ITXC gets Snarc'd

Internet telephony company ITXC Corp. last week unveiled the Snarc, a device that attaches through an E-1 or T-1 port to an international reseller or carrier's switch, taking voice and fax calls directly to the Internet for low-cost international call completion over ITXC's network. Previously, wholesale customers have had to pay for connections from their switches to their suppliers' switches.

With Snarc, backhaul, which is costly and time-consuming, is eliminated, said Tom Evslin, chairman and CEO of ITXC. "The use of Snarc is accessible from any city and the need to backhaul from a hub is gone," he said. "We know the product works and we are announcing it as something that is, not something that is going to be."

The company is not in the business of selling, Evslin said. It will charge by the minute for completed calls, but not for the customer premises device. The Snarc is provided, owned and managed by ITXC.

"Companies that wanted this service before had to pay for backhaul. Now it is easier to set up," said Chris Whitely, an analyst with The Insight Research Corp. "For those with a backhaul system already, this will be no different. For new customers it is attractive because they do not have to wait to start transporting traffic."

ITXC has been offering a limited availability trial of the Snarc and is now offering general availability to qualified switch-based resellers and carriers in deregulated countries with substantial volumes of international calling.