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"While the world is buzzing about Google\u2019s acquisition of GrandCentral, there are a variety of other startups creating web-based services for managing different aspects of your telephone experience, and in some cases dramatically lowering the cost of staying in touch.  Several are also taking advantage of social networks, creating widgets that connect MySpace profiles, Facebook accounts, and blogs to your various communication devices.  \nWith broadband, VoIP, and Web 2.0 goodness, leveraging the Net to improve the antiquated world of telecommunications is an area ripe for new ideas and companies.  Here is a look at some of the startups in the space and the problems they are trying to solve:\nIn a nutshell, GrandCentral provides you with a phone number that when called simultaneously rings all of the phones you list in your GrandCentral account.  With phone numbers constantly changing, GrandCentral in turn gives you one phone number \u201Cfor life\u201D as the company likes to spin it.  Additionally, through your web-based account you can check voicemails, block callers, record calls, and more.  The service is a prime example of how the Web and phone can now be bridged.  \nThe company was founded by the same team that sold VoIP service DialPad to Yahoo in 2005. \nJangl allows people to call you while keeping your phone number anonymous, making it ideal for a dating or classified ad scenario.  It works by allowing you to enter an email address of the person you want to call, and then providing you with a random phone number at which to call them.  If the user you are trying to call has a Jangl account, their phone will ring, and they can accept the call or send it to Jangl\u2019s own voicemail feature.  If the user does not have a Jangl account, the voice message will be sent to their email address.  \nAdditionally, Jangl allows you to create a widget that will let users generate a number to call you at from your social networking profiles or blogs.  The company also has an application on Facebook.  \nAs we reported in May, Jaxtr is a quickly growing \u201Cclick to call\u201D application of sorts.  When you create and post a Jaxtr widget, other users enter their phone number, which will initiate a call to them and then connect them to you.  This in turn keeps both numbers private, and allows the Jaxtr user to access other web-based features such as voicemail and blocking specified phone numbers.  In addition to the 100,000+ users who have posted a Jaxtr widget, the company\u2019s Facebook app called \u201CMyPhone\u201D currently has about 6,000 users.\nRingCentral is primarily focused on helping small businesses look big by providing them with a toll-free number and Virtual PBX.  Through RingCentral\u2019s web interface, you can setup call routing (\u201CPress 1 for Sales, 2 for Support, etc, etc.\u201D), manage voicemail, and screen callers, among other features.  Additionally, through your account you can setup a poor man\u2019s GrandCentral and have the service try multiple numbers until it reaches you.  For example, if there is no answer at your office phone, the service will then try your mobile, then your home phone, and ultimately push the caller to voicemail if there is no response.  \nJAJAH combines the anonymity that Jangl and Jaxtr provide with the added feature of determining how people can contact you at different times.  For example, at night you may only want users to be able to email or text message you, while during the day you prefer phone calls.  JAJAH will sooner offer a \u201CButtons\u201D product which is essentially a widget that displays these contact options on your profile or blog.\nOn the calling side, the service acts like a VoIP provider without any equipment or downloads.  You simply enter your phone number and the person you would like to call and JAHJAH connects them over VoIP, charging per minute fees of 2.8c per minute in the US.  \nNimbuzz is looking to eliminate the need to ever pay for SMS messaging again.  The company\u2019s mobile application allows you to message buddies on your Nimbuzz, Gtalk or MSN friend\u2019s list, and will soon support AIM, Yahoo, and ICQ as well.  \nAdditionally, the service allows you to make low-cost calls to your buddies so long as you have a data connection through your mobile.  In this sense, Nimbuzz is a merger of sorts between the presence technology provided by instant messaging buddy lists and voice communication.  \nNimbuzz recently announced $10 million in venture funding.\nTxtDrop provides a widget for text messaging users from the Web and your Mac OS X or Vista desktop.  You simply enter your name, your friend\u2019s number, and message, and a text is delivered to the person\u2019s phone, provided they are on one of txtDrop.com\u2019s supported carriers.  txtDrop.com recently introduced free picture messaging as well, allowing you to send images to phones for free.  \nThere are many similar services for texting via the Web including several Facebook apps, but it is a good example of a simple application that bridges the Web and phone.\n\u2014\u2014-\nWhat sets many of these startups apart from most of today\u2019s purely Web-based startups is that they will generate revenue primarily from service fees as opposed to advertising.  Some have natural opportunities for premium services (Jaxtr, Jangl, Nimbuzz), while others are already generating revenue from subscriptions and usage charges (GrandCentral, JAHJAH, RingCentral).  As we\u2019ve just witnessed with GrandCentral, and previously seen with the acquisitions of Skype and TellMe, for companies solving real problems in this space, the pay day can be enormous."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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