MyNetFone secures Tasmanian VOIP deal

service provider MyNetFone to supply VOIP telephony services for three years, with the possibility of extensions up to 10 years, writes ITWire. The deal is expected to be worth up to $20 million over the full 10-year term.

MyNetFone says it would invest in additional infrastructure in Tasmania to support the government contract and to handle additional opportunities in the state. “The inclusion of the infrastructure investment is expected to result in an earning accretive outcome in the first year of service,” the company says.

According to ZDNet, the company said that its new infrastructure - to be deployed through its subsidiary Symbio Networks using its proprietary local number porting system, operations support systems/business support systems, call routing and management software - will also help it handle additional opportunities in the market.

“MyNetFone is a young, energetic, innovative company, which has proven it is capable to develop services that meet the government's requirements,” TMD general manager, Piero Peroni says. TMD is a division within the Department of Premier and Cabinet, which develops and provides whole-of-government communications products.

The Financial Review reports that the move to Internet-based telephone calls marks a step-change for government agencies that are traditionally conservative and usually select big telcos such as Telstra and Optus to provide telephone services.

Where conventional services rely on individual copper wires to provide physical connections between telephones, VOIP transmits calls over the Internet.

VOIP services are cheaper than traditional phone systems but are dependent on access to the internet. While it was once seen as unreliable, improvements in technology and broadband connections have made it more reliable.