Compuserve
announced today it will expand to include phone service to almost one
million European subscribers, with the help of MediaRing Inc.
Under terms of the agreement, Compuserve will make MediaRing Talk
communication software available free on its Web site. By using MediaRing
Talk, the company stated that anyone with an Internet account can
call anyone, anywhere, and talk as long and as frequently as they
like for U.S.$4.95 per month.
“MediaRing offers a practical and complete software for Internet
telephony,” says Markus Krieg, business development manager for CompuServe
Central Europe. “They are an ideal partner for Europe’s leading Internet
service provider because they offer a very cost effective telephony
solution for our customers.”
MediaRing’s software is designed to detect a
signal sent by the caller over a standard telephone line and automatically
logs the recipient onto the Internet. MediaRing said the patent-pending
application then searches for the calling party on the Internet and
establishes a connection for voice communication. Callers and call
recipients can work on other programs while awaiting calls or talking.
According to Krieg, CompuServe/Europe is offering MediaRing Talk through
its German Communication Web site. Subsequently the service will roll out
through the U.K., France, Netherlands and the balance of Europe,
totally 850,000 potential customers, he added.
To promote the agreement, MediaRing will give CompuServe/Europe subscribers
two months’ free calling service, and will bundle CompuServe software in
its MediaRing
Talk software packages distributed with magazines and through retail
outlets. The CompuServe/Europe software will include an offer for 30 days
of unlimited free Internet access.
