and JAHJAH connects them over VoIP, charging per minute fees of 2.8c per minute in the US.
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Nimbuzz is looking to eliminate the need to ever pay for SMS messaging again. The company’s mobile application allows you to message buddies on your Nimbuzz, Gtalk or MSN friend’s list, and will soon support AIM, Yahoo, and ICQ as well.
Additionally, the service allows you to make low-cost calls to your buddies so long as you have a data connection through your mobile. In this sense, Nimbuzz is a merger of sorts between the presence technology provided by instant messaging buddy lists and voice communication.
Nimbuzz recently announced $10 million in venture funding.
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TxtDrop provides a widget for text messaging users from the Web and your Mac OS X or Vista desktop. You simply enter your name, your friend’s number, and message, and a text is delivered to the person’s phone, provided they are on one of txtDrop.com’s supported carriers. txtDrop.com recently introduced free picture messaging as well, allowing you to send images to phones for free.
There are many similar services for texting via the Web including several Facebook apps, but it is a good example of a simple application that bridges the Web and phone.
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