Alltel enters P2T biz

Beginning Thursday this week, Alltel will be the latest U.S. carrier to launch a press-to-talk service. The carrier’s offering, Touch2Talk, is based on a CDMA voice-channel solution developed by Kodiak Networks.

The new service will be available to about 50% of Alltel’s POPs, including Little Rock, Phoenix, Charlotte, New Orleans, Cleveland and Tampa, the company said. It will be available in all markets by March 31.

Alltel subscribers will be able to add Touch2Talk to calling plans at a cost of $5 for 100 minutes per month, and $20 per month for unlimited minutes. They can use their existing phone numbers, but will need to purchase a new Kyocera tri-mode handset. The service also will allow management of group call lists, the price of which may vary by calling plan.

Touch2Talk is based on Kodiak's Real-Time Exchange System, a packet-switched solution that leverages a network’s existing voice-channel capacity. Alltel reportedly had been testing P2T technologies for more than a year, though the Kodiak system was unveiled only late last year.

Just last week, Kodiak announced commercial availability of its new version of the RTX System for GSM networks, and said U.K. operator Orange is using it to support its P2T roll out.