[August 30, 2004]

AOL Says: Me too, me too!

BY JOHANNE TORRES

AOL (news - alert) wants a bite out of VoIP too! The company has been keeping it hush, hush; but it has been testing out their Beta version of an unnamed Voice over IP (VoIP) (define - news - alert - tutorial) service they have in the works with a few possible residential consumers. Some say that the service will be up and running by early next year. 

I’ve heard that the Internet giant has been working with Level 3 Communications, which are to provide local telephone connections for the new service. Level 3 recently announced what is said to be one of the industry’s largest VoIP installations to date when it served the Queens-Long Island Medical Group in New York about a week ago.

A little redundant, but AOL telecomm relative, Time Warner Cable, is also jumping in the VoIP pool by the end of this year, the company announced it is already signing people up for the service. All telecomm giants seem to be starting this huge race to VoIP, teeming the run—AT&T (news - alert - quote), Verizon, Sprint, Qwest and Bells galore (baby and mommas).

Left to wonder is if pricing will differentiate AOL’s future VoIP service from other broadband providers like Vonage (news- alert), Net2Phone and 8x8.