Network firm Big
Planet
Tuesday added Internet telephony service to its arsenal of offerings.
The company announced an agreement with Aplio Inc. to sell the
Aplio/Phone telephony appliance through its national network of independent
representatives.
Aplio/Phone is a stand-alone appliance that uses the Internet to make long
distance telephone calls. A caller makes the initial connection via the
telephone and the Aplio/Phone then reroutes the call through an
Internet gateway.
“Big Planet is dedicated to providing best-of-breed communications tools, ”
said Richard King, president of Big Planet. “The Aplio/Phone is an
important addition to our product line because it enhances the
communications capabilities of our customers and representatives.”
Today’s agreement marks the latest firms to promote Internet telephony — a
market that will grow to an estimated $9 billion in revenues by 2002.
Monday, PSINet and Wang Global joined forces to promote
their telephony services and recently companies such Lucent Technologies
Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. made agreements to boost their Internet
telephony services.