Carrier reseller voip wholesale

VocalTec Communications Ltd. announced Wednesday a contract with Bell Atlantic to take part in the development and implementation of a widescale Internet protocol (IP) telephony network. Bell Atlantic, one of the premier carriers in North America, will use the network to provide wholesale Voice Over IP (VoIP) services to Internet telephony service providers (ITSPs). VocalTec will work with Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) on the project and supply its award winning VocalTec Gatekeeper software. Last week, Cisco and VocalTec announced a joint development, marketing and sales agreement to bring hybrid IP telephony solutions to ITSPs, Internet service providers (ISPs) and carriers.

"The combined efforts and products of VocalTec and Cisco uniquely offer us performance and security," said Tom Caldwell, vice president of Marketing for Bell Atlantic Wholesale Services. "We've selected a platform for our IP telephony service created by two technology leaders who are already established in the industry and committed to open standards and interoperability. This provides Bell Atlantic with the potential to work with a greater majority of our target market."

"This project with Bell Atlantic is a breakthrough," said Mark Winther, group vice president of Worldwide Telecom for IDC. "The industry needed this type of commitment to IP telephony from a large North American carrier the caliber of Bell Atlantic. And with the recent joint agreement signed between VocalTec and Cisco, these vendors are in a very strong position to effectively deliver widescale, best-of-breed solutions."

VocalTec and Cisco will provide an end-to-end solution for handling pre-and post-paid VoIP calling services for Bell Atlantic. The project is one of multiple joint efforts already planned between the vendors. A highlight will be the use of Cisco's VoIP enabled-gateways interoperating with VocalTec's gatekeepers. The gatekeeper software will serve as the "nerve center" of the voice network, performing authentication, authorization and accounting, allowing for flexible call routing and dialing plans, third party billing/management, centralized provisioning of gateways and the addition of new/enhanced applications. The VocalTec Gatekeeper, which won Network Magazine's 1999 Product of the Year Award in Telephony Integration, has been deployed by ITXC Corp, Deutsche Telekom AG (NYSE: DT), China Telecom and other leading carriers/service providers.

"Bell Atlantic is a very exciting project, one that enables VocalTec and Cisco to work together and provide greater value to customers," said Dr. Elon Ganor, chairman of VocalTec Communications. "Our joint efforts will move the industry forward as smart companies, such as Bell Atlantic, quickly realize the return on investment, security and foundation for the future that can only emerge with the cooperation of leading technology companies."

"Our relationship with VocalTec has been very successful and we look forward to further joint efforts such as the Bell Atlantic project," said Alistair Woodman, director of Marketing for Packet Telephony at Cisco Systems. "By combining our products and expertise, we are able to offer an easier and faster way for customers to deploy end-to-end IP telephony solutions which are capable of supporting extremely robust, enhanced services."

The joint development, marketing and sales agreement announced last week capitalizes on the Cisco Open Packet Telephony framework for voice services over a data infrastructure and VocalTec's strength as an innovative, fast-moving developer of IP voice services and enhanced solutions. Joint development will be facilitated through the companies' proven commitment to open standards. Each will be able to promote the other's products via the Cisco New World Ecosystem program and VocalTec's sales/marketing channels. VocalTec will also become a global reseller and integrator of Cisco's VoIP and data communications equipment, utilizing its expertise in VoIP network design, customization and deployment to create full turnkey solutions.

VocalTec develops and markets award-winning systems enabling voice, fax and multimedia communications over packetized networks including private networks and the public Internet. VocalTec pioneered the commercial IP (Internet protocol) telephony industry in 1995 with the first commercial solution. Since, VocalTec has: built one of the largest research and development teams dedicated to IP telephony; created one of the largest footprints of users in the carrier and consumer markets; played a leading role in developing industry standards. VocalTec's technical expertise continues to drive the industry forward with end-to-end, standards-compliant solutions for global multi-service deployments for all classes of carriers. For further information, visit VocalTec at http://www.vocaltec.com.