* AT&T has good news and bad news
It has been an eventful few weeks for IP telephony service providers, so we’d like to spend our next several newsletters looking at some changes in the market. Today we’ll look at AT&T.
First, the bad news for AT&T employees. In a statement, AT&T has announced that “as a result of its decision to stop marketing traditional residential services, as well as corporate transformation initiatives, [AT&T] will significantly exceed its previously estimated workforce-reduction target of 8% in 2004. The company now expects to reduce total headcount by more than 20% in 2004.”
Seems that the unfavorable UNE-P rulings we discussed back in July are having a profound effect, although AT&T also attributes the reductions to additional network and operating efficiencies.
Now the good news for AT&T’s consumer and small-office customers. In a separate statement, AT&T announced it has lowered the price of its CallVantage VoIP service to $29.99 a month from $34.99 a month. Customers who sign up before the end of January will receive the first month of service free.
AT&T also recently added a Simple Reach Number feature for $4.95 a month that allows customers to add up to nine telephone numbers from anywhere in the U.S. where AT&T offers VoIP (170 markets) – so friends and family can call without incurring long-distance charges. Plus, AT&T has signed deals with retail channels, including Circuit City, Amazon.com and Best Buy.
The AT&T CallVantage service was, as of last month, available to any U.S. consumer and provides a local footprint to 62% of the households in America due to its broad penetration in more than 170 markets coast-to-coast.
Next time: Vonage, Qwest and SBC join in on the fun.
