VON: Vortex goes national on Tekelec

SAN JOSE--Vortex Broadband Communications is launching its fixed wireless voice and data services nationally, using Tekelec’s 6000 VoIP Application Servers to deliver voice, broadband and hosting VoIP servers.

The Florida-based service provider has been deploying Tekelec 6000s for some time and began trialing hosting PBX and VoIP services to businesses and residences in Florida in 2004, said Todd Shepherd, president and founder.

“This enables us to get into these markets and offer a differentiated service from the other 2500 broadband WISPs,” he said. “Data-only solutions don’t scale. You can either chase the lower price broadband services or offer differentiated service. Voice is a high-margin service, and important to our business and residential customers. Using the Tekelec system enables us to offer a virtual PBX service that is creating a huge expansion in the SoHo market.”

Vortex offers wireless-base voice, broadband, point-to-point services, VoIP, Wi-Fi and virtual private network services over its fixed wireless infrastructure. The company is expanding nationally through acquisitions, Shepherd said.

“We are selecting specific markets and identifying other WISPs that we want to acquire,” he said. “That gives us our initial footprint and tower locations.”

“This is not best-effort VoIP, it is a managed VoIP service that meets business needs,” said Mark Whittier, vice president of corporate marketing for Tekelec.

Customers don’t have to buy a PBX to get the hosted service, which is another appealing aspect, Shepherd said. They buy IP phones or an integrated access device.

“From there, the service extends to wherever they want to go,” he said. “They can go virtually anywhere in the world. It’s great for disaster recovery and a lot of other things we are just beginning to discover.”

Voice messaging is integrated into the product and customers can do click to call in order to answer voicemail. The service is sold at a flat $49.95 a seat per month.

“We don’t nickel and dime you for each service,” Shepherd said. His company plans to launch IPTV over fixed wireless later this year.