The business and residential Voice over IP (VoIP) giant magicJack seems to be turning a new leaf, as evidenced by recent changes in upper management. magicJack offers their customers a cheap and innovative plug-in adapter that converts standard analog telephone signals into digital ones, that can be transmitted over the Internet through VoIP. Not only is magicJack easy to install, but they charge less than almost any other VoIP or landline phone company – as low as only $19.95 per year.
However, magicJack has come under fire for providing a lower quality service than even their low cost would suggest. Customers are upset because magicJack may be easy to install, but will often break for no discernible reason. When it does stop working, customers are left at a loss because the only way to get any customer support is through a high-traffic online chat system with very slow response times. Issues with billing are handled through the same system, and were numerous because of the hidden fees that many users were slapped with.
Thankfully, changes in upper management may address these issues and more. At the beginning of this year, Gerald T. Vento replaced founder Daniel Borislow as the company's president and CEO, hoping to clean up some of the messes that Borislow left behind. As of the morning of Dec. 17, magicJack also appointed Timothy McDonald as the company’s chief operating officer, who will work alongside Vento.
“As COO, Tim will oversee marketing, channel management, new product and corporate development,” Vento said. “Tim's rich experience in growing tech related businesses and his deep knowledge and relationships in the mobile space make him a tremendous addition to our core management team.”
It appears that magicJack is cleaning up house in order to maintain a better public image. While having a slightly sub-par phone service at a rate much lower than average is worth the trade in the eyes of some customers, some of magicJack's bigger issues are dealbreakers for the rest. Hopefully, this change in management is a sign of changes in product to come. magicJack is in a unique position as a big-business VoIP provider with an incredibly low rate, and maintaining an excellent product image could mean that they might dominate the VoIP phone industry.
Edited by Alisen Downey