SunRocket, 8 by 8 announce deals

Two VoIP service providers today announced marketing deals to expand their reach. SunRocket announced an agreement with phone-maker Thomson to explore ways to promote its services while 8x8 announced an alliance with online marketing company Broadband National to sell its Packet8 VoIP offering.

As VoIP has entered the mainstream, stand-alone VoIP providers have had to work harder to gain market share.

SunRocket’s deal with Thomson, which licenses the GE brand of telephone products, will include future GE-branded products that leverage VoIP capabilities SunRocket offers, as the companies work together to make it easier for consumers to use VoIP and buy VoIP-related products.

“Thomson's reputation for reliable, easy-to-use consumer telephony products has no equal in the minds of millions of consumers, which is why SunRocket is thrilled they have selected us to launch some of these next generation network products into the residential Internet phone service market,” said Lisa Hook, president and chief executive officer at SunRocket, in a prepared statement. “From the beginning, we have prided ourselves on delivering consumer-friendly Internet phone service at an unprecedented value, so our relationship with Thomson to market SunRocket's service is a natural fit.”

Broadband National, which operates a comparative shopping Web site for broadband services and related products and a call center for customer service and sales, will offer Packet8 business and residential VoIP service along with its broadband services. In addition, 8x8 will refer its customers to Broadband National to purchase the broadband service required to deliver VoIP.

“Businesses and consumers are well aware of the advantages VoIP phone service offers and will actively conduct research to find the best combination of broadband access and hosted business phone services that will save them the most money while providing the flexibility and feature set that best suits their needs,” says Huw Rees, 8x8 vice president of sales and marketing, in a prepared statement.