British Telecommunications Plc is offering its 190,000 internet service customers the opportunity to talk directly to other surfers using IP telephony while online. A BT spokesperson said it was a value-add product to enhance your internet experience. The service, available from April 16, will not add cost to BT’s internet service, currently 11.75 pounds per month ($18.90). There are obvious dangers that BT could cannibalize its telecoms revenues, but Chris Buerger, manager of the consumers interactive services strategic planning program at industry analysis firm Datamonitor Technology Plc, thinks not. I don’t think it’s going to have an impact on local revenues, he said, in the international market, there is competition anyway. The main purpose of the announcement, he suspected, was for PR awareness generating. The technology is not new, neither is BT at the head of the field. France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom, which took a stake in Vocaltec Communications Ltd, the Herzliya, Israel-based internet telephony specialist for exactly this reason, are already in the market. The technology is not yet known for its quality, the BT official warned that it was not as good as public switch telephone network, while Buerger was plainer, saying the sound was like an early mobile phone conversation.
